A friend of mine got legal residency in New Zealand a couple of years ago as global tensions rose around wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
He was only half joking about why. His reasoning is that if WW3 breaks out and the nukes start flying, he would want to be in New Zealand.
But he’s not picking up his life, abandoning all caution, and permanently moving to a new country.
He just has a plan, and the basics in place. So if the stuff ever hits the fan, he won’t have to wonder what his next move is. In the meantime, nothing in his life has changed… except that he has legal residency in another country where he enjoys spending his vacations. He’s not hiding in a bunker waiting for the apocalypse.
Multiple elections have come and gone since then, and he still hasn’t moved to New Zealand.
Elections usually go the same way. The winners’ best hopes get slashed, and the losers’ worst fears never come true.
Look at the Republicans. Two years ago they won everything: the White House, both houses of Congress, historic momentum. They could have completely rewritten America’s Byzantine tax code, taken a hatchet to the Code of Federal Regulations, and cut the deficit just by attacking obvious fraud and waste.
That alone would have been enough to usher in the new ‘Golden Age’ we were promised. The economy would be booming.
Instead, they threw it all in the trash on strange priorities, puzzling tariffs, protecting Epstein’s friends, blundering into foreign wars, and failing to do a single fiscally responsible thing… all before topping it off with rolling out some of the worst candidates imaginable.
Nice work, guys!
But that’s literally the reason to have a a Plan B… because even when you think things are going to finally turn out well, politicians can find a way to disappoint you.
That said, many of our friends, members, and acquaintances have made moving abroad their Plan A, whether to better match their lifestyle, budget, or even preferred climate. And many say that leaving the tension and division from US politics behind as a major benefit.
A subscriber of ours moved his family to Panama years ago and got his residency. He obviously heard about the mid-terms, but he wasn’t really paying attention and he doesn’t much care. His life overseas doesn’t depend on who controls Congress.
Another family we know moved to Portugal to raise their kids in a place where teachers don’t ask four-year-olds for their pronouns, and where friendships don’t break up over political opinions.
Another couple moved to Mexico where living costs run about half what they paid at home. It’s not relevant to them that neither party will cut spending to control inflation.
There’s also plenty of folks who haven’t moved yet, but hold a residency abroad. Or a foreign bank account. Or some investments overseas. Some even own a house or condo they visit a few weeks a year.
They live, vote, and pay taxes in the US— and they have no pressing need to Google where they can flee to because of some election results. They ALREADY have their backup option.
And frankly, one disappointing election is not the trigger they chose to execute their Plan B and make the move.
But whatever happens next, they will decide their path from a position of strength.
And the best kind of planning has nothing to do with who wins an election. It’s generational.
A few weeks before the midterms, one reader wrote in about an expected child; he wants his son or daughter to have a second citizenship from day one.
We told him about options in countries that provide birthright citizenship, like Mexico, Panama, or Brazil. The kid will be a citizen from birth. And the parents usually get fast-tracked to permanent residency and then citizenship.
Bear in mind that the “from birth” part matters. The US charges an exit tax on wealthy citizens who give up their citizenship, and someone who held both citizenships from birth can be exempt (as long as he still holds the other one, lives there, and hasn’t lived in the US for more than 10 of the previous 15 years).
That’s amazing optionality in a country that’s already discussing wealth taxes and punishment for leaving.
I did the same thing for my children. My kids were born in Mexico during the pandemic. And we chose Mexico deliberately.
For one, where we were in Mexico was very relaxed. Our lives were pretty much normal— no masks, no lockdowns.
It was also world-class medical care at affordable prices. Both of my kids have Mexican citizenship (and their little passports), and my wife and I were able to obtain permanent residency… even though we do not live in Mexico.
It’s not about fleeing, and it’s certainly not about packing your bags over an election result.
Obtaining foreign residency doesn’t mean that you have to move, it’s just an option. And an election outcome doesn’t have to be the reason you apply for one.
Maybe it’s cost of living, or distance from the likely hot zones, or just a place you love— beaches, mountains, culture. Or it’s an investment property that pays rent while it sits in your back pocket.
You won’t be any worse off for holding a residency you never use. And if the time ever comes, there’s no scrambling or panicked decision making.
P.S. The reader with the unborn child got his answer in the monthly Q&A that comes with Plan B Confidential, Schiff Sovereign’s flagship research service.
That’s one small piece of it. This year alone, members got boots-on-the-ground country reports on Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia, with residency routes and costs spelled out step by step, plus a report on opening bank accounts in the UAE and Singapore.
And for when you decide to act, there’s a Rolodex of vetted immigration attorneys, tax advisors and private bankers.
