I am looking to spend several months in Belize in a short term rental property (still searching), but do not want to stay to where they consider me a resident. Do you know where I can find out information on this issue? I am a US citizen and just don't want to be double taxed basically. Any help is appreciated!

You are not taxed on income from outside Belize.
You get a visa stamped in your passport upon entry into the country. It is good for 30 days. When that is about to run out you go to immigration and apply for an extension. This stamp will cost you $25US and will be good for another 30 days. You get this every 30 days for up to 6 months. With this stamp you may not do work in Belize but you are okay to stay.

All you need to do is present yourself at immigration once a month for the extension of your tourist visa. This will cost 50BZD a month until you have been here six months from the time of last leaving the country. If you do a full six month stretch without leaving, your monthly stamp as a tourist will increase to 100BZD a month. Don't forget and don't be late. They can take it pretty seriously. Immigration for extensions is open from 1 - 4pm Mon to Fri. The office is above Island Perk, which is across the road from Fidos. Both of these are well known land marks and right in the centre of town.

Perfect - very helpful and what I needed to know. Now I just need to figure out where to get a rental property to stay in at San Pedro for 6 months...any ideas?

6 months is considered long term. Try B-Lease, Caye Management, or the classifieds (on line). Less than 6 months is considered short term (vacation rentals) and you are required to pay a hotel tax of 9%.

My friend Arne at Caldwell-Banker may have a long term on the Lagoon side.

Have you found a rental property for your 6 months stay? I have a condo available in Reef Village for long term rental if you are interested.

Zan

zander, do you still have that long term rental?

hello everyone,
one, could anyone come to belize as a volunteer, if so do they provide accomodations. whould airfair be included?

Only the organization that you volunteer for would be able to answer the accomodations and airfare questions. You would need to have a volunteer work permit as well.

When I renew my visa, if I'm asked how long I plan to stay for, what should I say? If I plan to be here long-term should I declare that or just say 'one more month' each time?

Cheers...

Be honest about the length of stay. You might have to show a return plane ticket, bring it with you when you go for your visa extension, and make sure it is valid and not expired. You can extend your visa one month at a time for the first six months. It is 50 bzd a month, after that its 100 bzd a month. If you plan on being here more than 12 months, you will need to get a work permit, even if its a self employement work permit. Otherwise you will need to exit the country for a while (probably a few weeks) and come back in.

You might also have to file for an extension if you plan to stay longer than 6 months. Be honest with them and tell it straight up, nothing worse to get caught in a lie.

I heard from someone recently that the rule about only being allowed to be outside of Belize for 14 days during the first year of being here (if you're aiming for residency) is wrong; and that it is actually 14 days in any visa period (i.e. 14 days out of every month).

And that, as long as you're not out of the country when the visa needs to be renewed, you'll be okay.

Can anyone shed any light on this please?

Wrong, from my experience.
You are allowed to be out of the country a total of 14 days over 365. Exceptions may be granted for medical reasons and under some business travel. Totaly up to whoever is interviewing you for residency.

Another thing, the US does not stamp your passport when you
re-enter the US. It is all done electronicaly. In order to verify your travel to and from Belize, you have to keep your ticket stubs or some other airline record of your departure and arrival dates to prove how long you were here. Passports aren't enough.

You can request that your passport be stamped upon arrival in the US.

I saw your post about extending your stay on the island. I'm coming for a visit in Feb and was wondering what happens if I want to stay longer then a month? It's too late to get a visa but of course I have my passport. Do you have to have a visa to stay longer then a month?

Thanks for your help.

You would get your visa here, there is usually no problem, cost $25.

This is a snippet from a web page written by someone who, as I understand it, has a wealth of knowledge and experience about living and working in Belize.

Check out the line that ends '14 consecutive days'. It doesn't say '14 days in total out of 365', but that you are not allowed to be out of the country for more than 14 days at a time, in any one trip. I'm even more confused now...


By Lan Sluder:

3. OFFICIAL PERMANENT RESIDENT: Requirements and benefits are similar to those of the Retired Persons Incentive Act. The application process and supporting documents needed are virtually the same as for retired residency. Here are the main differences:

As a regular permanent resident, you do not have to deposit any particular sum in a bank in Belize. However, you do have to show financial resources sufficient to obtain residency status.

You can work for pay in Belize.

You must live in Belize for one full year before you can apply for regular permanent residency. During this period, you cannot leave the country for more than 14 consecutive days.

It is more expensive to apply for regular permanent residency than for retired permanent residency. Application fees vary according to your country of origin, ranging from US$125 (citizens of Mexico and Guatemala) to US$2,000. Citizens of the U.S. pay US$1,000, and most Commonwealth country residents also pay US$1,000. CARICOM citizens pay US$250. Once residency is granted, you pay a fee of US$62.50 for a residency card. Note that these fees are per-person, not per-application, as is the case for the Qualified Retired Persons program. For example, a married couple applying for permanent residency would pay US$1,250 with the application and US$125 for residency cards after approval.

The wording is wrong, it is 14 days in a calendar year (I've been through the process.)

Simon is correct.

Been through the process as well, 14 days out of 365.

Hi everyone/anyone,

I've been looking into coming to Belize. Any rentals available and any info on getting work? Where would be the best place to stay by the ocean and be able to get a job to pay to live in Belize? Guidance/help/advice appreciated.
Wendy

Hi all,

I too am looking to come to Belize in Feb (very soon). I was lookin gat Hostels but would like something a little nicer but still affordable. Want to stay a while and look for work. Is that difficult?

I found out today there may be a position with my company in Belize. I know a lot about relocation to Belize from the knowledable people on this board. any pointers that might help the process would be helpful.

Yes no more than 14 days in 1 full year. We did 4 days in Mexico and 10 in Canada then stayed put.

When I reached that point in time the woman at immigration had me go home to get flight tickets to verify the date before she handed me the papers we need to fill out.

Good luck Wade.

She did not believe the stamps in your passport? You have to copy every single page of your passport and present it with your application. At our final interview, we had to bring our passports and another set of photocopies as well to prove that during the process we had not left for more than 14 as well.

The US no longer stamps your passport when you enter so you have no verification in your passport when you left Belize. So they now what copies of your plane tickets

Tells you how long it has been since I was stateside! Thanks for the update.

Noted this earlier, you can request a stamp in your passport upon arrival in the US.

Hi Helper,

Question: No one would stamp my passport at the Int'l Airport when I came to stay in SP for a week. Do you have to ask them to stamp your passport?? If they don't stamp it can you run along pleading ignorance?

Are you sure??? I've ALWAYS had mine stamped upon entry - Goldson, Melchor, wherever.

This is the first time I have ever heard of somebody not having their passport stamped. They are very particular about not only stamping you as entering Belize, but they also stipulate how long you can remain in the country (if you use any passport that is not Belizean.)

My understanding as well, usually they want to know your departure date and stamp you for that date.

All of my passport stamps have been for 30 days.