Hobo Goes Home for Thanksgiving

Andy,

Foreign income exclusion.

I think your safety factor of 5-10 days for emergencies is a prudent idea.

Splitting hairs.

The IRS current publications state that the maximum foreign earned income exclusion is adjusted annually (since 2006) for inflation.
For 2007 tax returns, the maximum exclusion was increased to $85,700, and for 2008 returns it is $87,600.

And the requirement for days abroad is that a U.S. citizen or a U.S. resident alien must be physically present in a foreign country or countries for at least 330 full days during any period of 12 consecutive months.

You can actually be in the USA for 35 days per year but certainly wouldn't want to cut it close.

If my math is right, they would have us believe US inflation is only 2.2 percent annually. The Bureau of Labor Statistics show 4.1 percent inflation for 2007 and I calculate from the Bureau's website that the 2008 inflation is on track to be about 4.5 percent.

As I understand it, they don't include food or energy costs in the calculation. Seems silly as who can get around food and energy costs? As a result many experts seem to agree that real inflation is higher than officially reported in the US.

Hard to complain really as any way you slice it US inflation appears low to moderate by world standards.

The other thing that seems skewed is that they are adjusting the max income exclusion based on USA inflation for people NOT living in the USA. Thus, is it good strategy as a matter of efficiency to spend more time in countries with a combination of lower than US inflation and where purchasing power parity is advantageous?

All this is no big deal for those well under the max exclusion I suppose. But for those hovering near the threshold one tends to analyze a bit more.

Your Flights...

Interesting that both your flights BKK-IND and ORD(assumed)-GUA are right around 12 cents per mile.

Eric

Thanks for the update on the number, I wish I was closer.

I am a conservative person, I seldom need to split hairs, I believe in giving plenty of room for problems, the world is not a perfect place.

12 Cents per mile, this would be double former method of calculating world trips.