Why should we go offshore?
- • Reduction of Tax Liability
- Through International Tax Planning - a foreign jurisdiction can offer unparalleled opportunities for reducing your tax liability.
- • Asset Protection - To secure against future claims such as judgment, divorce proceedings, bankruptcy, creditors and litigation.
- • Estate Planning - Private Foundations, and Offshore Protective Trusts for accumulation of investment income and long-term benefits for beneficiaries on a favorable tax basis (without inheritance, income, or capital gains taxes);
- •Confidentiality
- From claimants, ex-spouse, competitors, and other parties from whom you wish to keep your business interests private; and
- • E-Commerce - Shifting business to an Offshore Haven removes restrictions, regulations and taxation. What can you do with 50% more time and money?
- • Wider Investments - An offshore IBC can invest in any foreign or domestic investment.
- • Currency Diversification Holdings in major currencies would reduce the risk, and if well chosen, can contribute significantly to the net yield.
- • Ship Management + Yacht Ownership - Modern ship and pleasure craft registration locations provide low-cost registration fees and tax exemption income derived from shipping and chartering activities.
- • Patent, Royalty + Copyright Holding - Intellectual property including computer software, technical knowledge, patents, trademarks and copyrights, can be owned by, or assigned to, an offshore company upon acquisition of the rights. The rights can then be franchised to companies around the world and the resultant income can be accumulated offshore. A carefully selected jurisdiction can withhold taxes on royalty payments with the commercial application of double tax treaties.
- • Stock Market Listings and Capital Raising Exercises - Many large corporations in economically and politically uncertain countries often diminish the perception of risk by moving ownership of assets and the base of their operations offshore.
Who should go offshore?
• International Investors - Offshore companies can act as holding areas for investments made in a number of different markets and countries. You can collect all your investments together and have one offshore company hold legal ownership of them all. Personal holding companies can provide privacy and may save you the professional fees and other costs associated with setting up and maintaining a number of different offshore structures. Offshore entities allow your portfolio access a variety of quality investment options that improve diversification and reduce risk. Investors regularly use offshore companies in personal portfolios for inheritance planning and to reduce the costs and time delays of probate. Investors with more than $100,000 in capital should use a Foundation Legal Structure to become exempt from the foreign income reporting rules.
• Entrepreneurs - Businesses who start off with an offshore structure can receive strategic benefits. Offshore offers entrepreneurs enhanced investment returns, access to global markets, better after-tax profits, and improved risk mitigation. An offshore vehicle can own corporate assets without exposing the entrepreneur's personal assets - this also reduces business risk. As well, if an entrepreneur structures his or her new venture offshore, it will survive the life of the original entrepreneur and simplify the succession process.
• Executives - Executives can use offshore for various aspects of their corporate agendas. Offshore can also help them restructure their compensation and stock programs so as to take advantage of reduced tax, asset protection, and access to global markets.
• Consultants - Individuals can elect to become an independent contractor with nearly all employers, including many Government positions. This would stop most source deductions, and free up the tax planning to allow many business expenses that employees are not entitled to. It also allows contracting with an IBC to increase work-related expenses, and send the profits overseas.
• Entertainers and Authors - If entertainers and authors properly structure an offshore corporation to receive their contracts, they can reduce tax they would otherwise owe. The offshore corporation earns income, and the entertainer or author is compensated for services rendered to that company.
• Athletes - Athletes can use offshore benefits in the same way entertainers and authors can. By properly arranging personal and compensation contracts with an offshore corporation, athletes can reduce the amount of tax they would otherwise owe onshore. Since the offshore corporation earns the income, the athlete is compensated for services rendered to that company.
• Owners of Intellectual Property
- By assigning intellectual property rights and innovation rights to an offshore corporation, inventors, engineers, and designers can ensure revenue and royalties are received through an offshore corporation (as the owner of such rights) rather than have these revenues come to them personally. This reduces their personal tax obligation and protects their assets. Also, the intellectual property can remain offshore indefinitely, surviving the life of the original inventor. The inventor can easily specify the succession of what would otherwise have been his or her intellectual property rights.
• Medical Practitioners and Other Professionals - Contracts for professional services often use offshore vehicles. Medical practitioners and other professionals use this technique to effectively restructure how their income is generated and realized, which reduces the personal tax they owe. Offshore vehicles also protect personal assets from professional business risks and malpractice claims.
• Individuals with Inherited Wealth - Individuals who inherit wealth can use offshore structures to reduce their inheritance taxes by converting the inheritance money in low- to no-tax jurisdictions instead of high-tax jurisdictions. They can also restructure the income their inherited portfolio generates so as to protect their assets and so that the income compounds tax free. If you structure your pre-inheritance wealth, it will simplify the succession process. Offshore structures can introduce you to a whole new world of investment opportunities with superior tax advantages.
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