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In this episode of Yo Quiero Dinero, Jannese sits down with Vanessa Wachtmeister — Latina tech professional, startup founder, and the OG of the expat financial independence movement — to talk about what it actually looks like to build a career, pay off six figures of debt, and launch a company from Europe. Four years since her last appearance on the show, Vanessa is back with receipts: $130K in debt paid off, a brand new German passport, and a second tech startup about to go live. This one is not for the faint of heart.
Let’s be real for a second: the American dream is tired.
The hustle harder, grind more, sacrifice everything messaging has been sold to us — especially to first-gen Latinas and folks of color — as the only path to success. But what if the whole premise was flawed? What if the doors you’ve been banging on were never going to open for you — and the answer was to build your own?
That’s exactly what Vanessa Wachtmeister did. At 21, with $2,000 and a one-way ticket, she left the US and never looked back. Thirteen years later, she’s navigated careers across China, London, and Germany, paid off over $130,000 in debt, earned her German passport, and is about to launch her second startup, Go Onwards — a job platform designed to connect people in the US with high-quality, English-speaking, visa-sponsored jobs across all 30 EU economic areas.
Oh, and last year? She made $310,000 and paid $26 in federal taxes. Legal. Documented. A masterclass in knowing the rules and using them.
“The entire American system is made to make you feel like you’re behind. Those doors aren’t going to open. You need to create your own doors.”
She Left America in 2013 — Here’s Why
Vanessa was a senior in college, staring down another $150,000 in student loan debt (on top of the $100K she already had) and asking the hard question: for what? For whom? For why?
She made a bet on herself and moved to China to teach English. What she found there cracked her whole worldview open. The narrative she’d been fed about America being the best place in the world? Didn’t hold up when she saw how the rest of the world actually lived — better healthcare, lower cost of living, and a whole lot less of that relentless hustle culture.
And once you see it, you can’t unsee it.
She went from China to London, briefly to the Syrian border as an emergency aid worker (before pivoting back to tech with the famous line, “if I’m going to be ruled by capitalism, I’m going to get my check”), and then to Germany, where she’s been for the past six years.
The Real Talk on Working Abroad
One of the biggest fears people have about moving abroad is work. Can I even get a job there if I’m not a citizen? The answer, according to Vanessa, is yes — if you understand how the system works.
In the European Union, US passport holders can enter without a visa. The terms of your entry determine your work permit eligibility. You can land a job before getting your work permit, or self-sponsor in certain cases. Blue Cards and work permits are different things. And visa sponsorship — which most people think is impossible to find — is actually far more common in Europe than the job boards make it seem.
That last part is exactly why she built Go Onwards.
“LinkedIn makes 85% of its annual revenue from B2B sales and marketing. They don’t give a f*ck about job hunters — and it shows. I’m ready to ruffle some feathers.”
What Go Onwards Does (and Why It’s Different)
Go Onwards pulls job postings from LinkedIn, Indeed, Google, Amazon, and all major applicant tracking systems across all 30 European Economic Area countries plus the UK. Then it runs everything through a proprietary algorithm to filter out ghost posts, non-English listings, non-visa-sponsored roles, and anything paying under $100K.
What you’re left with: real jobs, in English, with visa sponsorship, that pay well. Simple as that.
For $25/month (with a free tier, because Vanessa is — her words — “an angry socialist”), you get access to the entire European job market, AI tools to write ATS-compliant CVs in up to six languages, personalized dashboards by country and region, and a QR code profile link so you can skip the Wix website.
Coming soon: recruiter onboarding, so the platform can start connecting vetted candidates directly with hiring managers.
Where to find it: go-onwards.com
The Tax Strategy Nobody Talks About
Here’s the part that will make your jaw drop.
The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (FEIE) lets US citizens living abroad exclude up to $130,000 of foreign-earned income from US federal taxes. After that threshold, foreign tax credits apply — dollar for dollar, whatever you’ve already paid to Germany (or Spain, or Italy) gets credited against what you’d owe the US.
Vanessa made $310,000 last year. She paid $26 to the federal government. Twenty-six dollars.
Her advice for anyone considering this path: don’t let taxes stop you from moving abroad. Work with an accountant who understands expat tax law. And one thing she specifically flags — make sure you hit 14 years of contributions to US Social Security before you go. That threshold is what determines your eligibility to collect, and a lot of people leave just before hitting it.
Passports Are the New Insurance Policy
Jannese has been documenting her own journey pursuing Spanish citizenship through Puerto Rico’s Iberian colony connection — a two-year expedited legal residency program available to people from qualifying Latin American territories.
Vanessa’s take on passport diversification is blunt and strategic: in the world we’re living in right now, having options isn’t a luxury. It’s financial planning.
As a European passport holder, Vanessa can move to Spain, establish her business there, and hire her family as employees — starting the two-year clock toward permanent residency and eventually Spanish citizenship for them too. A legal, document-backed, multi-generational strategy for expanding her family’s access and protection.
What Life Actually Costs in Berlin
Vanessa’s monthly budget, all in:
- Rent in Berlin
- Health insurance (100% covered procedures, including minor surgery)
- Water and utilities
- CrossFit membership
- Ubers home at night
- Fresh baked bread for €0.30, blueberries for €1
Total: €2,500 a month. Everything else goes to her business and — in her words — “disturbing the peace.”
Compare that to what you’re paying in a major US city for a lot less. Right?
How to Financially Prepare to Move Abroad
Vanessa’s advice for anyone thinking about this move:
- Give yourself time in the market. You can’t build financial resilience overnight. Consistency and compounding are the foundation.
- Adjust your expectations. People are routinely shocked by how little it costs to live well abroad compared to US cities.
- Use the FEIE and foreign tax credits. Know the rules before you go — they exist specifically for you to use.
- Complete your 14 years of Social Security contributions before you leave, if you’re close.
- Consider your citizenship options. Spanish, Mexican, and EU passports are within reach for more of us than we realize.
Episode Takeaways:
- The American system is designed to make you feel behind — and the solution isn’t to hustle harder, it’s to build your own doors
- US passport holders can work in Europe — you need to understand work permits, visa sponsorship, and the difference between a blue card and a standard work permit
- The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion lets you exclude up to $130K from US federal taxes — and foreign tax credits cover the rest
- Go Onwards filters ghost posts, non-English roles, and non-sponsored listings so you only see high-quality EU opportunities with visa sponsorship
- Germany’s GmbH exit tax is real and brutal — research business structures before you build abroad
- Self-funding from your investment portfolio is a legitimate diversification strategy, not failure to raise capital
- Vanessa made $310K last year and paid $26 in federal taxes — legally, using strategies available to any expat
- Passport diversification is a financial AND protection strategy — not just a travel flex
- As a European passport holder, you can potentially sponsor family members for residency and eventually citizenship
- Berlin: €2,500/month all-in. That includes rent, health insurance, CrossFit, Ubers, and utilities
- Hit your 14-year Social Security contribution threshold before you leave the country
- LinkedIn fails job hunters on purpose — 85% of their revenue is B2B, not candidate-focused
- You don’t need to hate where you live to want options. Options ARE the point
- Your parents may have left their country for America. That doesn’t mean America is the final destination
- Financial resilience is what lets you take big bets — time in the market, consistency, and patience build the foundation
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