No ‘duty free’ for personal taxes!

The world has definitely become a smaller place, but in international tax terms, it is bigger and more dynamic than ever.

It is now common place for businesses to employ individuals who are globally mobile, and many people now plan for their retirement that includes a home in the sun, or choose to retire overseas.

People live, work and enjoy retirement across various countries and therefore have assets, investments and income generated in different tax jurisdictions with complex UK and overseas tax implications. This presents significant opportunities for UK non-resident and non-domiciled individuals to develop a tax efficient approach to their global wealth management which is tailored to their needs and objectives. Taking a holistic approach makes the best use of the various reliefs, allowances and provisions of double tax treaties which exist between countries.

This can help individuals to save money through legitimate tax saving opportunities and avoid becoming unwittingly non-compliant or exposed to punitive taxes or penalties. For example, US citizens who remain subject to US tax on worldwide income despite becoming resident in another country, should always try and avoid investing in non US regulated investments, such as UK ISA’s or Personal Pensions, which could be taxed unfavourably in the US. On the flip side, any US tax efficient collective investments, could also be punitively taxed in the UK.

Integrated cross border tax advice is therefore essential to ensure that investments, pensions and income around the world are being correctly managed and properly reported in all locations, and that the wider tax planning opportunities are identified.

HMRC now have unprecedented access to vast amounts of information from hundreds of overseas jurisdictions via various automatic exchange of information agreements and they have been given new powers to charge extraordinarily high penalties for non-declaration and reporting failures.  It’s fair to say that it is more important than ever before to be certain that worldwide taxes are reported and managed as efficiently as possible and that’s where access to appropriate specialist expertise becomes crucial.

Unfortunately ‘duty free’ doesn’t apply when it comes to assets, investments and income! With more and more people in this situation realising the importance of knowing, and understanding, their own personal tax implications, and the best way to handle them for their own circumstance our International Private Client Team have seen a huge upsurge in demand for cross border tax planning advice, tax compliance reporting and specialist support to plan for the future.

For more information please don’t hesitate to get in contact with us, or find out more about our International Private Client offerings.

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