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What's the smallest amount of money you'd need to get to flee the country? (lemmy.world)

submitted 10 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

37 comments fedilink hide all child comments

So imagine this:

you owe X amount of money, and fleeing the country makes it vanish

Or you accidentally are given X amount of money, and fleeing the country is only way to keep it

Inspired by: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/25/they-fled-the-country-to-escape-their-student-debt.html (Who left over 20k. Would not bounce.)

https://www.the-sun.com/news/5684480/worker-accidentally-paid-300-times-salary-vanishes/#:~:text=Instead%2C%20the%20lucky%20man%2C%20who,seen%20or%20heard%20from%20since. (I would bounce)

all 38 comments

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[–] [email protected] 31 points 10 months ago (3 children)

Generic disappear

Go to the library and study about the country you want to run to. I would pick someplace with a coast. Don't use your home computer or phone, you don't want anyone to find these searches.

Go buy a cheap laptop from a pawnshop and get a small Linux distro like Puppy or Tiny Core. Load Tor and find yourself a dark market. Buy a new identity. When your transaction is complete trash the laptop burn the USB stick you ran your Linux distro off of.

Buy a boat. Post all over social media about your boat and how you love sailing or fishing or whatever you do in your boat.

This is the hard part, go on a boat trip and at some point call in an emergency then abandon the boat. Make it look good drag out all the life vests and or sink the boat. Swim/row to shore and never ever ever ever go back to your old life.

You could do it for about $30k.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Pulling out all your money or selling your home and possessions would give you away. And a pauper with a boat would be a red flag for any investigator. You'd have to be willing to give it all up. Your family would have to believe you died.

A better option would be to slowly siphon off money and be seen frequenting a casino, or become known as a drug addict. Once you've liquidated everything and racked up tons of debt, fake a suicide. Become aberrant or hyper-religious/political. Tell everyone that you're going on a hike to "find yourself" or that you're volunteering to fight in Ukraine. Never come back.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Yeah, I said generic not do this exactly. It's a rough idea, not a game plan. You would need a lot of logistical things like cash on hand without using a bank to cash out. I know guys with boats that can't pay their rent so I am not so sure about the pauper with a boat angle but you could easily do it by disappearing in a national park if that's your jam. The main thing though no matter how you do it is you never ever ever ever ever ever go back to your old life in any way. Money in the bank, or long lost girlfriend, mom dies nothing.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 10 months ago (1 children)

How 'official' are fake identities from the darknet? Is it just like a fake ID or are there corrupt countries that'd hand out genuine documents with which you could travel, withstand a check by authorities, get an insurance etc.?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago

There are some African countries that will give you a driving licence with a photo and a few details.

Good for presenting in Europe and making it too difficult for the police to bother with to issue a simple speeding fine… or so I hear.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 10 months ago (1 children)

My local library requires you sign in, and your own device would need MAC address spoofing.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Then you could use the Linux distro with a VPN from a public wifi.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

I like the way you think.

[–] [email protected] 22 points 10 months ago (1 children)

It's exceedingly hard to emigrate anywhere legally.

People generally travel and overstay their visas, hoping for the best. It'll be a rough life, though. The question is whether or not it'll be rougher than what you're leaving behind.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Hard to emigrate legally??? I moved to Australia and they're they're thirsty for any kind of graduate diploma for the people wondering about student debt. And many more places to go if you're not a sticker for 1st world, but also many that pay you while you're studying in North Europe.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Hard to emigrate legally???

On a permanent basis, yes, and OP seems to indicate that they're wanting to leave the US permanently. Lots of countries will let people enter on a temporary basis, hence my comment about overstaying one's visa.

if you're not a stickler for 1st world

That's an important distinction.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

I covered all basis. Try studying in Sweden, most courses are in English. With a diploma in hands it opens the door for many countries and permanent migration.

scholarship programmes that cover tuition and living costs are available for a number of non-EU countries.

https://sweden.se/work-business/study-research/swedish-higher-education#:~:text=Tuition%20fees%20are%20fully%20subsidised,number%20of%20non%2DEU%20countries.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 10 months ago

Too many variables, what do you consider fleeing?

I have a passport and could make it over a border for a couple hundred. Staying there, (not getting deported), and supporting myself would be the issue.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I already have a ticket for regional public transport in all of Germany. Some trains going to train stations just over the border in neighbouring countries are covered as well. So I'll just take one of them. 0€.

If you count the ticket it's 49€.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Misunderstood the topic

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (2 children)

How? I get to another country and then live there for basically the same amount of money I live on here. Do I have to count that too? Or the price for buying new furniture and opening a new bank account? It's very unclear from the post, what would you consider expenses that should be counted?

Edit: Okay, after reading the post again a few times – is the question how much money does the debt need to be to make you want to leave the country? I still find it very unclear.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

how much money does the debt need to be to make you want to

This.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Hey mate that's ok, the question only makes sense when you line in a particular country.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

No, but the expected solution only makes sense if you live in that particular country.

That said, your debt would follow you if you register in any other European country. Not registering and hiding from authorities could be done within any country, even the US.

So while the Europeans think it's easy to move countries, they forgot that the premise is that they have to hide from their debt.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I'd leave over nothing, if I could I'd get on a plane right fucking now without even saying goodbye to anyone, but I'd also be willing to flee over my $35000 and rising student loans.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Oof, sounds like you might be looking up what countries you can get to with low cost of living soon.

Or home steading.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 10 months ago

you might be looking up what countries you can get to with low cost of living soon.

Literally years and years ago.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 10 months ago

Source: I did

[–] [email protected] 8 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Nope. Not for a billion.
I live a modest life (no car, no real estate, no luxury) and my most valuable possessions are a laptop, a bicycle and the firewood in my shed, each worth around 500€. But I'm living in a nice little house at the edge of a forest in cycling range to the city and my unionized job, which sustains me and my family, working 33 hours/week with 40 vacation days (plus 12 holidays and unlimited sick days).
I have a support network, a non-profit I volunteer at, free healthcare, secure pension, disability insurance and enough saved up to deal with most emergencies. I know that my friends are actually friends, not freeloaders.

Moving to a different country and receiving a load of money would literally destroy my life.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago

I guess zero dollars if you just walk over the border

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago

you owe X amount of money, and fleeing the country makes it vanish

Such a very Usamerican idea... I will not go into that.

Or you accidentally are given X amount of money, and fleeing the country is only way to keep it

That means simply moving across a border? No problem at all. I can do that twice every day if needed.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Fleeing the country? Like going on vacation? I guess the cost of the vacay.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago

Yeah, you'd have to pick a country that wouldn't deport you though... that your country's passport will get you into easily.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 10 months ago (1 children)

running from debt is very different from getting money. debt follows you, perhaps even more easily than money.

I'd move for half a mil

[–] [email protected] 8 points 10 months ago (1 children)

How so? My friend had six figures of debt in America, moved to Thailand.

He's got a new life, new friends, a career job, and a roof over his head.

Nobody has come knocking.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago

There's still time.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Owed to who? Legit lenders ? If it got that bad, I’d just declare bankruptcy (inb4 Michael Scott memes). Some shady dude who is going to murder my family if I don’t repay them? Idk, they’d probably get me or my loved ones either way

[–] [email protected] 10 points 10 months ago

I mean the example I gave was a guy who fled over student loans, which can't be discharged through bankruptcy and the US government can not be stopped from coming for you!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

Whatever the flight ticket is to a cool country(most countries).

I'm down to take that and jet.

As far as debt? Also mot much. 30k? I would live somewhere else to erase that debt overnight.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 months ago

I have a thin inroad to Canada and with the way America is going, it's not the worst option.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

$0, I already have the means I am just experiencing a moral issue