Sharing time between two countries

[Noah+Olga 0]

Hi everyone!

We havent been here in a long time.But this is without a doubt the best place to get answers if you have any questions.

So heres my question.

I will be applying for my citizenship this year. My hubby and I are seriously thinking about living 6 months here in the US and the other 6 months in Saint Petersburg.

is it even possible?Do you know anyone who does that?

Every answer will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much and good luck!!

[The Mean Lady 604]

Your primary domicile must be in the US.

If you set up permanent residence in another country, this CAN be viewed as intention to abandon your green card.

Your overall presence in the US is also considered for naturalization.

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=3f443a4107083210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=3f443a4107083210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD

I would not push your luck with 6 and 6 back and forth, personally

[Noah+Olga 0]

Thanks for your reply.

i guess we can cross that option out.:-(

Im just having a really hard time living here in the States even though we'll be celebrating our 4 year anniversary on Thursday .So we thought maybe we could try and split the time between two countries.I met a couple once,he is American,shes from Ukraine and they are doing it somehow.

Unfortunately I didnt have the time to talk to them and ask more .:-(

[christeen 966]

Once you are granted citizenship, you can live wherever you wish, for as long as you wish... As a green card holder, you have to maintain primary residency in USA...

[UK_Fan 192]

yeah once you're a citizen, you can live wherever, the first person to reply to you had misunderstood you.

[The Mean Lady 604]

Oh woops! Yes! I apologize I didn't see the citizenship part!

LIVE WHERE YOU WANT!

BE FREE!!!!!!!!!!!

[Noah+Olga 0]

So once i become a citizen we will be able to do the 6/6 ?and i wont have any problems coming here or going there?Neither will he?

Thanks for your help guys!

[The Mean Lady 604]

yeah once you're a citizen, you can live wherever, the first person to reply to you had misunderstood you.

Thank you for politely pointing that out!

So once i become a citizen we will be able to do the 6/6 ?and i wont have any problems coming here or going there?Neither will he?

Thanks for your help guys!

Yes, once you're a naturalized citizen, you can stay permanently in russia if you wanted.

Come back 5 years from now freely if you even wanted.

[Noah+Olga 0]

thats great!Thanks everyone for your input i really appreciate it!!

Good luck and talk to you soon !im sure Ill have more questions :-)

[The Mean Lady 604]

Good luck on your citizenship journey!

[baron555 934]

Thanks for your reply.

i guess we can cross that option out.:-(

Im just having a really hard time living here in the States even though we'll be celebrating our 4 year anniversary on Thursday .So we thought maybe we could try and split the time between two countries.I met a couple once,he is American,shes from Ukraine and they are doing it somehow.

Unfortunately I didnt have the time to talk to them and ask more .:-(

Nothing personal meant but if you don't have time to talk to another fellow FSU person, how is it you are having a hard time living here?

My wife wil gladly talk on the phone or Skype.....but she is also very busy and keeps very busy. She's unable to work just yet (mainly because of the little one) but keeps very busy. She will also state about some of the difficulties of living here versus there but will also admit there are more advantages here than there.

[SMR 368]

First, there is obviously the financial. You need to pay for travel and two residences while constantly switching jobs (unless retired or able to work remotely). If you can do that financially, power to you.

The other issue I see is that your husband will need to figure out how to stay in Russia. He can try to apply for temporary residency and then permanent residency in Russia (which will be easier based on his marriage to you), but if he's leaving every six months it will probably not work out. He can also apply for visas regularly and leave to renew his migration card, etc. I'm not current on the laws around this and I'm aware they've changed recently. A homestay or business visa will last longer than a tourist visa, but in any case this will add to the burden of travel, paperwork, and fees that you have to keep up with. There are certainly American expats who live in Russia and deal with these types of issues, but you probably won't find many of them here.

[eekee 182]

You can get three year tourist visas and stay for six months each year. I know people who are staying for longer on them, but you are technically entitled to 180 days/year and you are taking a risk.

You guys can check out the forums on expat.Ru for expat-centered info, but they are heavily slanted toward Moscow. There is a SPb-focused group on internations that may be helpful as well.

You cannot retain вид на жительство if you are living in Russia only part-time, and honestly I know very few people who do it, even those who have lived in Russia for years and are married to Russians. Spending time at OVIR is much more of a pain than renewing visas.

Edited June 26, 2013 by eekee

[SMR 368]

You can get three year tourist visas and stay for six months each year. I know people who are staying for longer on them, but you are technically entitled to 180 days/year and you are taking a risk.

You guys can check out the forums on expat.Ru for expat-centered info, but they are heavily slanted toward Moscow. There is a SPb-focused group on internations that may be helpful as well.

You cannot retain вид на жительство if you are living in Russia only part-time, and honestly I know very few people who do it, even those who have lived in Russia for years and are married to Russians. Spending time at OVIR is much more of a pain than renewing visas.

It's good to hear this has gotten easier.

One other thing I learned is that Russia recently passed a law to tax its citizens based on global income. The tax will only be paid by those who return to Russia regularly. However, there doesn't seem to be a system to offset taxes paid to foreign governments, so depending on how it's enforced it could be a major burden. The law was only passed recently and it's not yet clear how the tax will be collected.

[domwardbound 73]

It's good to hear this has gotten easier.

One other thing I learned is that Russia recently passed a law to tax its citizens based on global income. The tax will only be paid by those who return to Russia regularly. However, there doesn't seem to be a system to offset taxes paid to foreign governments, so depending on how it's enforced it could be a major burden. The law was only passed recently and it's not yet clear how the tax will be collected.

Haven't heard that.. kind of disconcerting actually, even though 13% is still low, it would be unfortunate on top of US income tax since there is no tax treaty between the US and Russia. Any links/sources?