It’s the little things (that can drive you crazy)

Phew. Moving abroad is not for the faint of heart or those who don’t enjoy planning and ever growing to-do lists. This blog I’m dedicating to discussing all the little things that I’ve had to think about and prepare for when moving abroad.

GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS

I’m a citizen of Canada, the United States, and Ireland. As such, I have passports for all three countries. My Canadian passport is set to expire in early 2025, so, as I’ve heard that mail and courier services to/from Mexico are questionable at best, I made the somewhat last-minute decision to renew it before I leave the United States. The passport website said that the processing time was approximately 20 business days, so it should be back to me in time for the move. I currently have 1 month, 17 days, 16 hours, and 16 minutes before the move. We’ll see. Eep.

My United States passport isn’t set to expire until 2028. Still, I became concerned about having to renew it in 2027/2028 with the incoming administration (especially as I’m a naturalized citizen in the US, albeit a white one, who would be living abroad at the time the renewal was to take place). I don’t know if the incoming administration will deprioritize passport renewals for naturalized citizens, will deprioritize passport renewals for citizens living abroad, or will defund the entire passport renewal office entirely. I feel anything is on the table. As such, I opted, rather last minute, to get it renewed before I leave so that it’s valid through 2034. I also added the passport card. Why, I don’t know, but I just felt I wanted as much documentation as possible. The website said expedited by-mail applications (which is what I opted for) are taking between 2-3 weeks to process. I am 1 month, 17 days, 16 hours, and 15 minutes out from the move date, so again, like the Canadian passport, I think I should be good. I need to present my US passport along with my Mexican residency card at the border to gain entrance, so there won’t be any moving until I have it back in hand. No pressure!

As for my Irish passport, it’s good through 2027, and I don’t want to leave myself without any passport, so Imma just leave it for now and renew it closer to the expiration date.

PENSION PLANS

I don’t know how reliable this is, but I read in one Facebook group that one should create logins for the IRS and Social Security Administration before leaving the United States (implying it could not be done on a foreign computer, but I’m guessing a VPN would solve that). As I figured it can’t hurt, I did so. I also tried to create a login for the Canadian Pension Plan site, but as I could not recall the last postal code for the house I lived in in Canada 20 years ago (!?!), it wouldn’t let me. I did call them though and they’re mailing me a code and I should have access soon (glad I looked into this before moving though, as there’s no real reliable mail service in Mexico, so I may have never received a code if they tried to mail me there).

Anyhoo, digressing, in creating all of these logins, I realized you can see what your estimated pension/social security payments will be come retirement time (if these still exist come retirement time). It was very enlightening (with a side of realizing I’m likely going to be working up until the morning of my funeral). Having the logins established now will make access easier down the road (IRS and SSA both use the ID.me login application), so I’m glad I did this. That being said, the logins require 2FA, so you’ll need access to your phone number to sign in in the future… (see more on that below)

SOCIAL SECURITY

So this is likely just for me, hahaha, but when I signed into my Social Security account, I realized that I had not updated my citizenship status with them when I obtained my citizenship in 2018 (I kinda recall being told to do so, but apparently promptly forgot). Soooooooo, they currently have me in their system as a non-citizen, which, with the incoming administration, could maybe be a problem? I dunno. Not wishing to risk anything, I plan on heading to their office to ensure this is rectified before I leave. Fun.

PHONE NUMBER(S)

I’ve had my Tmobile phone number for 20 years and want to keep it. It’s the number everyone knows, and it’s the number allllllllll of my two-factor authentications (2FA) go to (including IRS and SSA, as mentioned above). I could keep my Tmobile service for a while in Mexico but many report that after spending approximately 18 months - 2 years abroad, American carriers start cutting them off and canceling their service. As I don’t want to risk it (and also, phone plans in Mexico are soooo much less expensive), I will be porting my TMobile number to Google Voice ($20 one-time fee), and then procuring a Mexican eSIM once I arrive (so that I’ll have a local Mexican number, which is required for things like establishing bank accounts and utility services in the country). The timing on this one is tricky, as the moment I port my number (which must be done while in the US), I’ll be without any type of cellular service (which means the only data service I’ll have is through Wifi - which is fine when somewhere with wifi, but not so great when not). And as I can’t sign up for Mexican service until I’m in the country, and as the drive down is going to take four days, and as I don’t want to stop on the way to set up phone service (the drive times are going to be tight enough already - because you don’t want to be driving when it’s dark), I may have to purchase an eSIM through a provider like Airalo to bridge the gap. That being said, the cost is negligible, and it’s more just the logistics of ensuring constant coverage while traveling (for safety, google maps, etc) that are stressing me out.

DOGS

While traveling into Mexico is pretty simple with dogs, I’ll just need to show that their rabies vaccines are up-to-date, I also want to ensure that I make the transition as easy as possible for them. The food I was feeding them here (JustforDogs) is not available in Mexico, and as I haven’t been able to find one that I like that is available in both countries, I decided to start cooking for them instead. They’ve been on this new diet for a few weeks now, to ensure no ill-effects of the change. As I should be able to gather the same ingredients in Mexico at my local grocery store, this was the easiest solution for me. That being said, just in the last week or two, a Petco has opened up in La Paz, so I may take a look at what they offer when I get there.

I also have to account for being able to bring their food across the border for the four-day drive, as some food items cannot be imported. For the drive, I’m going to rely on a relatively bland diet of items that we are allowed to import, hopefully guaranteeing no GI distress and no one throwing out their food at the border.

I also have to account for Oona and her anti-inflammatory prescription. Our vet has provided me with a 90-day supply (up from the regular 30-day supply), allowing me time to find a vet in La Paz who can continue the queen’s care. All I have to say is that Oona better outlive this bottle of meds, because it was hellaciously expensive (another benefit of Mexico - vet care and meds are so much more economical). And in the spirit of ensuring continuity of care, my vet is also going to print out all of their records, ensure both dogs are up-to-date on ALL their vaccines (not just rabies), and are emailing everything to me, so I have it on file to provide to their future vet (I’ll also print copies for the border crossing).

Another thing I need to keep in mind is that the CDC has just released new guidelines to bring dogs back into the United States, so should I wish to return with them, I’ll have to ensure they meet those requirements (which are a lot more strict that when entering into Mexico). They dialed back a number of them, as some were near impossible to achieve, but they are still far more strict than just driving into Mexico, so something to keep in mind.

So, these are a few of the things keeping me up at night …. lol ….