trybefore

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Posts posted by trybefore

  1. Posted

    We've had two of these shock calls recently starting with "your daughter has killed someone in Brussels" etc. Well we only have sons so that was easy! :)
    I strung them along until I got bored and then we traded insults for a few minutes. They won because they cursed me in German, English and Turkish!!! More than I could manage...

    They also told me that they knew where I lived, so I told them to bring it on as I have a big dog waiting for them. I do.

    Anyhow we have a couple of relatively senior city police as personal friends and we've now been asked to get involved in helping create some kind of public awareness campaign.

    It is quite awful to hear of an old lady being suckered for 300k by these b'stards.

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  2. Posted

    I regularly read about these calls in the local rag and recently got one! 

    "Female" voice speaking German, "Dad I had an accident etc etc. Arrested etc etc. Can you help me?".

    Now I don't have a daughter, so I answered "Well you deserve it!".

    The "female" said "Why?", and I answered "Because you called me last week and you're a f-ing scammer".

    The voice immediately changed to male and I was cursed in German, English and Turkish :)

    I wasted a lot of his time with insults which he returned and then his "brother" took on the debate so I wasted more of his time. I had fun and in the end he said "I know where you live" to which I replied that I have a big dog waiting for him.

    Anyhow reported to the Police and to a good friend who is head of the local Kripo.

     

    Question is why does the telephone system allow anonymous calls to private numbers?

    Is it a German thing, a European thing or a world wide issue?

    Anyone else had experience of them?

     

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  3. Posted

    The Steuerberaterin pursed her lips and said, "That's likely to be expensive". She estimated €5k x 7 years plus any penalty. That was back in August...

    Fast forward to now. Well it wasn't fast forward it was excrutiatingly slow waiting for the bill to come. Even though I have the cash to cover it that's a sh1t load of money to lose.

    Anyhow the Finanzamt documents say no tax to pay. I don't understand why and I'm not asking either. Let sleeping dogs lie. So this story has a happy ending and I have some cash to give to my kids when they build/buy.

    Thanks again for the friendly advice here.

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  5. Posted

    So... I now have a bunch of forms to fill in but will use an advisor to complete them.

    Can someone help me with what is the allowed/required way to calculate the Euro value of un-remitted £ and $ income in a year?

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  10. Posted

    Thanks for the reply. I know nothing about the Selbstanzeige option. I am planning to consult a tax adviser but you advise a lawyer rather than tax advisor or are they they same thing?

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  11. Posted

    I have some UK income retained in the UK for some years and it is taxed in the UK. I have not declared this to the German Finanzamt.
    What should I do and what is my best strategy to avoid jail?

    Thanks for any links and advice.

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  13. Posted

    For the last 6 years I've been helping a young German lad set up a industrial business in the USA.

    His parents are friends of ours and I've done it for free. L'm retired dual Brit/German but my experience is a European industrial marketeer.

    He regularly asked me how much I wanted for my help and I always replied that he couldn't afford me and I was having fun.

    At Xmas he told me he had given me some shares in his company. I don't know how much as it didn't matter to me. I never signed anything.

    Last week he told me that he was selling the company and its IP for $5 mill and I would get a payout probably at the end of this year. I don't know how much.

     

    Obviously I will need to get professional advice, but any heads-up? Is it a gift? Is it taxable? How do I best handle it.

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  14. Posted

    Since the 1. January 2013 you can choose any chimney sweep and their local monopoly ended. Hooray! However as I understand it the Berzirkschonsteinfeger still has a monopoly. Am I right and are there any plans to change it? The reason I ask is that I find the guy unpleasant and when we last had a problem he said he would box the ears of his employee for some poor quality work and then didn't bother to answer my emails on another issue. I would dearly like to use someone else and tell him to foxtrot oscar.

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  16. Posted

    7 hours ago, RenegadeFurther said:

    Maybe someone can help me with a a questions I am having.

     

    Now that the Tory party is in Civil war there is a very high chance that there will be no deal and we will all be here illegally in Germany.

     

    Now I have heard a lot of stories about long waiting times at the Auslanderbehorde, does anyone know if it is possible to arrange an appointment

    for 29th March 2019 ? 

     

     

    Hmmm. You don't write English like a Brit. Are you a Troll?

     

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  20. Posted

    I'm relatively old now, hate to admit it, but I've enjoyed the help of strangers so many times in my life in so many countries. Always felt that 98.5% of the population of anywhere were good people. I have also tried to pay life back by helping many others. In some cases even with money, although I never saw a penny of it back. I would like to believe in Karma....

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  21. Posted

    Haha, nice to see my old thread again. I did, buy a piece of land, get planning permission and build. With only minor problems. Have no idea yet if it is a good "investment" or not yet. But am now starting to get itchy feet...

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  22. Posted

    What a lot of vitriol on this thread! Question could have been answered without that. And if I ever think of posting something nasty, I remind myself that people that live in glass-houses etc. We are all guilty of something at some point in our lives.

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  25. Posted

    Lived in several countries now including the US twice. Everywhere has something different to enjoy/dislike from home, but if I felt as disgruntled as some of the posters, I wouldn't stay. If it has to be the same as 'home' for you then stay at home. I regard myself as extremely lucky to be able to experience different societies from the 'inside' rather than as a tourist, and it sure cured me of thinking that Johnny Foreigner and his country had nothing to beat the UK homeland.

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