Offshore Net

IBC or the International Business Corporation is another name for an offshore company that has been formed under various laws and is supposed to be a tax free company. IBC's cannot do business in the same jurisdiction in which it was formed. There are various offshore jurisdictions, who have allowed formation of IBC's and these include Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, Bahamas, Antigua, Nevis and Gibraltar. Having an IBC has its own advantages although these vary according to the jurisdiction like: - IBC have corporate tax exemptions, and stamp duty exemption. These advantages are applicable only if the IBC is not involved in any local business from that particular jurisdiction. Only the[..]

For many commercial businesses, offshore banking has its attractions. Most people may raise their eyebrows at offshore banking and think it is illegal and unethical. But they cannot be further from the truth. Creating and depositing money in offshore banks are not illegal. In fact, in this fast-paced and globalized economy, many corporations and even individuals find it necessary to have accounts in foreign banks. These transactions are, of course, regulated by international laws, as well as subject to the host country's sovereign rule and policies. The most popular offshore banking destinations for commercial entities is Antigua and Barbuda. In recent years, the Government of Antigua[..]

Whether your motivation is asset protection, privacy, tax planning or a combination of all three, New Zealand is undoubtedly one of the most attractive jurisdictions to set up a trust today. We have therefore dedicated the second part of this report to explaining the benefits, uses and practical operations of New Zealand offshore trusts. The New Zealand government introduced a new tax and trust regime in 1988, designed primarily to attract international fund management business and financial institutions to New Zealand. Part of this amended regime made provision for a non-New Zealand resident settlor to settle a trust with a New Zealand resident trustee, without exposing that trustee,[..]

Doing business outside of the U.S.?  Have an Offshore bank account or Brokerage Account? Own more than 10% of a foreign country legal entity? (and some rules apply to even lower levels of ownership). The I.R.S. maze of rules and arsenal of penalties is overwhelming; even for CPAs and tax lawyers who work on international taxes. Make no mistake, the I.R.S. expects “transparency.”  There is a form to file or a regulation to follow where taxpayers have to disclose all offshore economic activities and commercial relationships. The list below is a summary by the I.R.S. of the many of the penalties that can apply to Offshore Income. Additional penalties apply related to “transfer[..]

The origin of low financial jurisdictions can be found during the middle ages when trade wars arose between different countries and regions competed amongst themselves for economic dominance. A clear example can be seen in the story of the Channel Islands initial development as an offshore tax haven. Indeed we can spot some common underlying themes in its development, which are shared with other low tax financial centres. The firstly it is common that direct central control, in this case the Crown of England, remains loose and weaker in ties of geography and historic allegiance than the mainland. The Channel Islands whilst traditionally part of Duchy of Normandy since 1204, in actual[..]

Offshore Shelf Companies Our offshore shelf companies (ready made off-shore companies) were incorporated specifically for our clients who want a ready made offshore shelf company for immediate use. The following services are included with the purchase of a shelfcompany: • Transfer of company share • Assistance in opening of a bank account in Singapore, if necessary and at a additional fee • Provision of pertinent documents • Certificate of Incorporation • Certificate of Memorandum and Articles of Association (M&A) • Share Certificate • Certificate of Incumbency You can request for our updated list of available offshore shelf IBCs (also known as readymade offshore[..]

Many individuals mistakenly believe, in our "enlightened" technological society, that they are perfectly capable of developing their own asset protection plan through materials purchased off the internet or the services of their local general practitioner. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. Individuals, internet document services and general practitioners are totally unaware of the myriad of issues and problems that must be resolved prior to the implementation of any asset protection structure. Problems and issues include: The desire to protect ALL asset and the unwillingness to accept competent experienced advice that not all assets may be protected, and, that any[..]

If you decide you'd like to reduce your tax burden, protect your assets, simplify your company operations or enter into cross border business transactions for example, and you're interested in whether an offshore company structure could help with any or all of the above, chances are it could. There are many ways you can use an offshore company, many benefits you can derive from the use of one and many locations in which you can set one up...so how can you decide whether such a structure is applicable to you and how on earth should you decide where to incorporate an offshore company? What to Use an Offshore Company For You can use an offshore company if you want to trade internationally[..]

How to avoid taxes? Well, do not think this question is a title of some "How-to" book but consider this question very seriously. Citizens or Green Card Holders of the United States of America, wherever they live -- in or outside the US have to pay their annual income tax. This is a rule that everyone has to follow in the US whether the income is earned from any source in any part of the world. The US is the only major country which imposes taxes such as income tax and estate tax on its citizens and resident aliens even if they no longer reside in the US which is quite contrasting to other countries as they impose taxes on residents who actually reside there. The taxes apply no matter[..]

Did you know that... we live in a lawsuit-crazy society? I'll bet you do know that. And I bet you also know thatcourt judgments are getting more and more outrageous all thetime. Unless you have some sort of asset protection strategyalready set up, whatever assets you have built up can bewiped out from a lawsuit that does not go your way. Asset protection is a means for protecting your valuablesfrom future lawsuits and creditor collection attempts. Whilemany people are looking for a solid way to do this, thereare many ways where the asset protection options that theytry are not going to work. But, there are asset protection strategies that really dowork. What you want to do is to search[..]

-- End Ad Box ---> As we are all aware, over the last few decades expanding theories of liability and the proliferation of litigation has given increased emphasis to Asset Protection Planning to the extent that it is now a well recognized area of practice. However, traditional Estate Planning has always encompassed the concepts of asset preservation and protection. Accordingly, all of us who have business owners, physicians and other professionals as clients need to be able to integrate our Estate and Business Planning with Asset Protection Planning in order to properly serve the needs of our clients. Certainly the area of Asset Protection Planning is a concern for all of these types of[..]

With so much economic doom and gloom surrounding us, it makes sense to batten down the hatches and protect your assets. If your assets are scattered about and are not protected, your liabilities could be laid wide open and your financial situation and personal security could be put at risk. However, an offshore trust can be used as an asset protection strategy to rid high net worth individuals of asset protection worries.   What is an offshore trust and what can it do for me?   An offshore trust is similar to an onshore trust - but it is held at an offshore financial centre and has the benefit of greater asset protection than onshore trusts.   An offshore trust is an arrangement[..]

Copyright (c) 2009 Jeffrey Matsen In most cases, when an individual who creates and transfer assets to a Trust (the maker or "Settlor" of the Trust), is also a beneficiary of that Trust, the Trust provisions will not protect the Settlor/beneficiary's creditors from reaching the assets of the Trust. On the other hand, the law of many foreign jurisdictions provides that when a Settlor transfers assets to an Offshore Asset Protection Trust that Trust can protect the assets of the Trust even though the Trustor is a beneficiary of the Trust. In the late 1990s, several states began to reverse the general rule concerning self settled Spend Thrift Trusts and statutorily modified their laws[..]

If we want to ensure that our future is bright there are several reasons why you should consider offshore investment. If we listen to media you'll have a picture of investor's stashing money in illegal companies in the Caribbean to avoid taxes. There are shoddy offshore deals but the majority are legal and offer excellent options for tax breaks which is why you should consider offshore investment. There are a variety of investment strategies that capitalize on advantages outside the home market including bonds, equity, and money market options that are sound investments. There are many advantages which is why you should consider offshore investment. 1. Tax Savings Many countries have[..]

Do you watch Hollywood movies that portray Swiss Bank accounts as a place to stash away the ill-gotten gains of the super rich and the James Bond style crooks? Well think again Folks. You need to break out from your prejudices and get a little flexible to adapt to thinking globally. It might be surprising for you to know that there are thousands of honest hardworking professionals in the world's international financial centers managing unknown millions of U.S. dollars on a daily basis at offshore locations. Getting offshore is a new and exciting trend seen in banking. The extraordinary growth of the offshore financial industry has spawned an exciting enterprise for those willing to make[..]

Even though this article about offshore banking was written for the U.S. person, it can be applied to almost any country. You need to check with the laws of your own country to see if the following is true for you also. Some details may be different but generally it is true for most countries since many laws are enacted using U.S. law as their guide. The U.S. WILL NEVER HAVE and more importantly DOES NOT NOW HAVE a law which forbids the taking of money out of the U.S.A. Why? Because no country that thrives on international commerce for the health of its economy can write such a damaging law without destroying its economy. And, since the U.S. has continuously and consistently had an[..]

Many people believe that there is a fine line between those who bank offshore and criminals who launder money and evade taxation - but the truth about offshore banking and those who legitimately place assets offshore is that the action of placing money offshore is not illegal, will likely never be illegal and can be of benefit to almost all of us! The word 'offshore' in the financial sense is synonymous in many people's minds with 'saving tax', and while some who bank offshore are legitimately entitled and able to save tax by having interest paid on their savings before the deduction of tax, there are many more real benefits available to those who choose to open an offshore bank[..]

Offshore banking, we have all heard about it before. Unfortunately, many are misinformed when it comes to offshore banking. We have all heard news reports of offshore accounts being used to front illegal activities or to avoid taxes. In fact, we have also seen it in the movies, being used a similar way. This has led many individuals to believe that offshore banking is illegal. Despite what you may believe, offshore banking is legal. However, how you use it may be considered illegal. Offshore banking is done through a bank that is known as an offshore bank. Offshore banks are banks that are located in another country, other than the country that you reside in. For instance, if you[..]

If you want to get your funds from one country to the next, then the easiest way is to open an offshore banking account online. However there are a few pitfalls of doing so. It's not just your money that you are handing over to a website you searched out from Google but also the fact that this activity may be dubbed illegal. Even if the bank is a regulated one, the internet is not and so you would have to struggle through a lot of crap and websites that are purely and simply scams. So to help you out, here are some golden rules that you must follow to make sure that you do not fall prey to any sort of scam running across the internet.o Get a fax or contact number. This is one the easiest[..]

Swiss offshore banking accounts are considered to be a sign of prestige, class and exclusivity. However, opening a Swiss banking account these days is getting harder than it ever was. The biggest reason why opening a Swiss banking account is getting increasingly difficult is due to the high standards that the banks have set. Most private Swiss offshore banking starts at about $1 million while even a basic account with a cantonal bank or supermarket requires a minimum deposit of several thousand dollars. Those days are well and truly behind us when you could just turn around one fine day to a Swiss bank with a bag loaded full of cash. The international rules that govern tax evasion and[..]

It's common knowledge that almost all big companies and the wealthiest people in the world use offshore banking to supplement their expanding waistlines. No one wants to see their hard earned money being swindled away by an inept government but the problem comes when governments themselves reward these fat cats for failure. The CEO's and chairmen of huge corporate banks have knowingly used offshore subsidiaries to restructure their organizations to be more 'tax efficient'. Then afterwards the majority had a second go at the cream by dripping tax free bonuses into various offshore bank accounts worldwide. Now that these banks have failed, taxpayers are being forced to pay even more to[..]

A bank which is located outside of the country you live in is usually described as an offshore bank. There are a variety of reasons as to why people use offshore bank accounts. Taxes are usually lower and the interest rates are usually higher as well. However, the majority of people who have access to a bank account in another country are usually using them to keep their money more secure. This form of banking is completely legal and there is nothing wrong with making the most of your money. A lot of facilities are based literally offshore from many countries throughout the world. The term "offshore bank" is actually spot on for most banks. However, there are some mainland banks which[..]

It may sound great to have an offshore bank account guarded by razor-sharp banking secrecy, but is it all that it seems? Here we explore what bank secrecy really is, and whether countries will actually enforce it to protect your privacy. Bank Secrecy, also referred to as banking or financial secrecy refers to a legal principle which allows banks to keep their client information confidential. This is extremely important to protect against fiscal fraud and identity theft, but while in some countries like Switzerland or Panama breaking bank secrecy could land you in jail, in other countries it is routinely broken without penalty. Why is this? There is great potential for fraud and/or money[..]

Now a days, people want to open a numbered bank account with a specification attached to it that IRS should not disclose the account holder's name. Till few years bank it was simple for citizens of different countries to open a numbered bank account in Swiss bank without disclosing their details. However, in year 2004 it became difficult for Switzerland to entertain such requests. This happened due to adoption of new rules and regulations around opening a bank account in Switzerland. The important thing to be noticed here is that, this decision was not a willful decision. Switzerland was forced to start new and strict rules and regulations around this. It seemed at that point that these[..]

There are many people who feel more secure placing their money into an offshore bank account instead of a domestic account. They will find a bank in the country of their choice and they will house their money there. Most of the time, the owner of the offshore bank account won't tell anyone that the money is there. As a matter of fact, the account holder tries to forget that it is there because this is money that they are not likely going to spend. This is one reason why businesses will use offshore bank accounts to house some of their money. They feel that it is more secure and, in many cases, it really is. Here are more reasons why individuals will place their money within an offshore[..]

Offshore banking is when you open a bank account in a foreign country. Due to the media and movies people often think that offshore banking is illegal. While this form of banking has been tied to illegal activities such as organized crime, money laundering and financing of terrorism it is in fact a perfectly legal way to handle your finances. There are many advantages and disadvantages to this form of banking. Some of the bigger pros associated are higher interest rates, lower taxes on interest earned and increased secrecy surrounding your account. The higher interest rates and lower taxes are the main reasons why most people open an offshore bank account. These types of accounts are a[..]

Modest Beginnings The history of Barclays can be traced back to 1690 in the dark streets of London. It was named after David and Alexander Barclay, who were known for providing credit to transatlantic slave traders. In 1896, a number of banks in London and in provinces including Gurney's Bank of Norwich and Bankhouse's Bank of Darlington united under one banner - Barclays and Co. By 1919, the bank acquired several banks, such as the British Linen Bank and the South Western Bank, amalgamating them and extending the branch network. In 1965, the company established its first affiliate in the United States, the Barclays Bank of California. Since then, numerous acquisitions, takeovers and[..]

The syntax is tortured, the grammar mutilated, but the message - sent by snail mail, telex, fax, or e-mail - is coherent: an African bigwig or his heirs wish to transfer funds amassed in years of graft and venality to a safe bank account in the West. They seek the recipient's permission to make use of his or her inconspicuous services for a percentage of the loot - usually many millions of dollars. A fee is required to expedite the proceedings, or to pay taxes, or to bribe officials - they plausibly explain. It is a scam two decades old - and it still works. Only last month, a bookkeeper for a Berkley, Michigan law firm embezzled $2.1 million and wired it to various bank accounts in[..]

It is the same old story that has been repeating itself every month. You are really fed up of the situation but then again, it is something you cannot avoid. It has been a long time since you have visited a movie hall along with your kids to watch a comedy movie. It is true that you do care for your family and have taken them to a number of motion pictures in the recent past. However, the fact remains that most of them were romantic, science fiction, documentaries or historical ones. You might like such genres, but you can be rest assured that your kids will not. In fact you had faced a harrowing time the last time you had taken your kids to the pictures. You had not bothered to find out[..]

The reason I find this interesting because Dubai was not playing by the rules of the rest of the world. No citizen of Dubai can be extradited to any country to face criminal charges. Dubai was the only stronghold for foreigners to escape to and avoid the laws of their native land. I know that Mobil/Exxon moved their corporate offices and all executives to Dubai. So did Halliburton (ex vice president Cheney's company which he still owns a lot of shares in). Which other companies have moved their executive offices to Dubai, I am not aware of, although I know more have. It is one thing to have oodles of millions which were legally or otherwise stolen, it is another to have no place to spend[..]

Introduction The proposed introduction of public warning powers to the Trade Practices Act 1974 (TPA) has raised considerable concern among business groups. The main concern which has been expressed is that the ACCC may use the power to "name and shame" reputable companies, rather than fly by night operators. Some groups have also complained that the introduction of this power is contrary to the right of individuals to be considered innocent until proven guilty. In this article I will outline the new public warning powers and then discuss how these powers could be implemented by the ACCC in particular circumstances to improve consumer protection outcomes. To illustrate the benefits of a[..]

There is a common misconception that people who cannot store their unaccounted wealth in their own country open accounts in Swiss banks. Even though this may be true to an extent, Swiss banks are well known for their sophisticated and discreet banking services. Many of the rich and famous like film stars, business entrepreneurs, top government officials, presidents, etc, are reputed to have Swiss bank accounts. Then again, it is also said one need not be a multi-millionaire to open a Swiss bank account. Brief Background of the Swiss Banking System One of the most prosperous and economically advanced nations, Switzerland has the world's largest gross domestic product (GDP). There are[..]

The IRS Qualified Intermediary Program has heightened scrutiny as a result of the federal investigation into the Swiss Bank, UBS (the world's largest private bank). U.S. Prosecutors allege UBS deliberately abused the Qualified Intermediary Program ("QI Program"), selling offshore banking services to U.S. Taxpayers to evade taxes. U.S. Prosecutors allege UBS helped American clients hide as much as $20B in assets offshore, evading at least $300M in taxes. Using offshore accounts is not illegal for U.S. Taxpayers, but hiding income in undeclared accounts is illegal. Foreign banks who violate the Qualified Intermediary Program rules may be denied access to the entire American Banking[..]

One of the major problems one has, in challenging the status quo, is that people are wedded to the way things are, and have great difficulty in seeing past accepted norms to "what could be". Taxation is one of these accepted norms. We were all born into a world where people pay tax. No one fundamentally challenges the system because that's the way it has always been. Taxation reform is a popular topic for discussion, but a lot less popular is to question the very nature of taxation itself. Let me first make my own position crystal clear. I consider taxation to be immoral. Taxation is the forced appropriation of another's rightful property - as money earned this way is a result of a[..]

On September 19, the SEC suspended short selling for 799 financial companies to "protect the integrity and quality of the securities market and strengthen investor confidence". Since then the Dow has lost 165 points. The ban ends tomorrow. Eric Roseman says the legislation targets the wrong traders. Short sellers make the market more transparent. By blocking them, the SEC is violating the free market. The ban has so far failed to stabilize the markets. Don't be surprised if the government now moves to target other safe havens such as gold and offshore accounts. Eric recommends investors move quickly to secure their assets in European strongholds like Switzerland and Liechtenstein. This[..]

investors are puzzled by the various terms used by bankers in describing ways to protect their money. Here is a short list of some of the most common ones. Asset Protection Trust (APT) is an irrevocable trust, usually created (settled) offshore for the principal purposes of preserving and protecting wealth against creditors. Title to the asset is transferred to a trustee. It is used for asset protection and usually tax neutral. Its function is to provide for the beneficiaries of the APT. A trust is a contract affecting three parties, the settlor (who sets up the offshore trust; also called the grantor in U.S. or IRS terms), the trustee and the beneficiary. A trust protector is optional[..]

Offshore banking is a method by which a person can transfer money and assets overseas where they will be regulated by banks in jurisdictions outside their country of residence. The term offshore banking originates from the Channel Islands since they are physically located off the mainland but more recently it is a figurative term since Luxembourg and Switzerland for example, are offering the same service. In fact, swiss banking is becoming increasingly more popular as people are starting to wake up to the benefits. Now it seems Offshore banking is the general term for anyone that has assets outside of their own country. But how can you benefit from banking offshore? Offshore banking has[..]

There are millions of individuals who want to earn a decent wage with minimum effort from the comfort of their house. With the advent of the net, home based jobs and business chances are increasing weekly. Though there are thousands of legitimate companies that offer real work at home jobs to people, there are still chances of scammers. Since working at home is fascinating to just about all people, fake job offers are frequent on the net. Some common work at home scams are more noticeable, such as envelope stuffing. Work at home scams do take many forms. Most of the companies do not secure frequent paying employment for the home based workers. They do not mention how many hours you would[..]