Keeping a US Address, Phone Number, and Mail While Living Abroad

Moving abroad does not cut your ties to American institutions. You will still file a US tax return, probably keep US bank and brokerage accounts, and log into dozens of accounts that text a code to your US phone number. Two pieces of infrastructure keep all of that working: a reliable US mailing address and a US phone number you can still receive codes on. Set both up before you leave.

Why you still need a US mailing address

Some institutions will happily mail to your new home abroad. Many will not. Certain US banks and brokerages restrict accounts, limit services, or close accounts for customers with only a foreign address. Replacement credit and debit cards often must ship to a US address. Some insurance, pension, and government correspondence still comes on paper, and international mail can be slow or unreliable.

USPS itself has limits. Its standard forwarding service for a permanent move lasts 12 months, and if you are moving outside the United States, USPS says you must go to a Post Office in person before you leave to set up the change. Forwarding is a short-term bridge, not a long-term solution.

Option 1: A trusted friend or family member

The simplest and cheapest choice. A relative receives your mail, opens or photographs anything important, and forwards what you need.

• Pros: free or low cost, a real residential address, someone who can sign for packages and handle paperwork in an emergency.
• Cons: it depends on that person's reliability and privacy, and your mail reveals a lot. It can also tie you to their state for tax purposes, which matters if they live in a high-tax state.

Option 2: A virtual mailbox service

Virtual mailbox companies give you a street address in a US city. They receive your mail, scan the envelopes, and let you choose online whether to open and scan the contents, forward the item abroad, hold it, or shred it. Many also accept packages and check deposits.

Before choosing one, look at:

• The state the address is in, and how that interacts with your domicile (see below).
• Whether the address is flagged as commercial. Some banks and government agencies reject addresses they identify as mail-receiving agencies or require a residential address.
• Pricing: base monthly fees, per-scan fees, and international forwarding costs.
• USPS Form 1583. Commercial mail-receiving agencies require you to authorize them to receive your mail, which involves identity verification.
• Check deposit and shredding options, and how long items are stored free.

We do not recommend specific companies. Compare several, read their terms carefully, and choose one that has been operating for years.

The domicile question: which state are you from?

This is the part most people overlook. Leaving the US does not automatically end your relationship with your last state. Some states continue to treat former residents as residents for income tax purposes unless they clearly establish that they have left, and they look at a range of factors: where you hold a driver's license, where you vote, where you own or rent property, where your mail goes, and where your family and possessions are.

A mailing address alone rarely decides the question, but it is part of the picture. Some people deliberately choose a mailing address in a state with no personal income tax. That can help, but it can also backfire if your other ties remain somewhere else, and changing your address does not erase years of history in your former state.

Your mailing address also affects other things:

• Voting. As an overseas voter, you generally vote in your last US state of residence, using the Federal Post Card Application, which election offices recommend resubmitting every year. Your current mail-drop state does not usually change where you vote. See voting from abroad.
• Driver's license renewals, which most states tie to residency.
• Health insurance and auto insurance, which are priced and regulated by state.
• Estate planning documents, which are written under a particular state's law.

Get advice from a tax professional who works with Americans abroad before choosing, and read our guide to state taxes and domicile.

Keeping your US phone number

Your US mobile number is probably the key to your bank accounts, credit cards, brokerage, health portals, and government logins. Losing it can lock you out of everything. There are a few ways to keep it.

Port it to an internet-based (VoIP) service

The most common approach is to transfer, or "port," your mobile number to an internet-based phone service. You then make and receive calls and texts through an app over Wi-Fi or mobile data anywhere in the world, usually for a small monthly or annual fee.

The FCC's guidance on porting applies here:

• Do not cancel your current plan first. Start the port with the new provider while your old service is still active. Cancelling first can mean losing the number.
• Have your account details ready: the 10-digit number, your account number, and the port-out PIN or transfer code from your current carrier.
• Expect a short transition. The FCC says simple ports should generally be processed within one business day, though moves involving different kinds of providers can take longer.
• Ask about fees. Carriers may charge a porting fee, and you still owe any balance or early-termination fee on your old plan.

Choose a provider that supports text messages, including short codes if possible, and that has been around a while. A number ported to a provider that then shuts down can be hard to recover.

Keep a low-cost US mobile plan

Some people keep a cheap US prepaid or postpaid plan active and use it on international roaming or Wi-Fi calling, or swap the SIM in occasionally to receive codes. This keeps the number on a real mobile carrier, which tends to work best with banks. The drawbacks are cost, roaming charges for texts, and the risk that the carrier closes a line that seems inactive. Read the plan's terms on long-term international use.

Protect the number

Whichever route you choose, ask your provider to add a port-out PIN or number lock and use a strong account password. If someone hijacks your number while you are abroad, they can intercept codes for your financial accounts, and fixing it from another continent is slow.

Two-factor authentication: fix it before you go

Text-message codes are the weak point for Americans abroad. Some banks will not send codes to internet-based numbers, some will not send texts to foreign numbers, and international SMS delivery can be unreliable. Two months before your move:

1. Make a list of every account that sends you codes: banks, credit cards, brokerages, retirement plans, email, Social Security, IRS, Medicare, VA, and insurance.
2. Switch to an authenticator app or hardware security key wherever the account allows it. These work without a phone signal and do not depend on your number.
3. Test your planned setup. If you are porting to a VoIP service, log into each account and confirm codes arrive at the new number before you cancel the old plan.
4. Save backup codes for each account in a secure password manager.
5. Tell your banks you are moving. Ask whether they support customers abroad and how they handle verification for overseas logins. Read banking abroad for more.
6. Keep a VPN in mind. Some US financial sites flag or block foreign IP addresses. Check each institution's policy rather than assuming.

Local SIMs and eSIMs for daily life

Your US number is for codes and keeping in touch with home. For daily life abroad you will want a local number: landlords, doctors, deliveries, and messaging apps expect one, and local plans are usually far cheaper than roaming.

• Unlock your phone before you leave. A carrier-locked phone will not accept a foreign SIM.
• Check for eSIM support. Most recent phones can hold more than one eSIM profile, so you can keep a US line and a local line active on the same phone.
• Use a travel eSIM for the first weeks. Data-only travel eSIMs can be installed before departure, so you land connected.
• Get a local plan after you arrive. Many countries require a passport, and sometimes a residence permit or local tax number, to register a SIM in your name.
• Check band compatibility if you have an older phone, especially for rural coverage.

Setup checklist

• Choose a US mailing address: family member or virtual mailbox.
• Think through the domicile implications of that address's state.
• File a USPS change of address in person before leaving the US.
• Update your address with the IRS, Social Security, banks, brokerages, insurers, and pension plans.
• Decide how to keep your US number; port it before cancelling your plan.
• Move two-factor authentication to an authenticator app where possible.
• Add a port-out PIN to your phone account.
• Unlock your phone and set up a travel eSIM.
• Get a local SIM once you arrive and have your residence documents.

These tasks are on our full moving abroad checklist in the final month before departure. Do them early, test everything, and you will arrive with your accounts working.

Last reviewed October 18, 2026. General information only, not legal, immigration, or tax advice. Requirements change, so confirm with official sources before you apply. See our disclaimer.