|
Retire Early
Lifestyle
Retirement; like your parents, but way cooler
|
In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age
of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this
financially independent lifestyle, they invite you
to take advantage of their wisdom and experience. |
|
Still Married, Until You’re
Not
Billy Kaderli
The documents I didn’t
know I still needed.
It would have been nice if
someone had mentioned this to me.
My Thai friend and I are
making progress, both emotionally and with the practical challenges of bringing
her here to Mexico and, hopefully, to the States.
Marriage has become the
simplest path for immigration. I brought it up a week or so ago, and she said,
“I didn’t bring up marriage—you did. Billy, we haven’t even met.” She has a
point. Honestly, it was the furthest thing from either of our minds.
What a difference a week
makes.
There are other visa options
for the U.S. and Mexico, but almost all require documented savings for six
months or so. She’s a Thai business owner who can support herself and travel
inside Thailand, but not on big international trips. She can’t qualify for those
visas. A U.S. passport still makes all the difference. Thank you, Mom and Dad.
If I sponsor her—which is my
pleasure—the bar is much lower.
We’re both learning this
process from different countries. Marriage isn’t difficult in Thailand, so we
can do that… or can we?
I described the dilemma to my
immigration lawyer here in Chapala. Her first question: “What’s your
status?” “What are you referring to?”“ Did you change your status to
widowed? ”No. “You’re lucky you’re still in the 90-day window.” She asked for the
original death certificate and both passports. Lucky I still had Akaisha’s
passport; I almost left it in the States. She said it would take a couple of
days and she’d text when it was ready to sign.
Had I gone to Thailand and
gotten married first, I apparently would still have had two wives—and I wouldn’t
have found out until the Mexican embassy. Then it would have been a mess.
Lesson learned. I checked the
U.S. state where we were married, and I’m good to go. They treat the date of
death as the end of the marriage.
No other gringo I asked knew
this either. Now they do.
Billy
Retire
Early Lifestyle appeals to a different
kind of person – the person who prizes their
independence, values their time, and who doesn’t
want to mindlessly follow the crowd.
HOME
Book Store
Retire Early Lifestyle Blog
About Billy & Akaisha
Kaderli
Press
Contact
20 Questions
Preferred
Links
Retirement
Country Info
Retiree
Interviews
Commentary
REL
Videos
|
