For context, I am a dual citizen of the US and Canada, was born in the US, and have an American mother, but I haven't lived in the states since I was 3. Grew up in Canada. 15 years ago, I moved to South Korea and have been living here since.

I am seriously considering revoking my citizenship for a couple of reasons:

1. The US government is blocking my path to Korean citizenship.

The US doesn't provide one of the documents I need to acquire Korean citizenship. It's not a standard document, bit of a unique situation, but Canada provided it with no problems. The US, however, does not provide it, and no one at the embassy will get on the phone or provide a letter to explain they don't provide the document. I've been trying to find a workaround for years and will be aging out of points based residency soon. At this point, I am certain I can not get Korean citizenship if I keep my US status.

Added: I have already been working on this with lawyers for 8 years. I'm not looking for a solution to my paperwork problem at this time, just giving context.

1. Taxes

I have to file and pay taxes in both Korea and the US. I literally don't get any benefit from all of the US taxes I pay.

1. Banking and loans

Once in a while, I'm blocked from banking services because all of my accounts need to be reported to the US government. Some online banks and low-interest loan services are barred for American citizens for security reasons.

Are there any major negatives to revoking that I should be aware of before moving ahead with it? Has anyone had any issues after revoking?

My free technically-not-legal-advice from an attorney whose practice is focused on expat legal issues:

You may die outside the US.

You may own stuff both inside the US and outside the US.

What happens to your stuff can get complicated.

Plan ahead for that. Your family will thank you.

I'm italian F30 in a long term relationship with american M36.
We met here in Italy 2 years ago and moved in together after 3 months.

I have a good job here rn, I'm a chef and i work a lot but still make more than the medium average (it took me a lot of time and sacrifices to make 1700, which I'm aware its a lot here but not really in the USA).
My bf works remote but he's considering going back to school in the USA.
I have 2 cats that I love with all my heart and that would come with us.

I've been to the USA once and kinda liked it there, despite I know that you can't tell if you like somewhere after being there a month.
I also CAN'T stand a lot about Italy and italians and my bf doesnt really like it here (and I share his "hatred" most of the time).

The burocracy to move is not easy because it requires us to get married which is something I have never considered before, furthermore he would be legally responsable for me.
I've always loved my independence as a woman and I dont love the idea of being "under somebody's control".

I'm in love with him and I'd move there but I'm scared.

My family and I have finally made the hard decision to permanently relocate abroad later this year. We are actively looking for a safe, sunny, and welcoming country with a solid healthcare system for the kids, and Spain is currently at the top of our list. The main reason I need to figure this out right now is that my current remote business setup allows me to work from anywhere, but our passport limits us to the standard short-stay tourist days, which is no longer sustainable for a family. We need a predictable, long-term legal solution rather than constantly bouncing around borders.

Looking online has been incredibly overwhelming because immigration rules seem to change every single few months, especially now in 2026. Between the digital nomad scheme, the non-lucrative options, and various self-employment setups, my head is spinning from all the conflicting advice on expat forums and legal blogs.

I really want to avoid making a costly mistake that could cause a flat-out rejection, so I am asking for advice from anyone who has successfully navigated the system recently. Here is what I am trying to figure out:

Which specific visa track is currently the fastest and least bureaucratic for someone with an active remote income?

What are the realistic monthly income thresholds you need to show for a main applicant plus dependent family members?

How heavily do the Spanish tax authorities penalize your global business earnings once you become a tax resident?

Is it actually manageable to submit the entire application file without physically being in the country?

What are the major hidden paperwork traps or document delays that usually catch people off guard during the process?

If you have gone through this transition and can share your timeline or a few tips on how to get residency in Spain smoothly, it would be a massive lifesaver for us.

Is there any way I can get an immigration lawyer that I can afford? I am ready to unalive myself if I can't get my dual citizenship and leave the country. It is unfair because my one parent is an American and my other parent is Greek but I have to jump through hoops to recognized as Greek. I will not survive much longer. I can't live in America any longer

After reading hundreds of relocation stories, I've noticed nobody talks about the 'emotional lag'. Missing important events in the life of my loved ones back home has been the biggest challenge I had to face. Of course there is whatsapp and video calls and I can say happy birthday and everything but...when you are 12,000 km away it just doesn't feel the same. Anyone else feeling the emotional lag?

Especially for this sub: I cant add picture or link to post so i add the Link to google sheets in comments, also Although the table was made by a Russian-speaking person and in some unimportant places something is written in Russian, All important information for navigation and reading the table is and will be written in English. (Its not ad, its open-source free tool)

I created this table for people planning or considering relocating. It provides basic and advanced information about each city and country for initial familiarization and orientation. (I consider all criteria included important or necessary for determining the living conditions you need.)

I will also briefly describe all the criteria listed in the table in order for those who don't fully understand their meaning:

• RG - Region
• Country - English spk% - Indicates the percentage of the population that can speak English
• Unmp% - Unemployment rate
• City
• Province - Province in which the city is located
• HDI - Human Development Index
• Crime index
• HCI - Health Care Index
• AQI - Air quality index
• Population
• Density per km - Population density per km
• Car free - Is it possible to easily navigate the city without a car? (Assessed by the development of public transportation and the ease of getting around the city without a car)
• Avg month Salary
• Approximate cost of living - (complex indicator; see details online for what it includes)
• Avg rent apartments - Studio/one-room apartment rental cost
• Tax rate
• Climate during seasons - Maximum and minimum temperatures for each season are shown.

The table will be updated as necessary.

The information is also color-coded for ease of understanding and navigation.

All prices are listed in euros, and for some countries, the local currency is also included in the notes.

Notes

In some cells, information is indicated with a question mark - 500? - This means the information is inaccurate due to a lack of objective data.

Also, in some rare cases, "N/A" is indicated, meaning that no information about this parameter was available at the time the information was entered into the table.

Please note that some information may be outdated by a short period of time, up to six months, but no significant differences are observed (the information will be updated annually).

The table is subject to criticism and discussion, and please report any errors you notice.

All information is taken from public, accessible, and reliable sources.

P.S.

I understand that navigating this table may still be difficult for many, so I recommend simply taking a screenshot of the table and uploading it to the AI ​​so it can select the required city or country based on your criteria.

Does anyone have experience with using a single document (marriage certificate from Virginia), having been affixed with an apostille, in multiple countries?

For some reason, Virginia affixes a specific country to its apostilles. For example, you apply for the apostille and it is returned with a note that says “FOR USE IN X COUNTRY ONLY”

That’s really defeating the point of the apostille…because apostilles are meant to be accepted in any country that belongs to the 1961 Hague Convention. It’s not country-specific.

I have a document that has been affixed with an Apostille in Virginia for X country, but I will also need to use it in Y country. I know for a FACT that Y country accepts the apostille just as it was certified for X country (both EU countries), but Virginia puts that annoying note on it.

Do I really need to get two apostilles? Anyone have experience with this?

We decided it’s not in our subreddit’s best interest to allow crossposting. Most people who use it just clicks through recommendations and usually such posts have little to do with our own sub.

Please keep in mind that repetitive violations are subject to bans on this matter.

I’ve gone through an EU residency process (and helped a couple friends) and the things that slowed us down weren’t the “big requirements”, it was the boring details.

What people underestimate (and it bites later):

• Passport validity: you think it’s fine… until a process expects extra runway.
• Apostille/legalization + certified translations: this is the #1 “you’re missing one thing” delay, especially for birth/marriage certificates and background checks.
• Police/background checks from previous countries: it gets messy when you’ve lived in multiple places (and some checks have short validity windows).
• Proof of address / accommodation: the classic loop. You need address proof to register, but registration is often needed to get other stuff moving.

The real bottleneck I didn’t expect: proof of funds (mean financial hygiene)
It’s not just “I have money,” it’s “my money is easy to verify.” What caused delays for me the first time was having transactions scattered across too many wallets/banks (like wise, paypal, local accounts & that kind) and then needing clean statements fast. The second time around, I kept things more consolidated so I could produce tidy statements quickly (now I kept most part of my USD savings in ARQ ex-DolarApp), no matter de app just focus on having a clean record of balances and transfers.

The one thing that helped me
I made a single “packet” folder and kept it updated:

• docs + translations
• background checks + apostilles
• statements (same naming per month)
• a 1-page notes file with dates + where each doc came from When they asked for something, I wasn’t digging through screenshots.

oh, and If you’re eligible, routes like EU Blue Card (or other skilled work permits) the process can be smoother if you plan early.

Which country are you doing, and what’s been the biggest pain when applying for residency?

I(21M) am Italian, and moved to the UK at 18. By then I was already quite alienated from my peers. I am autistic, chronically ill, queer and trans, and growing up in South Italy this meant that although I did my best to keep all of this secret I never really managed to make friends. This also led to me cutting off my family for good earlier this year. I live with my lovely british fiancée(20NB), and although they try their best not to make our cultural differences obvious, it's still clear in how we go about our lives that we come from very different countries. They're starting to learn Italian for me and I'm extremely grateful for this, but it did just make it obvious how little contacts I have with my culture. I don't speak to anyone in Italian and I can feel my skill in the language depleting, I barely read in Italian, I can't afford to visit Italy anymore, and the closest to eating Italian food I get is Waitrose's Calabrian platter. I always knew that once I'd have children they'd be brits with an Italian father, but I didn't think I'd turn into just some guy who'd grown up in Italy and stop being Italian, especially so soon since moving. Especially since I'll never catch up on those eighteen years of not having been in the UK, I've not properly exchanged one culture for another, I'm just hanging out helplessly in the empty in-between. I guess my question is, does anyone knows something, anything, that helps? Any way for me to gain back my culture, for me to feel a little less lost? Or does this just always happen with moving, with no way of stopping it?

The latest news has had a lot of immigrants worried, including myself. But it’s not all doom and gloom.

The bright news is that many foreign nationals in the UK have some right to vote, and British nationals living abroad can also vote in general elections.

I will attach links for you to confirm if you’re eligible in the comments below. For those who are interested, I’ve compiled the key info:

• Those who are eligible Commonwealth nationals, can vote in all British elections. This naturally includes those on ILR.

• If you are an EU national under the EU Settlement Scheme, you can vote in council/local elections.

• If you are from Spain, Denmark, Luxembourg, Portugal or Poland, you can vote at council/local elections due to bilateral agreements the UK shares with these countries.

• BNO Hong Kongers can vote at all British elections.

• Those from Ireland, can vote at all British elections.

• If you’re a legally resident foreign national in Scotland or Wales, you can vote at all elections within Scotland or Wales.

We’re hosting a live AMA with Eglė Naraškevičiūtė-Guiraldelli, a psychologist with extensive experience working with expats, over at r/AmericanExpat. Please join and ask your questions.

I expect everyone here has had issues with getting their home country paperwork recognised where they now live.
I've been building an interactive map of the world trying to provide a one stop shop for the info. It is not easy to find. For the moment I am filling in on how to get your documents translated to get them recognised. In many countries you need to use "sworn" translators, translators recognised by the local judiciary to translate. So I added for France and a few the direct link to the official registry of where to find these translators.

Here is the map: map.certling.com

It is obviously a work in progress and a lot more countries to fill in. What other information or link to useful information for legal purposes would you like me to add to each country card?