You’ve Got Mail!
Savvy Mail-forwarding Solutions for Nomad Sailors
One of the pure joys of being a liveaboard or nomad sailor is having the freedom to be anywhere in the world, meander at will (weather permitting), and be away from life on land… mostly. There are still “life maintenance” items that need to be attended to even if we do not have a land-based nest. If you are a citizen of the USA, as Savvy Sailing Girl is, you must have a permanent physical residence, though your mailing address may be different. This is a legal requirement if you are dealing with any financial institutions and government agencies. The IRS, Department of Motor Vehicles, and voter registration are just a few government agencies who still operate (at least in part) by physical mail. In the private sector, some law offices, financial institutions and banks require this. Hmmm… so what to do if you don’t actually have a place on land? And, for those things that can’t be handled electronically, such as online banking, where do you send your mail and how do you get it while you’re underway?
A Virtual Mailbox
A virtual mailbox is a good place to start. Convert everything possible to electronic delivery. Before you even look at mail forwarding or other services, monitor your mail and convert everything you can to paperless billing and electronic delivery.
Tip: You may consider using a separate email address just for bills, to keep things organized and so you don’t miss notifications.
SSG has all credit cards statements, insurance renewals and bank statements delivered electronically. Even if you go with one of the mail forwarding or scanning services below, converting everything possible to delivery via email makes things cheaper and easier.
Tip: For credit card payments, you can simplify life by subscribing to your financial institution’s auto-pay feature. However, if you’re like SSG and want to check your charges regularly to avoid errors or fraud and don’t want to pay the entire sum automatically, sign up for the auto-pay and select “minimum amount due” (usually $20-25) so you don’t inadvertently miss a payment due date, which will impact your credit rating.
Does It Matter Where Your Mailing Address is Located?
Having a mailbox alone likely isn’t enough to establish residency in a state, but it’s certainly a start. If you’re using your mailing address to establish residency in a particular state or region, location certainly can matter.
Driver’s License – Even if you are a full-time cruiser, don’t have a car, and don’t have much opportunity to drive, it’s a good idea to always have a valid driver’s license – you’ll never know when you’ll need it, right? If you’re picking a state to set as your residence, it’s a good idea to check the renewal options. Are online renewals available? How long does a license last before you need to go in again in person?
Taxes – If you are a U.S. citizen, you’re going to have to file (and pay, if you owe) federal taxes. The only way to avoid paying taxes is to give up your US citizenship. However, within the US, individual states levy taxes as well – but in different ways. There are currently seven states that do not have state income tax (and if you reside in those states, you don’t need to file a state income tax return). There are considerations beyond state “income” tax, as some states levy luxury taxes and other non-income taxes that may impact you. If it doesn’t matter where your mail is being physically delivered, it can make sense to have a virtual mailing address in a state that has no income tax.
Voting – To vote in local elections, you need an address. Of course, as a nomad, you’ll want to make sure your state or region allows absentee ballots.
Other State/Region-specific Considerations – Beyond taxes, when you declare your residency in a particular state, you may want to consider state-controlled legislature. For example, within the US, the use of marijuana is legal in some states but not in others; same goes for doctor-assisted suicide for people with imminent terminal health issues.
What Are Your Options for Mail when Abroad?
Friends and Family
The cheapest and easiest option (for you) is to have your mail sent to a trusted friend or family member, and make them responsible for shuffling through your junk mail to find the one or two pieces of mail that might be important. This requires a significant level of trust – typically those “important” mail items will involve financial or legal information and it is an imposition. It’s worth thinking about whether you want your chosen family member to be privy to your financial and legal matters and whether you wish to ask them to do you this not-insignificant favor. Savvy Sailing Girl decided she didn’t want to ask anyone to do this for her and opted for the following instead…
Use a Mail Scanning or Mail Forwarding Service
There are plenty of services that will receive your mail for you, scan the outside of the envelopes, and make the scan available to you electronically, to decide if they should open it or not. From the envelope scan, you decide if you want the contents scanned, the mail discarded, or have the contents forwarded to you. This is a great “virtual mail” option since the service provider basically converts your physical mail to electronic mail.
How much does a Virtual Mailbox Cost?
The pricing varies but is normally based on a monthly charge plus additional add-on services based on volume of mail, storage requirements, whether you need mail forwarding, etc. Savvy Sailing Girl is using St. Brendan’s Isle out of Green Cove Springs Florida. She has “lived” there for over eight years and highly recommends their service. Their pricing is reasonable and well worth it! They have never let her down and have pulled rabbits out of hats on a number of occasions.
Each person’s situation is different – make sure you read up on the charges and limitations in order to find the best option for your own. And watch the costs – the monthly fee usually covers a set number of letters/scans, and perhaps some basic mail forwarding service, but over this amount you get charged a per letter fee. Head’s up: some services charge a postage deposit, shipping fees, enrollment and cancellation fees as well.
Real Address vs. PO Box
UPS and FedEx do not ship to PO boxes, only to “real” addresses, and if you are trying to use the address for residency purposes, a PO box will also send up some red flags. Most of these services have an address with a number similar to an apartment number. In fact, in the last several years, financial institutions have caught on to the fact that mail-forwarding services – even those with a legitimate street address rather than PO box – are businesses and not valid physical addresses for their regulations. St. Brendan’s Isle ran into another issue regarding voting, where Clay County, Florida, disallowed their address for voting registration. They have since found a resolution to that however.
More on Services…
Envelope Scanning/Online Viewing
For an ocean-dweller or nomad traveler, this is key – a scan of the outside of the envelopes allows you to select and flag individual pieces of mail as junk, sent, or to be opened and have the contents scanned. The better services have an easy-to-use online web interface that allows you to review the scans and note what you need done.
Opening and Scanning Contents
Unless you are forwarding every item of mail being sent to you, this is an absolutely critical service. This has saved Savvy Sailing Girl huge amounts of time, effort, and frustration over the years.
Package Receipt, Storage, and Forwarding
Some services have limited space, and charge for storing packages or parcels. If you need packages held for some time, check what the service’s maximum hold time and cost is. Some may also be geared solely for scanning mail and don’t accept packages at all… so check ahead of time.
Package Consolidation
If you are receiving packages, some providers will repackage multiple packages into one consolidated for forwarding, saving you in shipping costs.
Check Depositing
Does anyone still receive physical checks? Try to get people to pay you electronically via ACH or funds transfer, or even PayPal. If that’s still not an option, some of the mail services offer additional check deposit services.
Junk Mail Handling
SSG recommends this one. Many of these services will automatically go through your mail and discard obvious junk mail. If they don’t, and scan everything, you can very easily hit your limit of maximum scans per month included in the base cost. Of course, there’s always a risk that something that is not junk will be discarded.
Number of Recipients and Names
If you are a couple or family, check to make sure they allow (or don’t charge extra) for multiple recipients to a single address.
Email Notifications
Most services send email notifications for new arrivals, but check to make sure, otherwise you have to check the website yourself regularly.
Signature for Delivery Receipt
Some packages and mail will require a signature upon delivery. Is there a physical person at the address that can sign?
In the end, it’s a matter of personal needs as to which services, provider, and location you choose. One thing is for certain: you’ve got mail, and having a mail-forwarding service allows you the freedom to take care of it seamlessly from anywhere the winds and inspiration take you!