So here’s a question: What happens if we die while we’re traveling? It’s not that far fetched a question. As the saying goes, none of us are getting out of this alive. Even when we’re only spending half our time on the road, that increases our chances of dying outside the United States by 50%. Add in exposure to unfamiliar flora, fauna and parasites and the changes are probably more than 50% that, if we die, it will be outside the United States.
It’s not an estate plan so much, we will have very few assets to liquidate at that point, maybe none at all. We will have a will (it’s on our list for this year) that will handle those specifics. This is more about the myriad of bank accounts and credit card accounts that will need to be closed, social media accounts, and travel insurance details, which will be critical in returning our bodies to U.S. soil.
Wrapping up our day-to-day finances
Travel credit cards
We use a variety of credit cards to gather reward miles and points for travel. At any given time we are working toward a miles bonus on at least once credit card. We typically keep these cards open if the annual benefits outweigh the annual fee, so even after we’ve received the spending bonus, the card will remain active.
At this point, a little over a year into our travel and planning, we have three travel credit cards and will be getting a fourth in October (here is a link to a great walk through of the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass). I suspect we will keep around 5-6 travel rewards cards active at any given time. They don’t carry balances and are set to autopay any balance on the due date, but they will need to be closed so that the annual fees don’t just keep piling up.
Bank accounts
We’ll go into more detail on bank accounts as we get closer to zero hour but know that traveling requires more than one bank account. We need an account where the bulk of your money sits. We will also have three debit card accounts (for ATMs and any time a credit card isn’t an option) because we will need backups in case we are hacked, or our card gets stolen. Our executor will need to know how to access those accounts and close them out.
Transporting a body to the U.S.
The CDC has specific rules for transporting human remains back to the United States. https://www.cdc.gov/importation/human-remains/index.html. The government does not cover the cost to transport the body. That can cost from $300 (for ashes) to $20,000 for a body.
Our travel insurance should cover the cost of cremation (if that is our choice) and transportation back to the United States. Our loved ones will need to contact the insurance provider upon our death to work out the logistics. A copy of our travel insurance policy will be in our safe deposit box and the policy number and contact information will be in our planner.
We love a good spreadsheet
There are a myriad of death planning spreadsheets available online. I found one created specifically for long term travelers on the website A Suitcase and a Smile. Chris’ If I Die organizer has tabs for everything we will need to convey our wishes and wrap up our travel finances and routines. If you are considering long-term travel, or are just curious about it, Chris’ website has some really great information about her logistics, finances, travel planning, itinerary, and much more!
We know this is a lot
We know this is a bit of a morbid subject, but ignoring it doesn’t make it any less important. The reality is that when we pass away (hopefully a long time from now), we may very likely be out of the country, so planning ahead will hopefully ease some headaches for our loved ones in a very stressful time.
Do you have a will? Do your loved ones know how to close your Facebook account? Let us know what type of planning you’ve done for your eventual death!
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