May 24, 2021
An interesting quick read with respect to the Cyprus property market post-CIP. What the authors do not stress, and is evident on the ground, is the fact that when an investment migration program is artificially structured towards real property to the detriment of everything else, FDI is artificial as well. Invariably, any change to such a program immediately creates a negative externality. This effect is not only for developers and their financing banks, but also for real estate purchasers entered…
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May 1, 2021
Without trying to sound cliché, Karl Marx once wrote: “History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.” This seems to be the state Western liberal democracies find themselves in these days. Big governments with bloated bureaucracies, high taxes and insatiable demands for more revenues, massive public debt, political polarization and constant social unrest are now the ‘new normal’ for North America and Western Europe. The Biden Administration has announced an unprecedented ‘progressive’ spending program. Europe is not far behind. …
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April 7, 2021
I would argue that HNWIs both in Asia and the Americas should now start to look at effective investment migration strategies that allow one to hedge their bets. As this article in Asia Nikkei and the legislative proposals of Senators Warren and Sanders in the United States suggests, the wealthy are in for a period of great uncertainty. Governmental action everywhere over the last twelve months has pushed the world towards economic stagnation, and the tax man shall be quite…
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April 7, 2021
On March 25, 2021, Senator Bernie Sanders introduced legislation entitled “For the 99.5% Act.” The aim of the bill is to tax the fortunes of the top 0.5% of wealthy Americans. This is the first piece of legislation introduced since Joe Biden came into office and is designed to lower the U.S. federal estate tax exemption. Highlights include: regarding personal wealth: Reduce the U.S. federal estate tax exemption to USD $3.5m for U.S. citizens / domiciliaries (Note: There is no…
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April 6, 2021
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen argued this week for the imposition of a global minimum corporate tax rate. Her comments were set in the context of increasing U.S. corporate taxes to fund Joe Biden’s USD $2 trillion+ infrastructure plan. Why do we care? The argument goes that by convincing other countries to impose a global minimum tax would greatly reduce the likelihood of U.S. companies relocating offshore, as America is set to potentially increase the corporate rate from 21% to 28%. …
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March 28, 2021
Cyprus has made some changes to its permanent residency by investment program. Quite a good step in the right direction. However, in order to be competitive, Cyprus must align its offering with that of Portugal or the new Bulgarian fast track programme. Permanent residency is quite limited in Cyprus because the island is physically cutoff from Europe and is not part of Schengen. A very good synopsis on the program can be found at IMI Daily.
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