Perpetual travelers, by choice, pledge allegiance to no nation, country, state, tribe, or community. Without joining groups or political movements or protesters, PTs or what I call iPTs, seek to live the sovereign immunity lifestyle with a hint of individual anarchist and survivalist thrown in.

Unless you are independently wealthy, you will need a source of income to maintain the iPT life. What I have chosen is affiliate marketing as my base source of income, due in part to:

  • fast and easy to start
  • work anywhere in the world with an Internet connection
  • most affiliate programs have a PayPal option to receive commissions so you have constant access to your earnings
  • no need for an office, employees, rent, utilities, supplies, licenses, or other overhead
  • once you create reviews and other content to promote affiliate products, you can earn money for months or years without additional work

But I get ahead of myself.

A perpetual traveler, aka permanent tourist, aka prior taxpayer, embraces a lifestyle, a philosophy, and a way of life. (also spelled perpetual traveller in the UK) I use the term iPT to add the Internet element. In our Facebook world, it’s a permanent part of our lives for the foreseeable future.

iPTs structure their lives in such a way that they move from country to country without staying long enough in one place to be considered a resident. For most countries, that means not accepting employment or buying real estate. For this reason, you need a source of income like online marketing, not tied to geography, before casting off for the South Pacific.

I’ll give you an example of iPT planning – me.

I have a daughter in college, a wife who wants to be an ex-wife, and no W-2 employment in the U.S. I have decided that by 9/14/2014, my 61st birthday, about 1,000 days out, that I need to be financially independent and living totally iPT.

By that time, my daughter should be a college graduate, and the ink should long be dry on the court papers. (If the divorce is not final, good luck finding me.) I don’t know about you, but I’ve worked too long and too hard to keep working after that age. The plus is that, if I have done my job correctly, everything from that point on will be outsourced, and I will continue to earn a full-time income in a few hours a week of management.

As an iPT, you have to determine what level of comfort you have with multiple passports, foreign bank accounts, International Business Corporations (IBC), and offshore LLCs. If you are a U.S. Citizen, as I am, our government throws up numerous roadblocks to living free – all of which can be legally avoided with careful planning. Without a legal permanent residence, you can escape many income taxes, asset taxes, social security contributions, jury duty, and military conscription.

U.S. Citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents (LPRs) are taxed on their worldwide income no matter where earned. If you are physically present outside the U.S. for at least 330 days in any 12 month period, you can exclude up to $92,900 for 2011 plus some housing expenses. Also, most tax havens – where you will likely want to obtain a second passport – do not tax you on income earned outside that jurisdiction.

What most iPTs will attempt to do is follow a 3 or 5 flag strategy:

  1. citizenship in a country that does not tax earnings from outside the country
  2. IBC or LLC in a stable, low or no tax country like Nevis or the Cook Islands
  3. live as a tourist in the places you like to visit, like Bangkok or Cebu

A 5 Flag approach might include an asset haven, like a Panama Foundation, or a business base in a country with a low corporate tax rate. For American companies, Ireland comes to mind.

For non-U.S. citizens, you can spend up to 122 days each year in the United States without being considered a resident or being required to file a 1040 (does not apply to LPRs). Also, you income needs to be earned outside the U.S.

For all iPTs, moving regularly between countries will legally reduce or eliminate their tax burdens. But, let’s be honest. Most of us don’t have a tax problem. I wish I did. By 9/14/2014, I fully expect to have a tax problem meaning that my income is high, and I need a way to lower my taxes.

My reasons for going iPT have more to do with being free of the nanny state. We are no longer the land of the free, and the brave need to travel. This involves strategies that are more cumbersome and expensive than the normal path of sheeple, but are absolutely necessary for privacy and personal freedom.

Thirty years ago, we called PTs – WTs, or World Travelers. Of course, I was young and so were most of the WTs. What I now have in common is that I am reducing my possessions to what will fit in a backpack. I don’t want to cook. I don’t want to do laundry. And I sure don’t want to own a house or a car. Assets are anchors, not sails. I am comfortable outsourcing everything and owning next to nothing.

How can we live as sovereign individuals if the U.S. Government wants to tax our income no matter where we live or where the money is earned?

Caveat: Time is of the essence.

I don’t know how soon currencies will collapse, or what governments will do to strip us of our assets. That’s why the best asset protection is to own nothing.

One thing for sure is to spread some of your money around the world into foreign bank accounts in Euros or Yen. A handful of gold coins kept in a foreign savings deposit box, and maybe even good old cash, can serve as an insurance policy. Just visit IRS.gov to see what the reporting requirements are for foreign bank accounts and gold. One thing you don’t want to do is cross the IRS and fail to file or report as needed.