Living as a Family with No Bonds: Considerations and Practical Steps

Dear mothers, fathers, families, children, young people, couples without children (but perhaps with the intention of having them) and perpetual tourists. In today’s article we want to address you especially, we want to explain step by step how you can apply flag theory and live as perpetual travellers with your family family.

It is time to change the perception of the Perpetual Tourist, or at least to add some nuances that are sometimes a bit neglected. The perpetual tourist or traveller does not have to be a single person who lives and travels without ever dropping his or her backpack. As we have explained several times, a perpetual traveller does not even have to be someone who travels constantly, although the name suggests it.

The perpetual traveller or tourist can be anyone who chooses to live life on their own terms. It is the person who goes where he or she is best treated. They are the people who decides where to plant their flags, and which flags are more or less important to them. Today’s perpetual traveller wants to be in control of the most important aspects of their life, including the education of their children.

Today’s perpetual traveller is not only looking for tax optimisation or the best business opportunities, but also for a comprehensive solution for their family and themselves. They are also looking for emotional support and a group of people to lean on.

Many parents do not even stop for a minute to think about their children’s education. This does not mean that they are bad parents, but only that they are biased by their environment, and often do not stop to observe and assess reality. Out of habit they follow the system that their parents and grandparents already knew. Many of us are still under the effect of the Stockholm syndrome caused by those (in many parts of the world) 12 years of school system and forced indoctrination.

The truth is that many parents blindly trust schools to educate their children in the best possible way. In fact, you cannot even say that most schools are “bad” per se: they simply cannot take care of your children as they need to because they have hundreds of other children to take care of at the same time, and because they operate within a system set by states that (surprise!) does not work.

This is the sad reality: the schools are happy as long as the children conform to the norm, and the parents are happy to have somewhere to send their children so they can work or enjoy their free time. On the other hand, both sides are glad that the state exists, an ultimate institution on which to offload what would otherwise be their responsibility. If the child in the future tells them that education has done them wrong, they can always protect themselves by saying that it was the state that guided them and gave them no choice.

In the end, we are always faced with the same problem: nobody wants the ultimate responsibility. Well… nobody but the state, which is extremely happy to assume it in exchange for more power, because it knows that fictitious entities have nothing to fear from responsibility.

Be that as it may, the Perpetual Tourist is aware of the situation and wants to avoid the problem instead of hiding behind the state or society. It is someone who understands that this education system cannot be the best solution for their children. If the state tax system does not treat you well, if the state screws up everything it touches, what makes you think that a school system that applies equally to private and public schools will do your children any good?

It may surprise you, but this is a reality: many of the new perpetual tourists no longer travel alone… they travel as a family.

Today’s perpetual tourists are no longer just concerned about the cost of the hotel or where is the area with the most nightclubs and the best nightlife. They are concerned about whether they will be able to handle the pressure of leaving their home country, their home, their family (parents and grandparents), whether their children will make friends in the destinations they visit and what language they can teach them.

We have received several questions from families who have decided to become new perpetual travellers, and have come to us for help. That’s why we wrote this article (and several others like this one about interesting destinations for homeschoolers). We want to explain to show you that you have options – even as a family with children – and, in case this is the way you want to proceed, to remind you that we are here for you and that our consulting service is also for people who want to free themselves from the burden of the state as a family.

As much as we are always talking about travelling and leaving your home country, Denationalize.me is not just for young singles: we advise all kinds of people, from 18 to 80+ and in all circumstances you can imagine.

We have also received several calls from young people who want our help. Teenagers who are 15 years old right now, but are thinking about their future. Some of them are already running six-figure online businesses at that age – which we think is much more profitable than working their elbows off to get the best mark in the class.

Be responsible for your own future and never depend on others, especially public institutions, who will do anything to make you more dependent, align you with others and teach you to obey blindly.

Recently, we helped a family get their child out of compulsory education. When the family contacted us, they were desperate for answers. They were truly emotionally overwhelmed by comments they had read on the internet, such as:

• You cannot take your child out of compulsory education:
• You cannot take your child out of school.
• Even if you manage to do so, you will still have to justify to the state where and how you intend to educate your children.
• You are a bad mother if you do not send your children to school.
• You cannot leave the country, because if we all leave, only foreigners will be left.

Can you believe what we have come to?

None of this is like that, no way. This is a real brainwashing of society through fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of doing something wrong. Fear of not being able to protect your children because the state might take them away from you. Today’s article tries to shed some light on this issue.

Reasons for leaving the country

We recently asked our international group for Perpetual Travellers what was the main reason why members of our community left their home countries (many of the respondents were Central European).

The answers were:

• Freedom
• Mentality
• Climate
• Taxes
• Political developments
• Restrictions
• State interference in private life
• Cost of living
• Falsehood: lies increasingly present in government, politics and society
• Prohibitions
• Regulations
• Hospitality
• Prejudice
• Culture
• The still recent COVID-19 measures
• Deprivation of citizens’ rights and freedoms
• Foreign policy
• Personal security

It turns out that the new perpetual travellers want to protect their children from a culture and society they consider unhealthy. They want them to live and learn freely in an environment best suited to their development.

We are not here to tell you what kind of education is best for your children. Our role is simply to listen to what you want and to help you remove all the obstacles to achieving it. It is your right.

You can do what you want with your life as long as it does not affect the freedom of others. By the way, in case anyone is still unclear, not leaving your children in the power of the state and its education system does not imply harming them or restricting their present or future freedom, neither disconnecting them from reality. It is quite the opposite.

Our approach at Denationalize.me

Do not be afraid and do not let the prejudices of others affect you too much.

Tax rates are just numbers. Mere cold percentages that you can look up with an internet search. They are absolutes: they have no personality, age or preferences.

Tax optimisation is not complicated in itself: just understand that 10% is less than 42% and voilà, you are ready to pay less tax. Of course, there is much more to it than that, but our intention here is to make you see that it is the numbers that guide us in this area, especially if we are choosing a country for a business (personal residence does have many more aspects to be considered).

However, when it comes to children, there is no single solution, it gets way more complicated. There is no inert number behind it. That is why we believe that children should not be classified by their year of birth: they have feelings, they have problems and they have their own developmental rhythm with their own learning preferences. One child’s learning pace differs from the pace of another, but we guarantee that a 25% tax in the UK is still the same as a tax of the same amount in the United States, Brazil or China.

At Denationalize.me we know this, and that is why our approach is more profound and emotionally empathetic when it comes to children. They are not a number (as they see them in schools). They are the people who will create value in the future, when many of us are already grey-haired.

For them to be able to solve their problems tomorrow, we need to provide them with the best infrastructure and opportunities we can today.

Moreover, children do not see the world as we adults do: they are dreamers, they are creative, they are unbiased (or at least less biased than we are). They are fun-seeking and non-judgmental. They have no patience for boring activities or issues. They see the world full of colours, so why do many adults stick to showing them a black and white world?

They cannot clip our wings

When you hear that something is not possible, believe us: In most cases, it is. It may not be as easy as you first imagined, but anything is possible… it is usually just a matter of time and perseverance.

So, when schools, child protection services and authorities try to clip your wings and prevent you from flying, that is precisely when you should take flight. Fly as far and as fast as possible.
It is possible to break free from school pressure and it is much easier than many would have you believe.

Why should you trust us? You should not. You should be sceptical about everything that concerns your family and your life. Be suspicious of the presumed good intentions of those who present themselves as saviours. So no, you should not trust us. We encourage you to try out our content and, if it resonates with you and gives you reasons to trust us, try out our services and draw your own conclusions.

Have you ever consider homeschooling? This concept of homeschooling does not mean that children must spend the day studying “at home”, far from the real world, alone and locked up like prisoners. Homeschooling means that it is the home – the parents – who decide on the children’s education, and not an external institution.

Nor does it mean that, from now on, you must study the laws of physics or the reproduction of plants to be able to explain it to your children. Teaching your children from home can also mean hiring private teachers and planning with them what you think is important for your children to learn. It means, after all, that you have influence and involvement in your children’s education.

Homeschooling means for you that you are not only in control of your own life, but also in control of your children’s lives so that they can run and play in your garden instead of in the playground.

Homeschooling is the best legacy you can leave to your children – exactly how you do it is up to you and your family!

How to put it into practice?

Now that we have your attention, let us make a very simple plan to guide you before, during and after the leave.

Before leaving your country

• Emotionally: are you ready to leave and are you happy about it?
• Reasons: Are your reasons for leaving stronger than your reasons for staying? Write them down!
• Means: does your family have the income or means to cope with the situations you may end up facing?
• Education: how do you want to educate your children, will you do it yourself, will you follow a curriculum adapted to your children’s situation by specialists, will you follow the official curriculum of a country and adapt it until you feel it is appropriate, will you hire someone to educate your children, will you rely on schools in the countries you visit?
• Children’s preferences: How do your children learn best? Where do they feel most comfortable? Close to nature? In the middle of big cities? How do they cope with long journeys?
• Minimalism: Are you prepared to live with much less than you have now?
• Risk minimisation: Are you prepared (financially above all) to deal with unforeseen events that may arise?
• Excitement: Are your children excited about this change (this point becomes more important the older your children get)?
• Commitment: Are you willing to go ahead with the plan despite the problems that will undoubtedly arise? You do not have to go ahead if things do not work out, but you should not turn back at the first sign of trouble either.

There are countless issues you need to consider before you resign and leave your old life behind. It all depends on how much time you have to prepare. Some people plan as much as their wedding day, even years in advance: save money, do research, talk to people… However, there are also others who decide to leave their country abruptly or with very little notice and planning.

So… How do both types of people succeed in their personal journeys? Quite simply: they both end up on the same path.

Of course, to make your departure work, you need to make sure that there is nothing that will interfere with your plans in the first place.

Do you have a job as an employee? Resign. Do you have a house? Sell it or rent it out for extra income. Do you have debts? Pay them off or make sure they will not be a problem once you are out. Do you have a business? Relocate it abroad or at least internationalise it to pay less tax (Denationalize.me can help you with this too). Do you have many economic ties to your home country? Look for alternative sources of income and investments.

What does all this have to do with leaving the country? Well, all of these points may indicate that your centre of vital interests is still in your home country despite the fact that you have left. If this were to happen, you would lose one of the great advantages of being a Perpetual Tourist: not being subject to the taxes and laws that affect residents.

Deregistering in your home country will do you no good if you cannot prove later that you have actually left and are living abroad. In some countries, you may even have to obtain a residence permit or tax certificate in a bridging country in order to deregister for tax purposes.

Regarding your children, do not enter direct confrontation with schools, child protection services and authorities.

Be responsible and avoid problems. Make things clear in language they can understand and in a way that does not lead anyone to think that they must act to “protect” the children. Tell them what they need to hear, even if it is not true. Tell them that you are going to another country because a job opportunity has arisen and that the children will, of course, still go to school there.

But what if they still try to stop us?

The reality is that they cannot stop a family from moving to another country. Once you have been de-registered in your home country, educational institutions and others no longer have any power or jurisdiction over you, whatever they say and whatever their threats. You just have to act in time, and not after child protection services come knocking on your door.

Ceasing to be a tax resident

If the previous steps are done correctly, the rest should not pose any major problems.

If you live in Spain, the only thing you will have to do is to leave the country with your family and inform the tax authorities of your new address using form 030. Unfortunately, you will always have to give an address and that is where the concept of a bridge country comes in (we talk about form 030 and the bridge country in this article). You will need to have an address in some other country for all this to work. You do not need to get a tax certificate, but you will need an official document with which you can prove that you no longer live in Spain.

On the other hand, if you used to live in Spain, you will have to register with an embassy or consulate in your new country of residence in order to be removed from the register.

In other countries, such as Peru, Argentina, Mexico or Chile, the process is similar: you have to leave the country and obtain a residence permit in another place to be deregistered as a tax resident. Of course, you will usually also have to stop having a job or housing at your disposal in the country you are leaving behind (more specific information can be found in the article linked above and again here).

Wherever you live, you should never forget to inform your children’s school that you are moving to another country, so that they can make the necessary arrangements.

Deregistration is a bureaucratic process. Keep in mind that the simpler you make it for the official, the better. Don¡ not try to make anyone understand that you are going to be travelling the world or anything like that. Find a bridge country and then you can travel the world.

Either way, as soon as you are no longer registered as a resident, your old country stops dictating what you can and cannot do, including what you do with your money and your family.

After leaving your country

Once you have left your home country and are in a bridge country, the next step is to leave that country as well. Ideally, you will do this before you become a tax resident there. To do this, you will usually only have to leave the accommodation you have contracted. In some cases, you will also have to notify the town hall that you are leaving.

Of course, it is of utmost importance to understand that in addition to leaving, you must make sure that you do not meet the requirements that would make you resident again in the countries you have left. This means that you must actually live outside.

Either you stay in the system for the supposed security it offers (in exchange for remaining at the mercy of the state and submitting to its decisions, even if they can be as drastic as with COVID-19 management) or you stay outside the system (outside the country’s borders for at least a large part of the year.)

We never tire of stressing how important it is to prevent your home country from being able to prove that your centre of vital interests is still there. We have already written many articles on how you can avoid automatically falling into the system and becoming a tax resident without wanting to.

We recommend you take a look at these articles and videos:

• How to transfer your tax residence and legally avoid taxes with the 183 day rule
• 50 countries where you don’t become a tax resident even if you have a home there

Another thing to bear in mind is that deregistering in your home country means deregistering from everything else. You cannot choose to opt out of things you do not like (like the school you do not want your children to go to), but at the same time keep the things you do like (like child benefit or unemployment benefits).

Either you stay registered – and continue to live without having control over anything – or you leave – and start to control everything that affects you, your family and your freedom. You will have to accept that this life of freedom means accepting responsibility and no longer receiving state aid and subsidies.

Concluding

As we mentioned at the beginning of this article, today we have tried to explain how you can get out of the system and live as a perpetual traveller with your family, not only from a bureaucratic point of view, but also from a human point of view.

If you need help with your exit, we will be happy to help you: You can hire our consultancy service here. If not, perfect too, we hope this article has helped you!