By Wes Penre, May 6, 2023
Dear Visitor,
First, I have changed my PayPal address:
My old paypal was yt.project60@gmail.com. (Still working, though)
My NEW paypal is wespenre2@gmail.com.
I am trying to take all business away from the United States, such as PayPal, and eventually Patreon, too.
I have surrendered my American residency (happens automatically if I don’t revisit the U.S. within a year, which I haven’t. This was planned by me). But even though I have no other ties to the U.S., except that I’m using U.S. companies for business (such as Patreon), the U.S. is forcing me to pay 30% of my income in taxes + Serbia wants taxes, too. So, I’m double-taxed. Only if I boycott American companies can I avoid U.S. taxes.
So, I now managed to get a Serbian PayPal account, which is an international account, which is much better and much more convenient for me. This is why I’ve changed it. It’s a jungle to navigate through, LOL.
So, for those here who use PayPal and want to donate to me, please do so at my new paypal address: wespenre2@gmail.com. The old address will still work, but tax-wise, I will be way better off with the new account.
I am also looking into an alternative to Patreon, and I have found one:
Ko-fi
Unfortunately, and apparently because Serbia is not an EU country, I cannot set anything up for credit/debit card payments–only paypal and recurring paypal payment (where they take out the tier fee every month, like Patreon). And there are no taxes there for donators, contrary to Patreon, and no transfer fees for me, so everybody wins that way! It’s just a matter of whether you have a PayPal account, or are willing to get one. Otherwise, you can still sign up on my Patreon. More about this below…
All these European platforms use Paypal and Stripe for donations. It’s Stripe that allows card payments and Google Pay, for example. But Stripe is only available in EU countries, Great Britain, the U.S., and Canada, but not in Serbia. It could also be on Serbia’s end. I guess people here are not too fond of the U.S. after their involvement in the Balkan War.
I will certainly not force people to choose Ko-fi (pronounced “coffee”) rather than Patreon if you want to pay with a card instead, or if it’s inconvenient. If a lot of people CAN do it, it sure helps me financially (much less taxes). But please don’t feel obligated. Those who can’t do this can sign up on Patreon.
Ko-fi looks very similar to Patreon and will feel familiar. Please check it out and see what you think. And please leave comments here if you like.
On Ko-fi, you will have the exact same tier benefits as on Patreon–works the same way–and you will have access to the same categories on the forum as you have as a Patron. No difference.
Sorry for any inconvenience!
Love,
Wes
Makes no sense to pay taxes to two countries! I’ll donate using ko-fi
Thank you, Norma!
Hi Wes – I moved to Montenegro and now use Payoneer since paypal isn’t supported here … not sure if its helpful since Balkans banking has been quite mind-boggling to say the least!
I set up a Payoneer account about a week ago, but I have not had time to use it yet. I think it can be used as an alternative to Ko-Fi for those who don’t have PayPal. I want a platform such as Ko-Fi because it suits me way of doing things, but Payoneer might work for those who can’t contribute otherwise.
Don’t feel obligated, but if you don’t mind, can you email me at wespenre2@gmail.com and tell me broadly how Payoneer works? For instance, if a person wants to contribute to my work financially, do they send a payment from their bank to Payoneer, and I transfer it from Payoneer to my Serbian bank?
Thanks for bringing this up!