After working as a stringer for three years, I was promoted to Moscow bureau chief of BusinessWeek in 1996. I was thrilled with the promotion and the recognition, and I was given the full expat package with a free apartment, car and driver, and home leave three times a year. One other important benefit was that McGraw- Hill, the owner of BusinessWeek, offered a “tax equalization” benefit. In other words, the company paid most of my Russian taxes. I owned an apartment in Washington, D.C., and decided to rent it out rather than selling it. I rented it out furnished, and the first tenant stayed for two years. read more »

Patricia

I moved back and forth to Russia two times, and each time was a little different. I continued to pack my bags lightly for the freedom and flexibility of the moment. I had no problem finding cheap yet safe apartments, saved a great deal of money, and took advantage of the tax treaty between Russia and the United States. read more »

Surprisingly, the move from Asia to Russia went very smoothly. I say this as a bit of a “moving expert,” having moved just about every year since I first went to boarding school at the age of fourteen, including moves from Baltimore to Singapore, Singapore to Russia, Russia back to the United States, the United States to London, and finally London back to the United States, not to mention moves within Russia and moves within London. read more »