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Residence permits and visas. These are required to visit or live in another country depending on your citizenship, your destination, and your length of stay. Requirements to get them vary considerably and depend upon the political climate of the time. As a citizen of the United States, I can visit the European Union for 90 days until I either must leave or procure a residence permit or visa. Since I am planning to stay in Austria long-term, I need a residence permit. And so my saga begins. In May 2017, I began collecting documents so that I could apply for my residence permit. I needed my birth certificate, background check, proof of employment and health insurance in German and English, and a few months of paystubs. Most of these had to be apostilled, which is basically an internationally recognized notary. I also had to fill out an extensive application in German and set up an appointment with the consulate in Washington D.C. to deliver everything in person. At the consulate I woul...