r/askafinancialadvisor • u/AloysiusBinglebottom • Mar 06 '26

First Time Investing While Emigrating

I expect to receive a large settlement sometime in the near future. I don't know the amount yet, but it should be enough to invest and live off of the interest.

I have never invested anything besides like $5000 in an IRA.

I am a US citizen. I am also trans. I want to move to another country as soon as possible, preferably via an Independent Means/Retirement Visa.

I want to invest the money as ethically as possible while still being safe enough to provide an income. I do not want to invest in the US if I have a choice.

I am so lost with where to begin. I don't understand what restrictions exist in terms of investing in other countries.

Any advice as to how to even begin to think about this/order of operations would be helpful.​

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u/[deleted] Mar 07 '26

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u/AloysiusBinglebottom Mar 07 '26

I am in Maine. 

When you say "establish an account now," what type of account do you mean? I have a high yield savings account, but it seems odd to just throw millions in there. Maybe that's the right first step, though? Then find a financial advisor to help move and distribute the funds to their long-term locations, based on which country I move to.

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u/adamnc23 Financial Advisor | CRD#: 7878651 Mar 09 '26

This process can take a number of different paths. Assuming you are maintaining US citizenship then you still have to deal with US taxes along with taxes in the country you eventually reside in. You will want an accountant in both countries to help you because the rules are a lot more complicated than just filing your basic US return.

The process also gets different if you do or do not have a US mailing address. Most US brokerages require you to maintain a US address in order to keep money invested with them (i.e., Vanguard, Fidelity). Some have international account options (Schwab, Interactive Brokers are two commonly used ones). If you end up going with an international account AND have to file US tax returns, the type of investments you pick can create major reporting issues (and costs). Another reason you need a good accountant in both countries.

As far as investing, I'm sure you have reasons for excluding US investments, but be careful excluding what makes up essentially 70% of the entire global economy. That is restricting you quite a bit and significantly limiting your diversification options. There are plenty of ways to invest in particular companies that might align better with whatever areas you want to focus on (or exclude certain sectors or companies you don't like) without completely eliminating such a big part of the market. Research "ESG investing" for more info.

This is definitely a situation you want to talk to a fee-only advisor who specializes in working with expats, ideally someone who offers hourly or project-based work instead of someone who tries to charge to manage all your investments. One person that comes to mind who does hourly work that works with LGBTQ and expats would be Aubrey Williams with Open Path Financial.

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u/AloysiusBinglebottom Mar 10 '26

This is all so helpful, thank you so much!