best country for offshore accounts privacy wise?
best country for offshore accounts privacy wise?
Author
Discussion

pimping

Original Poster:

759 posts

190 months

Saturday 6th August 2011
quotequote all
Looking into setting up an offshore account with very good privacy.

I have been looking for a few weeks now and still can't spot what i am looking for.

As far as i can see switzerland and panama have signed up to a 'white paper agreement' or something which means they will divulge info if asked.

A friend suggested the seychelles or bahamas but he has no financial background.


smartie

2,609 posts

289 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
North Korea?

Eric Mc

124,062 posts

281 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
pimping said:
Looking into setting up an offshore account with very good privacy.

I have been looking for a few weeks now and still can't spot what i am looking for.

As far as i can see switzerland and panama have signed up to a 'white paper agreement' or something which means they will divulge info if asked.

A friend suggested the seychelles or bahamas but he has no financial background.
I hope by privacy you don't mean "privacy from the tax man".

pimping

Original Poster:

759 posts

190 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
No no nothing underhand here just looking into it.

jas xjr

11,309 posts

255 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
Maldives was popular a few years ago

ringram

14,701 posts

264 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
Cook Islands used to be up there.

Delaware might be the go these days... if you want to minimise tax. Tonker was talking about the general approach the other day.
Something like holding co with IP charges trading entities royalties which get accounted for in zero tax location.. and job's a good 'un.

Victor McDade

4,395 posts

198 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
After the UBS and Julius Baer banking cases, many wealthy individuals are turning to private banks in Singapore and Hong Kong.

But will it really be long before the American, and other governments force these places to sign up to similar anti-secrecy legislation?

Not that I'm rich enough to use one but its ironic how much trouble our governments go to shutting down such systems yet at the same time happily accept looted, stolen, and criminal funds from wealthy individuals from all over Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Evade taxes in the uk = you're a scumbag, Evade taxes in India or Thailand and come here = you're a top bloke.


anonymous-user

70 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
In what name will the account be, sole, Limited Company, Trust etc?

What is it you are looking to shield from prying eyes?

anonymous-user

70 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
In what name will the account be, sole, Limited Company, Trust etc?

What is it you are looking to shield from prying eyes?

Eric Mc

124,062 posts

281 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
And why?

iphonedyou

9,943 posts

173 months

Sunday 7th August 2011
quotequote all
With the greatest of respect, if he's looking for privacy, he's hardly going to tell a board full of strangers what he's looking to hide, and why.

Bing o

15,184 posts

235 months

Monday 8th August 2011
quotequote all
Isle of Man?

Singapore and HK are both well regulated, Singapore certainly to FSA standards. We were putting our stuff into Mauritius, but they canned their tax treaty with India recently (IIRC).

If you're concerened about FATCA, it's already illegal for anyone to advise you how to hide your assets.


XJSJohn

16,092 posts

235 months

Monday 8th August 2011
quotequote all
labuan is a popular one.

Singapore is fast becoming the new Numbered Bank Account capital of the world it seems.

Eric Mc

124,062 posts

281 months

Monday 8th August 2011
quotequote all
iphonedyou said:
With the greatest of respect, if he's looking for privacy, he's hardly going to tell a board full of strangers what he's looking to hide, and why.
Inded - in fact, I wouldn't even have posted the question on a fairly public bulletin board.

big ant

305 posts

188 months

Monday 8th August 2011
quotequote all
Any English speaking place with sound regulations...you need to be able to easily talk/email to bankers, lawyers, representative nominees, etc.

Then, company instructs a Trust which itself owns a holding company outside EU, and holding company then owns series of trading or asset companies with any jurisdiction. Costs EUR 30k / year, so if tax avoidance is small amount, don't bother kidding yourself. EU courts can access any EU country, so you need the bridge outside EU (ie BVI).

You will appear to own none of it....all nominee stuff. Tax will be....above fees.

Any single trading or asset company can be sold, shut down, etc...with ease, if problems arise, or you wish to exit.

BA

Eric Mc

124,062 posts

281 months

Monday 8th August 2011
quotequote all
big ant said:
You will [b]appear[.b]to own none of it....all nominee stuff. Tax will be....above fees.
How can that be legal?

If you have legal access to it surely it must be your's.

Beardy10

24,546 posts

191 months

Monday 8th August 2011
quotequote all
Eric Mc said:
big ant said:
You will [b]appear[.b]to own none of it....all nominee stuff. Tax will be....above fees.
How can that be legal?

If you have legal access to it surely it must be your's.
Not necessarily if all decisions regarding investment or distributions are made "independently" made by trustee it can be "yours" and not taxed until you collapse it. Offshore FBT's were structured in this way and they were legal for UK resident and domiciled tax payers until quite recently. HMRC is obviously attacking them now but old one's still exist and work on that basis i.e the beneficiary rings up the trustee and asks them to consider buying some BP shares for him.....they weren't even nominee accounts!

Eric Mc

124,062 posts

281 months

Monday 8th August 2011
quotequote all
I like the way you put certain words in parantheses - which indicates they didn't actually mean what they said.

It's about time HMRC went after these sham schemes. I wonder why they took so long to get their act together on this.

Beardy10

24,546 posts

191 months

Tuesday 9th August 2011
quotequote all
Eric Mc said:
I like the way you put certain words in parantheses - which indicates they didn't actually mean what they said.

It's about time HMRC went after these sham schemes. I wonder why they took so long to get their act together on this.
Oh they are going after them now.....and after a few years of changing legislation to deal with new ones they are now attacking the old one's.

Eric Mc

124,062 posts

281 months

Tuesday 9th August 2011
quotequote all
But why did it take so long?

Was it because various governments going back years were loathe to tackle tax shelters which were used by some of their assorted parties' largest benefactors?