• MrJameGumb@lemmy.world
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    5 hours ago

    According to Google you can live in Canada and collect US social security benefits. You will probably have to pay taxes in both countries though, especially if you’re still working. To become a Canadian citizen you have to live there permanently and pay taxes for at least three years before you can even be considered for citizenship and even then it looks like there is a lot of other stuff you have to do

    Keep in mind too that social security benefits aren’t that much. Unless you’ve already saved enough to pay off this “cabin or house” up front, then you’ll most likely be paying a mortgage, property taxes, you’ll need money for utilities and groceries, AND you’ll be paying taxes to both the US and Canada. Unless you’re already independently wealthy then you’ll probably have to get either a full time or part time job.

    The only way I can see this working the way you’ve described is if you’re already of retirement age and can also collect a pension from a job you already have that could help supplement your social security benefits maybe

    • HobbitFoot @thelemmy.club
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      4 hours ago

      Yeah. There isn’t anything in Canada that is conducive to retirement. Cost of living in cities matches that of higher cost of living cities in the USA. Canadian health care is better, but I don’t know how health care for residents is compared to Medicare in the USA.

      If anything, more Americans are beginning to retire in Mexico as the cost of living is significantly lower and paying cash in the Mexican health care system is equivalent to Medicare in the USA.

    • wildbus8979@sh.itjust.works
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      5 hours ago

      Good luck getting a permanent residence in Canada if you are of retirement age. Even above 30 it’s pretty dicey unless you’re at the top of a professional field and get sponsored by an employer or a university.

      Unless you come in on an investor visa. For which you will need to put in, I think, $150,000 as an interest free 10 year bond.