Going Offshore
 

Where do you recommend and why?

panama.

no question about it.

How hard is it to get a bank account / business?

That would depend entirely on what you want to achieve by going offshore and also your background (depends on citizenship etc) - eg - are you going OS for a better lifestyle? To minimize the burden of paperwork/taxation etc?

Can only give my :2 cents: worth of reasons for being OS - first, better lifestyle; second, more opportunity; third, there are more interesting people around; fourth, no taxation or form-filling junk.

Good expirience with panama too :) Costs arround $6k per year to keep your business running over there, but thats definatly worth it if your looking to save taxes and hide from law.

What GreyWolf says too.

talk to the cj guys about panama

When you are legally offshore - it's just a matter of walking down the road and open a bank account - no biggie. Tho the usual banking criteria bs also applies - much the same as onshore.

I've talked to a number of people in Panama as well as St Kitts and other places. Panama appears to be the best bet right now.

MrWhite:
Tut tut :winkwink: - hiding from the law is not the general idea of offshore - especially in Panama. Panama has a MAT with the US.

Good to know, thanks for the info. Can an offshore business be established from the US without being at the physical location?

yu can never truly "HIDE" anything.

the money can always be tracked.

its like running from the cops. you can't outrun the radio.

they can always track the money back to the u.s.

Not trying to hide from the law, just wondering what the options are. Most places will be linked to the US in the next few years anyway. The old numbered bank account is long gone for sure.

Your corp certainly can Chris, but sure would keep onshore and offshore miles apart from each other - oil and water don't mix.

A formation agent or lawyer would usually be happy to provide a physical address for corp mail etc. Either way, the registered agent address could also come into play - and no registered agent speaks to anyone :thumbsup

The crucial part is more related to the background of beneficial owners and better that is kept clean as possible and all legal obligations are fulfulled on the "home country" side. Otherwise, it's fairly easy.

st kitts is the best for personal offshoring of investments IMO since u get the 3rd most travellable passport and citizenship with the Development Fund Donation or buying a house in their special zones.

but for the cheap and easy, panama.

St Kitt's is not a place to operate from - there are too many problems, especially in hurricane season. It is also a very small island with around 50K people at most.

There are only 1 or 2 places in the world that are not part of the World Tax Treaty. And that will probably change too. "Offshore" raises a lot of flags, especially with the Patriot Act. If you are a US Citizen, you are still liable to be tried under breaking US law. My advice would be to stay onshore, so if the shit ever hits the fan, you wont be charged with Tax Evasion and/or money laundering...

Thanks for the info guys.



-CS

What's the deal with non-working quotes here? :winkwink:

Very good point ms - OS needs to be treated legitmately, otherwise it can cause serious problems. For most people - this is fine and the most clean-cut method is being actually resident OS, - then there are no problems or obstacles and nothing needs to be hidden. There are no obligations for any reporting to agencies in their "home country" and all revenue is, normally, tax free.

For US folks it gets more complex. Unlike other nationalities where there is no reporting requirements for eg taxation etc back to the "home country", the US imposes worldwide taxation on US citizens, irrespective where they actually live (in or outside the US). There is still the need to file IRS data etc. This defeats the whole purpose of offshore and takes away the principles of privacy to a degree.

On the plus side, there are a fair number of accountants offshore who handle US clients (they are mainly US accountants and familiar with US laws and obligations). There is also a "bonus" tax allowance from the IRS in the region of $70-80K'ish/year. So.. everyone seems to earn $69,995 :) - tho seriously - it does need legal attention to ensure everything is covered.

To be legally offshore, the management of the company placed offshore, needs to be offshore.
Most governments in the world have laws saying tax regime is placed where the management of the company is placed, it doesnt matter what the offshore country say, what matters is what the country you live in say since it is the company you live in that can put you to prison :2 cents:
A Panama foundation that own 1 or more companies is an option, but dont start doing that without having a local tax expert involved

The honst truth is that if you want to avoid taxes, you can do that, but don't buy anything in the US...

That may sound simple, buy it's really not..

My advice is stay onshore, pay your taxes and save your money for the upcoming economy crash. Then, buy every peace of property you can get your hands on and wait out the housing crisis...

Agree Due - To put it another way - you are bound by the laws of the country in which you reside :thumbsup

If you reside in whatever offshore - these are the laws which apply - no other laws. (Tho got to allow that loophole for US folks and citizens of Saudi, Lybia where it's not that simple and needs legal guidance.)

Bubba is into anal, you know that don't you?
He has been in that cell a long, long time.
Bubba is loney.
Bubba is waiting for you.

The Atlantic ocean... because its big !

.

Alot of our merchants like going to Gibraltar. it's a bit more expensive to incorporate there(around 5,000) for the company to be set up and banking...

Again, it depends on the reason you want to go offshore.

and St. Kitts..

You can run, you can run, you can run, but you sure cant hide.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=AaTZkIInYNw

bump for more cheap and fast offshore making companies

Singapore....easy to set up....very efficient country

I like Panama the most, but St. Kitts is also great if you're not going to have a ton of transfer activity, but instead if you're planning on saving money offshore. There are some interesting out of the way places as well that are worth researching, such as Mauritius. Check out Emerald Offshore for services and info.