Hi all So after too many years in purgatory it now looks highly likely we'll move back to dear continental Europe (Madrid specifically ) this summer. I will be at least at first living of mostly passive income, and could probably do so until disease and death tears me apart, but have investments in a bunch of places, and would need some knowledgeable tax advice before moving, before maybe finding a smaller (cheaper... I've never been keen spending too much on legal advice, although it might have been a mistake) law firm locally. Not talking about 9 digit savings, the huge majority of the funds are held under personal name, so it is neither a very complex situation nor a very lucrative one for the law firm. Not sure whether they would be interested looking into it. Several of you guys mentioned experience with the Big 4, which one would you advise for an individual ? Also it seems PWC, Deloitte and Co also have offices with their name on it in Mainland China, but the affiliation is flimsy. I suspect it is better to contact their Hong Kong offices but mainland China would be easier. Madrid looks decent tax wise for capitalists, with no wealth tax, very low estate tax (1% seems to be the amount paid on average), and double tax treaties with countries where I hold shares keeping on paper withholding tax on dividends reasonable, but I suspect it is possible to either mess up or improve the situation. Any feedback on those topics? Thanks in advance
I client of mine, when I was still an investment advisor, negotiated his taxes before he moved to Marbella. And he was very happy with the deal.
Sweden - no wealth tax, no death tax, no gift tax, no excise tax on cars, free healtcare, free education including universitets where your children are paid to study, no capital gains tax but instead a 0,5% tax on capital which translates into an effective tax rate of 5% assuming a long term return of 10%. Stay there during summer and stay in Spain or anywhere else during winter - as long as you stay more days in Sweden.
Thanks Chuck, good info, I didn't know negociating taxes was an option there, that would explain why wealthy folks still chose Andalucia despite the nasty wealth tax there (there is none in Madrid). We are running a bit out of time but will ask the law firm and check whether that is a possibility. Maverick, there are already a bunch of interesting threads in the forum discussing the best place to live in tax wise. This thread is not intended to become one of them. I already went through the complicated school admission process and paid a bunch of fees once the kids got accepted (school in Madrid is more renowned than the school they attend now and costs in spanish school are roughly half, sweet deal so far). So bar a major issue, we will move to Madrid in the next few months.
Luis: The guy played it like this: he said he was indecided between Marbella and Monaco and that he would buy 3 villa's there (2 to rent out) so they gave him a tax discount. This is some years ago though, when the Marbella real estate was more in a slump.
Interesting, thanks. Btw you are from Belgium right ? As Madrid school was taking time to accept the kids we'd applied for Plan B in Brussels. Mrs speaks french, has friends in Brussels and was keener on moving there than to Madrid. Kids got accepted quickly in Brussels but eventually also in Madrid, which offers much better opportunities sports wise (less business wise ), but we were very close to moving to Belgium. On the OP's question, anyone has advice on which international tax advisory firm to contact ?
If you watch this documentary there is a Chinese guy in it who sold his chain of chemist shops and was advised to become resident of Gibraltar but lives in Spain tax free.
I visited twice Gibraltar, including the private middle/high school there last year, contacted lawyers there and aslo opened a thread about Gibraltar here. AFAIK it is now a very risky proposition to be tax resident in Gibraltar while living across the border, even worse with kids going to school in Spain (they have international schools in Marbella, possibly better than Gib schools). We did consider moving to Gib and like several aspects of the life there but finally decided against it, again the sports offering for kids was a major reason - pictures of the BMX/skate park were the final nail in the coffin : https://www.google.com/search?q=gib...ved=0ahUKEwj4lau_kZPhAhUEuHEKHS33CsMQ_AUIDygC
This is no longer possible - I know there has been a lot of use / abuse in the past, but only a few weeks ago, Gibraltar and Spain actually signed an international tax agreement which clearly states that a (special) Gibraltar tax status alone is not sufficient to avoid being seen as a Spanish tax resident. (In other words, you actually have to live in Gibraltar to be seen as a Gibraltar tax resident, and even if you do, there are exceptions that could result in Spanish tax liabilities!) I reiterate what has been said on this subject before: anyone serious about minimizing tax liabilities should seek professional fiscal / legal advise.
Yeah Luis, I am Dutch, currently living in Belgium for a while now. Lived in the suburbs of Bruges and also Antwerp city centre and it's suburbs, and more recently we moved to the seaside in Oostduinkerke. Living is pretty good here, you will find that most people speak English too. If you are ever visiting, I'll send you some musea, hotel and restaurant tips.