People are slowly, cautiously starting to leave the house and pick up where they left off before the pandemic. That means business travel will return as more people get back to work. Some of those travelers will be people who are opening a business abroad. As you might imagine, a lot can go wrong when expanding your business to another country. A lot of preparation is required. The most basic preparation is to become competent at speaking the language. Few things are more insulting to a people than for an outsider to barge in and not even bother to try and learn the language. It is viewed as a sign of disrespect.
What might surprise you is just how much preparation you need to make when doing business in country but out of state. When you are born and raised in the US, every other part of the country mostly looks like home. The accents might be a little different and you might have to learn to ask for pop instead of drink or soda. But it is more or less the same. That sense of familiarity is exactly what will cause you extra heartache when things go wrong. Only then do you realize that you are not in Kansas any more. Here are some of the things you will need to check before being out of state for an extended period of time:
License and Registration
As a driver and owner of a motor vehicle, you know that you have to renew your vehicle registration every year. But what happens when you are going to be out of state during a time when you have to renew? A frequently asked question is: Can I register a car in a different state than my license? That is usually the kind of question people ask when they find themselves in the situation of being out of state when it is time to renew. Awkward!
In most cases, you have to renew your registration in the same state of residence. There are exceptions for full-time students and military personnel. If you are unexpectedly in another state at the time of registration, you can ask for an extension. You also need to look into what to do about an expired license when out of state as well. The best plan is to know when these items are due and deal with them before you leave. Otherwise, you have some recourse in a pinch.
Health Insurance
An even more awkward situation when on the road is getting sick or injured. You could find yourself in a hospital far from home. One of the first people you will encounter when you regain consciousness is a person with a clipboard wanting to ask you a few questions about how you are going to pay for all that treatment. That is when you realize that the small HMO you picked up on the cheap is not going to serve you very well in your time of need.
If you are the type of person who travels a lot for work, you might want to think about upgrading your health insurance to a PPO. That is a type of insurance that does not require you to be in a network, or go through a general practitioner to see a specialist. That form of insurance is usually accepted everywhere. You will not be penalized for needing healthcare out of state. Just know that PPOs are generally more expensive than HMOs. However, if you are out of network a lot, it is usually well worth it.
Secure Home
Did you forget to lock the back door? Did you leave the garage door open again? These are the types of questions you ask yourself after you are already at the airport and about to board the plane. To give you some peace of mind when you travel, you need a few of those smart security cameras you connect to WiFi and monitor with your smartphone. You can also get a doorbell with a video camera so you can monitor who comes to your door regardless of whether you are in another state or another country.
Doing business away from your home state requires a lot of preparation so that you are not sidelined by the little things that come up. Before you go, take care of your vehicle registration, your health insurance, and your home security.
