Gordon Brown to Expatriate and Leave UK!  If Only!

Just imagine if Gordon Brown were to announce that he’d had enough of running UK into the ground and he was planning on expatriating and leaving Great Britain to the rest of us.  Wouldn’t that be fantastic – because then you wouldn’t have to plan your own escape!

Oh well, it’s a fantasy we can all dream about – but in the meantime where in the world should you be moving to if you want to escape the excessive taxation in Britain, find a haven for your savings and pension plans, find affordable property, a decent cost of living and a place where there are jobs?

In this article we’ll have a scout round and examine the realities of some of the most popular expat boltholes to see which ones are the most appealing for those of you who need to get out of Britain before it goes completely to the dogs!

Where Can You Live Abroad and Pay Less Tax?

If you want to pay less tax than you do in the UK and you want to avoid the 50% top tax rate about to be introduced in Britain, don’t move to Belgium or Sweden!  Other than these two nations you pretty much have the pick of the world if you want to pay less tax on your income!  For example, even in America taxation rates are lower than in the UK, the top rate of tax in the US is 35% with CGT coming in at 15% (compared to 18% in the UK).  Hong Kong is more attractive though, there income tax is just 16% at the top end – but if you want to stay closer to home, how about the Isle of Man which charges just 18% or the Channel Islands where the top rate is 20%?

If you’re retiring abroad then look at Cyprus perhaps, there income tax on pension income is just 5%!  Or if you prefer to go further afield then you need to know that the top rate of income tax in New Zealand is 39% and they have no capital gains tax…whereas Australia’s top rates of income and capital gains taxes are a fairly scary 45%.

Where Can You Offshore Your Savings and Earn More Interest?

If you move abroad and take your onshore pension pot with you thanks to the new government backed qualifying recognised overseas pension scheme, you can benefit from a whole host of amazing advantages.  Depending on how and where you save you may get better returns than if you left it onshore, but the real tangible and definite benefits come from the fact that after 5 years the British government doesn’t need to know what you’re doing with your savings, you don’t have to buy an annuity with your pension pot, and you can will anything that is remaining in your pension on to your heirs and beneficiaries when you die.  None of these benefits are available to you if you keep your pension onshore!  If you want to find out more, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) and we’ll have an independent adviser call you and explain QROPS to you.

If you ‘just’ want better interest on your offshore savings and investments once you move abroad then you need to look around at all the policies and plans available to you and take personalised advice applicable to your own personal situation.  However, we can tell you that at the moment the rate of interest in both NZ and Australia is 3% - far better than the UK’s basic bank rate.  And in South Africa it’s an impressive 13%!  Turkey also offers an impressive interest rate to savers too…but always, always beware and remember that the security of your money is at least as important as the rate of growth you could potentially expose it to!  Get professional advice before making any decisions.

Where Can You Buy Affordable Property Abroad?

It seems that a combination of factors has resulted in property prices in even the most popular European/Mediterranean hotspots falling sharply.  You can now get a home for under £150,000 in idyllic parts of Spain, France, Portugal and Italy, so if you want to live in Andalusia, the Dordogne, Alentejo or even Umbria and you have a ‘modest’ budget, you can find a home!

Lack of buyers, desperate Brits fleeing the market, builders going out of business and a credit crunch have crushed prices back down from optimistic to realistic in Europe – and this is great news for those with the cash in the bank and the real desire to escape Britain in search of a better life abroad.

Up until February this year Brits were able to buy well in New Zealand and Australia too – but since then the pound has plummeted against the local currencies, pushing the real cost of property back up again for escaping, expatriating Brits.  However, traditionally Brits can get more property for their money down under anyway, so if the likes of NZ or Australia are otherwise of appeal to you, don’t rule them out because they don’t have bargain basement property for sale.  Just take a good look around, consider renting before buying, and learn about the auction process so that you can potentially bag yourself a repossession bargain for example.

What About the Cost of Living Abroad?

Many people look carefully at the big picture before they relocate – they examine everything from property prices to taxation, they determine whether they can buy a car, afford to transport their possessions but they forget to think about the day to day cost of living.  It’s the day to day cost of living that makes the difference between make or break for many people however, and for the rest, it makes the difference between having a decent life abroad or just making ends meet.

Many Brits who have moved to Europe in recent years will tell you that they have seen the cost of living rise substantially just because of the pound’s fall against the euro.  In real terms this equates to an average 19% annual rise in the cost of living in many countries in the eurozone – the same has been experienced in America.  According to figures published in the Sunday Times yesterday: “Portugal, Spain, Greece, Cyprus and Italy are all 16% more expensive than they were in November.”  If you want less of a hike, (because I’m afraid the cost of living is going up everywhere), then in New Zealand it’s only gone up 6% in real terms for those buying in with sterling, or 3% in Canada.

How About Finding a Job Abroad?

This final consideration is a little more complex – whilst New Zealand and Australia still have skilled migrant visas available as well as clear skills gaps, recruitment consultants are advising (off the record) that it’s very much a case of local jobs for local people.  Elsewhere there are specific shortages of doctors, nurses, teachers and even financial and IT skilled individuals…but because companies all over the world are reining in budgets, new employment opportunities are getting harder and harder to source.

Therefore, the strong and clear advice for anyone thinking about moving abroad to escape the failing state of Great Britain is find a job before you go.  You have to be in a strong employment position and at least as assured as you can be of your future before you make the giant leap into the unknown and become an expat!