The Risks to Wealth and Well-being are increasing… so protect yourself and your family by giving yourselves smart choices In our 30+ years helping HNW individuals and families design their backup plans, we have never seen so many concurrent risks to wealth and well-being as we do today!  For most years there have normally been one or two headline risks that motivated our clients to ask us to prepare their backup plans…an unfavorable tax policy here, a change of government there. For most of our clients these risks could be managed and mitigated with straightforward solutions – better tax ..read more

The Election Countdowns Have Started… Time to Get Your Backup Plan in Place Are you a HNW American or UK Non-Dom? And if so, are you worried about the increasing levels of risk arising from your respective upcoming elections? The rapidly approaching US election is being widely described as “existential”. The reasons range from the type of administration Donald Trump would deliver in a second term, to a fear that numerous “Tax the Rich” proposals would become law should the Democrats win both houses of Congress and the Presidency. Across the pond, the next UK election will most certainly see a ..read more

Are you a High Net Worth (HNW) American or UK Non-Dom looking for a low-tax destination for yourself and your family? If so, would you also be interested in a country that offers “a culture is steeped in the arts, family, architecture, music and food”? If you answered YES to both questions, Italy should definitely be on your list of potential countries in which to set up residence. In addition to its wonderful lifestyle and other important factors such as healthcare and EU membership,  as a result of a special tax regime for foreign nationals that was introduced in 2017, you can pay a low ..read more

Anticipating anxious conversations around the table this turkey day? If any of your loved ones express concern bordering on despair about the troubling things that are happening at home and around the world and wondering about what can be done about them as individuals and as a family, there is one practical solution that you offer that will both mitigate the risks and give you peace of mind. Folk singer Joan Baez once famously said: “Action is the antidote to despair. When you can, encourage your people to think about ‘I cans’ instead of ‘what-ifs.’” Why do some families act and others don’t ..read more

WHEN EXPATRIATING IN ANTICIPATION OF A LIQUIDITY EVENT LIKE AN IPO, DON’T LEAVE YOUR HARD-EARNED ASSETS ON THE TAXMAN’S TABLE. THAT’S NOT A TAX…IT’S AN UNNECESSARY DONATION! This 5th instalment in our series about Backup Plans that aren’t solely focused on taxation will be a bit of an exception because this time we will talk about taxes…but in a different sense. We will discuss how to not mistakenly pay taxes when expatriating in anticipation of a liquidity event…such as an IPO…due to insufficient or poor planning or worse, bad advice.  Our view is that paying taxes that you don’t need t ..read more

Drawing Inspiration from Wisdom: The Philosophical Foundation of the Backup Plan You might be familiar with the statement by Nelson Mandela that “The true character of a society is revealed in how it treats its children.” You might also be familiar with the quote attributed to Mark Twain that “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” In other words, when looking to apply lessons from the past to events of the day, don’t look for exactly the same details…look for similarities. So, what do these quotes by Nelson Mandela and Mark Twain have to do with our firm’s work? Our mission is t ..read more

Beyond Tax Savings: Protecting Wealth and Well-being As discussed in Parts 1 and 2 of our series on notable Backup Plans, most of our clients have more than tax savings on their mind when they come to us seeking the “fire Insurance” of second residences and citizenships as part of a their “fire escape plan” to protect their family’s wealth….and well-being. In Part 1 we described how an American family used the second residence component of their Backup Plan to escape the life-altering impact of a major climate event. To drive home the possibility that climatic events can happen to anyone, a fe ..read more

Exploring the Hidden Dimensions of Backup Plans: Beyond Tax Benefits As noted in Part 1 of this new series on notable Backup Plans, most of our clients have more than tax savings on their mind when seeking the “fire Insurance” of second residences and citizenships as part of a their “fire escape plan” to protect their family’s wealth….and well-being. In the first blog we described how an American family used the second residence component of their Backup Plan to escape the life-altering impact of a major climate event…something that is becoming almost commonplace in many parts of the world. In ..read more

A Backup Plan Beyond Taxes: How It Safeguarded a Family and Business from a Hurricane Some of our clients seek the “fire insurance” of a second residence and citizenship as part of a “fire escape plan” with the sole motivation of reducing their tax burden. However, they are the exception rather than the rule. Comprehensive Fire Escape Plans: More Than Just Tax Savings Our clients normally want their “fire insurance” to be part of a comprehensive “fire escape plan” that addresses a wide range of concerns for themselves and their families: Protecting their assets over multiple generations Prov ..read more

NON-DOMS” WHO LIVE IN THE UK will now have to elevate their Incoming Tax Warning Alert level from amber to red. This is because of an August 8, 2023 poll showing a Labour landslide victory with around 460 seats and the Conservatives reduced to just 90 seats – if there were an imminent general election. The Impending Threat: Labour’s Potential Tax Changes With a potential Labour majority looming, wealthy “Non-Domiciliaries” who enjoy the benefits of the Remittance Tax Basis are about to face the biggest challenge to their status since the 1790s. It should be understood that most “Non-Doms” rel ..read more