"To Do" before leaving US?

Also when did it become normal to wear socks with flats??  Shudder.

I pretty much always wear socks with flats (as long as I'm wearing jeans or trousers... I wouldn't do it with a skirt) - my feet are freezing otherwise, especially at work when I have to climb the fire escape steps to the roof every hour of the day (including overnight) to do a weather observation.

Socks with flats convert over here!  It's seasonal though.  Just started in the last week.   

I also wear my flats to the office and change into heels in the lift.   

Haha I wear socks with flats (even with skirts  ). Never with sandals though...

  Also when did it become normal to wear socks with flats??  Shudder.

I don't wear flats, ever... they hurt my feet.  I need a bit of a heel for comfort.

But... if you don't wear socks, don't your shoes get a bit slippy inside from perspiration?

I see a lot of people wearing leggings with sockless flats.  My toes would freeze and I'd get blisters.   

I must wear something with any shoe - except sandals, which I can barely tolerate aside from something like Birkenstocks. My feet are always cold plus the blisters are a given for me without socks. And shoes definitely doesn't fare well over time from the perspiration.

I only wear a flat or the equivalent - actually it's walking shoes 99% of the time. My mother was a slave to heels for most of her life, all because a shoe salesman told her she should always wear heels. After a fall and broken hip, she changed to flats and never looked back.

Does anyone know which department of the state is the appropriate to contact to inform the state of the move? Also, should I somehow notify federal authorities?

This website gives links to the most common notifications: http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Services/Change-Of-Address.shtml

If you live in a state (Virginia is a prime example) that tries to hold onto you forever for state income tax, there are a number of things you may want to do.

If you sell a vehicle, and KEEP records of the sale; if the state DMV requires that you turn in the number plates, keep the receipt.

Report a change of address for your driving license; some states don't care, some will cancel a license if you move out-of-state. Your state MAY have a rule that requires you to report any change of address within 30 days; if you don't, the license may be invalid by default. Caution here - you can drive in the UK for up to 12 months on your US license, but only if that license is valid. Again - keep the paperwork.

Report a change of address to the local board of elections. You are still entitled to vote by absentee ballot in Federal elections, but this is one of the things that indicates intent not to return to your current state of residence.

Write to the state department of taxation (if you have state income tax) and inform them that as of XX date, you became non-resident, and stress that this is a permanent move out of the state. Make sure you understand your income tax filing status for the year you move and subsequent years, if applicable.

There is a form to notify the IRS, but most of us just use the new address when filing a tax return. See http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8822.pdf

I sent copies of my degrees with the visa documents but no one has asked for transcripts but ive kept the PDFs of the diplomas.

I'm a tax accountant - but I better read more into severing ties with PA!  Though, fortunately, the state tax is only 3% and not anything too crazy

I actually just called the PA Dept. of Revenue to ask them what to do before I leave, and they said that as long as I do not earn income in PA and do not file a federal tax form saying I earned income in PA, that I do not have to do anything in regards to the state taxes - even if I don't give up residency. They suggested waiting to give up residency until I find out if I will be staying in the UK permanently because otherwise I will be paying all the money to cut ties and then paying all the money to get them again. Part of me is thinking of getting a tax lawyer for my first year over there though cause its all so confusing and no one really knows anything. I've called so many numbers this morning trying to find out what to do to notify the state and federal governments that I am moving for at least the next 2.5 years, and the Revenue lady was the first person to give me any information at all. :-(

Thanks for all the info above!

This website gives links to the most common notifications: http://www.usa.gov/Citizen/Services/Change-Of-Address.shtml

If you live in a state (Virginia is a prime example) that tries to hold onto you forever for state income tax, there are a number of things you may want to do.

If you sell a vehicle, and KEEP records of the sale; if the state DMV requires that you turn in the number plates, keep the receipt.

Report a change of address for your driving license; some states don't care, some will cancel a license if you move out-of-state. Your state MAY have a rule that requires you to report any change of address within 30 days; if you don't, the license may be invalid by default. Caution here - you can drive in the UK for up to 12 months on your US license, but only if that license is valid. Again - keep the paperwork.

Report a change of address to the local board of elections. You are still entitled to vote by absentee ballot in Federal elections, but this is one of the things that indicates intent not to return to your current state of residence.

Write to the state department of taxation (if you have state income tax) and inform them that as of XX date, you became non-resident, and stress that this is a permanent move out of the state. Make sure you understand your income tax filing status for the year you move and subsequent years, if applicable.

There is a form to notify the IRS, but most of us just use the new address when filing a tax return. See http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8822.pdf

Oh, I am so very confused. Like I just said (I had written that before reading your response), the woman I spoke to at the Dept. of Revenue for PA said that unless I had PA income, I did not have to do anything. Now I don't know. And I did not want to change my address because I still get mail in regards to my student loans and I will be getting some bills from my pre-departure doctor appointments. I have always been a resident of PA but have lived outside of PA for most of my life the last 10 years. So my permanent mailing address has always been my parent's house. And my mother sorts out any mail that look important and opens it for me to let me know if I need to take care of something and then mails/scans it to me. I also have her name on my bank accounts in case I was ever out of the country and a payment needed to be made so that she could write the check for it (for example, I had forgotten about my life-insurance payment a few years ago when I went abroad and she wrote the check for it while I was out of the country.) I have moved around A LOT for school and work, so this system has worked fine for the last 10 years. I have had to pay PA taxes for my out-of-state income though. Which is why I am confused about all that.

Also - my husband and I do not know if we want to remain in the UK forever. He is on a permanent contract for his job, but it kind of goes up for renewal after 5 years. But basically, I did not really enjoy my time in England when I was there for 6 months and I am closer to my family than he is to his. So we made a deal - if I cannot find a job in the UK that makes me happy or am just very unhappy there after 2 years, then he would move back over to the US with me. I know it seems crazy after spending all that money for the visa - but I had a history of depression when I was younger so he would rather spend the money for me to be somewhere I was happy than keep me in the UK if I were not.

So I am very confused and would like to just wait on ending my ties with my state (address and driver's license) for at least a year until I figure out how I feel about my move. I am mostly worried about jury duty (I have emailed the coordinator to ask what to do) and about making sure that someone in the state and federal sectors KNOWS that I will be out of the country. Any advice on the federal level? Or will they just know this when I file my taxes next year?