Offshore Banking, Investment & Savings News and Advice for Expatriates

The number one reason why expatriates are forced to give up on their dream of a new life abroad is because they fail to get their money matters in order – fact.

This fact alone should be enough of an incentive for you to ensure you do not make the same mistake.  But just in case you need more convincing, allow us to point out that even those British retirees who planned well and then moved within the eurozone a few years ago have been hit extremely hard by the fall in the value of the pound.  I.e., even careful planning may not be enough to secure your future.

Therefore, as we will impart and explain in this report, the key to success when it comes to managing money matters ahead of and following retirement abroad is keeping on top of your finances at all times.  This needn’t be arduous, time consuming nor difficult and there are those who can and will assist you – but it is critical if you want to enjoy your retirement and have a good, guaranteed standard of living overseas.

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Have you heard the one about the British peer who claims to be non-domiciled in the UK?  Not ‘non-resident for tax purposes,’ but apparently ‘not domiciled in the UK?’  We’re talking about Lord Ashcroft, the deputy chairman of Britain’s conservative party who also has a seat in the influential House of Lords – yet who apparently doesn’t have to pay UK tax on his alleged billions of offshore pounds.  Wow, what a story!

In fact, it’s a story that must make Robert Gaines-Cooper weep.  Mr. Gaines-Cooper recently lost his appeal against the HMRC ruling that he was UK domiciled because of the extent of his personal ties with Great Britain, and therefore he was subject to UK tax on his worldwide assets and income.  Yet Mr. Gaines-Cooper certainly didn’t live in the UK, have a seat in the House of Lords nor hold a peerage, seemingly wholly unlike Lord Ashcroft.  But then again, Mr. Gaines-Cooper wasn’t a huge donor for the conservative party – or the labour party, or any other political party for that matter.  So, that was probably where he went wrong and why he lost his case…

Indeed, it seems you can be proud to be a British peer like Lord Ashcroft and Lord Paul, (another peer allegedly up to the same tax avoidance ‘tricks,’ but this time a labour supporter) – but you can’t make these over privileged people pay tax like the rest of us because they can bend, flaut and even invent the rules to suit themselves.  Does it make you proud to be British and happy to remain in the UK, pouring more and more of your income in the form of tax into the void that is the budget deficit, when you know there are others out there who have massive influence over the direction of this country but who refuse to contribute fairly to it in the form of tax?

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Sending your money back and forth abroad is becoming an ever more complex undertaking - what with fluctuating (and even nose diving) exchange rates and multiple FX brokerages seemingly offering you ‘the best deal,’ it’s tricky to know where to look if you want to move money efficiently and cost effectively.  However, the good news is that new developments in the foreign exchange industry are actually making it increasingly easy for you to control your money and even achieve great savings on your foreign transfer payments.

Whether you need to move money to aid emigration, offshore investment or property investment, or you’re sending funds to family or to pay bills internationally, it certainly makes sense to explore all your options if any of them can potentially save you time, hassle and even money…

At Shelter Offshore we have again teamed up with independent money transfer price comparison website http://www.SendMoneyHome.org to detail how new online developments are giving the public more transparency and, more importantly, greater control over their finances.  If you want to take control of your foreign exchange money matters and be better informed, learn how you can trade currencies and get back in the driver’s seat when it comes to your finances, read on…

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