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How to be a good investor Abroad?

1. Almost all countries, except where we reside, can usually be considered tax havens. Put another way, a tax haven can be any anywhere other than the jurisdiction where you live, work and get regular income: a tax haven for non-resident may be a high-tax to a person who lives and works in it. Interestingly, our country of residence may be a tax haven for other people, tourists or retirees living in Spain almost permanently without any control of the Treasury in his country or ours. In recent years, and in order to attract high level professionals, Spain has eased the taxation of non residents as discussed below.

Tax havens and peculiarities submit very diverse offers: some are nearby others are good to build businesses, others to use their banking services, others to invest from them and some to reside. One of the first steps is to study their characteristics to assess what it is, including the best suited to each.

The offshore concept is disappearing from the image of a hidden island, small principalities and banana producing countries. United Kingdom, Holland, Belgium and Spain may be suitable tax havens in certain circumstances for any international investor. We reiterate that the majority of countries considered tax hostile have developed or are developing more and more niches or tax shelters for companies that want to settle in them, on very favourable terms. No tax haven is tested for contingency. Great nations, in many different ways, can influence a specific offshore area. However, there are also different ways to mitigate these influences.

2. For some reasons, all major and some frequent reason is that after a certain amount of money available, any person, in anticipation of what might happen, should consider having an account with funds outside the jurisdiction where you live and perform professional duties. Everyone in the civilized world are surrounded by economic threats (Tax problems, bankruptcy, economic recession), political (terrorism, confiscation) and legal (professional liability claims, divorce). Some of these threats are rapid and unexpected. It is estimated that about three times in life such events occur. We live in a world of uncertainty, where the only certainty is change. The approach and use of an offshore structure requires time and proper planning and should not be expected to get when needed urgently.

3. The easiest advice to give and more difficult to follow: is to keep a low profile where you live and work. As a general rule you should not communicate anything to anyone about an offshore account. Also, do not give the impression that you have a lot of money. At the slightest hint or signal of danger, such as that can suffer a legal claim, we can clearly see the convenience of not having informed anyone of the existence of funds abroad. It is precisely the knowledge that there is available means abroad, or the mere suspicion of it, a criterion used by judges to order the unconditional prison without bail in serious demands, as well as a withdrawn passport. The best protection, we insist, is to lead a quiet life. Is this really a council against nature, that challenges both our most basic impulses of the general principles of social and economic climate. However boast of wealth should be avoided. Discretion, and protection under it, is worth more than any complex pattern of concealment of property.

4. When looking for privacy, it should be noted that there is never absolute bank secrecy, as discussed in the next chapter. There are different procedures that guarantee a high degree of concealment of bank operations and hinder the detection of the true owner. The greatest guarantee of confidentiality is obtained by separating the local bank accounts and operations of the outer, made in the offshore jurisdiction. The separation is complete, no electronic trail of paper and offline between them. This confidence is reinforced when intermediaries are not in use and we do not talk about it with anyone. Although a minimum of advice can save significant errors, it should be possible to make all the banking operations by ourselves. Into the hands of local bankers or lawyers and international experts increases public exposure (as there are more people who know things) and, especially, costs.

5. Financial affairs, specially banking, are based on the trust relationship between the professional and his client. Banks and bankers must inspire confidence, as at stake is the client's money. Personal relationships are important, not only for the trust, but by mutual understanding. The professionals with whom you work with should know the wishes, concerns and ethos of the client. Conversely, they must get to know the perpetrators and dealings of the banks and investment companies whose services are used.

Every effort should be made to choose good people and good banks and, whenever possible, to diversify risk. In much of the time, monitoring of foreign investments is fairly active. It requires more or less continuous monitoring of operations and financial position. At other times, as in the case of a "lazy" investor who is limited to investing their money in a fund and then "forget", the activity involved is not much, although regular checks are needed, but it carries a price which, with luck and planning need not be very high. Internet helps you perform many operations at home and at minimal cost, without forgetting that the network is not secure.

6. The social, political and economic conditions are changing: in our own country, in tax havens and around the world. For example, Spain was almost a complete tax haven until the late 70's, then started the regularization and upgrading of the country's tax. As mentioned before, yet this can be a good territory offshore for many foreign residents. In general, tax havens are places of very stable government, or even as  unstable they try so that nothing changes for the non-resident investor. However, although the country is very stable, banking conditions and investment laws can vary from almost overnight. For example, in Switzerland, a country with known political and social stability, important changes have occurred in recent years that have altered in part to their attractiveness to investors and depositors of funds.

That said, those responsible should be noted that banks are able to find exits more or less easy to please their customers, provided that this does not adversely affect its relations with the authorities. In any case, this is a world of change and as popular wisdom says: "To stand still is to run." Continuous change also tells us that it is wrong to seek the advice of professionals.

Tax havens are subject mainly to changes in legislation, most of which are due to the expansion of services offered to the accelerated introduction of tighter monitoring procedures of financial activities and money laundering and tendency to more expensive tariffs. We must be awakened and reformed in order to react quickly to any eventuality. It is advisable to consult the international press, the economic news and learn about the global political changes to better preserve the property and watch them grow. It also helps to know, first hand these areas and visit them whenever possible. Since many of them are tourist areas, combined with leisure and financial planning during a holiday.

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