List of expat-friendly countries with no capital gains tax AND low physical presence requirements for Tax Residency?

Finances šŸ’µ
#1

Does anyone have a list of expat-friendly countries with no capital gains tax AND low physical presence requirements for Tax Residency?

I will define low physical presence as requiring Tax Residents to only stay in the country for 1 month or less each year.

Iā€™m only aware of the Cayman Islands and Antigua.

As far as I can tell, most of the countries with no capital gains require you to live in the country for more than 1 month in order to be deemed a Tax Resident. For example Singapore (183 days), Monaco (6 months), Dubai (180 days). Anguilla (45 days). Feel free to correct me if Iā€™m wrong.

Does anyone know the tax residency requirements for Bermuda, Vanuatu, Antigua, St Kitts and Nevis?

Thank you

#2

Iā€™m curious - what are you hoping to achieve by having tax residency elsewhere? Tax residency is typically not mutually exclusive, and being a tax resident in multiple places seems like an undesirable situation.

#3

I live in Bermuda.
Not entirely sure what you mean by ā€˜tax residentā€™.

From a Bermudian perspective, Bermuda imposes no income or capital gains taxes. Most taxes are based on employment income, so you need to be employed. If you are not Bermudian you will need a work permit. These can be difficult to obtain unless you have a required skill not available locally.

You can stay in Bermuda on a tourist visa for ā€¦ 30 days (??) The rules keep changing. This can be extended for a very limited period. Other jurisdictions would not consider you ā€˜tax residentā€™ in Bermuda if you are here on a tourist visa. You will be taxed based on a substantial presence test and may in fact be a tax resident of more than one jurisdiction. They will look at where do you spend your time, where you have your assets (house, car, bank etc) where do you maintain your social ties etc.

You can also get a visa to reside in Bermuda if you are independently wealthy - and trust me, you will need to be. But then, you wouldnā€™t be seeking advise here if you were.

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#5

Iā€™m retired and my goal is to be able to travel around the world on tourist visas, never spending more than 3 months in any one country.
Itā€™s my understanding that in order to open a bank account, I will need a home address.
I do not want to maintain a residence in my country of citizenship as that will subject me to taxes (eg. capital gains taxes).
I feel like it would be best to simply own a home in a tax free country and open a bank account using the address in this tax free country.
That will allow me to enjoy capital gains without being taxed on them. Is there a simpler solution?

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#6

cool. Iā€™ve got nothing for you on that one though - Iā€™d be calling a specialist to figure out how to make that work without getting nailed. YMMV obviously. :slight_smile:

#7

I was looking about a similar thing,and Belize was on the list,as there is no need to make the Visa ā€œgoldenā€.A certain time of presence in the country per year is needed,and visa can be extended monthly I think,for 50$,which adds up to get residency after 5years.Not sure about the numbers,but its an option of planning to cruise,per boat for example,and hurricane season has to be passed in a ā€œsafe havenā€ anyway every year.

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#8

I think you will find the issue is not so much the jurisdiction you want to move to but the jurisdiction you are moving from. Most western countries have a substantial presence test in addition to a physical presence test. Without making a definitive and absolute move to another country it is going to be difficult to convince the tax authorities in your country that you are no longer tax resident there. Buying a house to live in for a couple of months and setting up a bank account in another country are not likely going to be convincing. The tax authorities will look at things like who issues your driving license, where are your social connections, friends, family, club memberships, how often you return, do you keep the same doctor, retail store accounts etc. They want to keep you as a taxpayer and they work hard to do so.

I know Canada for one, used to have a policy that, even if you moved completely out of the country and established yourself elsewhere, if you returned within 3 years you were deemed to have been tax resident the whole time. That was quite a few years ago and may have changed now.

Wherever you are, itā€™s worth spending a few thousand dollars to meet with a tax consultant on how to properly structure your affairs. You may find that at the end of the day, it costs more in dollars, time and stress trying to avoid paying the last dollar of tax, than itā€™s really worth.

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#9

yes,returning before,lets say 5 years passed by is always a reason for the gov to look into taxes to be paid.
As a Swiss citizen,I have to take my certificate of homeland and deposit in the tiwn or community where I reside,if this is outside Switzerland and Liechtenstein,I am officially out of the country.Driving license has some expiring date,renew it in the country of residence is easier than make a new one lets say,in Belize.Officially,privacy protection doesnt allow the gov to check which doctor you use etc,beside the fact that its possible to travel to visit the doc you are happy with.Nobody can know this and its not legal to use the information.

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#10

I read https://www.sovereignman.com/ and http://internationalman.com/ for this kind of info.

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#11

I believe Gibraltar does not require a minimum stay to be a tax resident however there are other requirements, I think a residence is one, even if youā€™re never there. Gib is 0% capital gains tax.

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#12

The way you think about this is wrong. Itā€™s not only about the country you are going to, but also about the home country you leave. If you travel, 4 countries a year for 3 months each you will avoid paying tax. Mainly because the countries you visit will see you as a tourist who stays just 3 months. They will not come after you. And if you travel all the time they also will not have your address.

The main rule is that you have to pay tax in the country where you have your main presence. That is why most countries require you to stay for 6 months + 1 day.

If you leave your home country but keep a house there, you car, your medical insurance, bank account and other things and you come back after some years of travelling there can be a bad surprise for you.

I would concentrate on the requirements of your home country, not on the requirements of the countries you are travelling to.

I live in Thailand. Thailand has a visa for retired people over 50 years old. It is easy to get. In Thailand you do not pay tax on income from abroad if it is brought into the country the year after you made the money (or later). So not in the same year. In for example Bangkok you can rent a condo for about USD 300 a month with a 1 year contract. It allows you to have a permanent address. It is easy to get health insurance, a driving license. And with a 1 year rental contract it is also easy to open a bank account. Bangkok has a great airport with airplanes leaving to almost all destinations, and it can be a good hub to explore the countries around.

I believe that Cyprus also has an interesting program for people moving there and starting a company. The first x years are almost tax free, and you do not have to stay as long as in other countries to be a tax resident. I forgot all details. But I am sure you can find that online.

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#13

Which country you are from plays a big role as there are a few that will still come after you regardless of where you go.

As @Dimitri_Visser said, Thailand is a very good example of a country that you could find useful. Also take a look at the SRRV in the Philippines, MM2H in Malaysia and temporary residency in Mexico. You donā€™t need to buy a home to get residency in any of these countries but you still can if you want. You also can spend as little time as you feel like in any of them.

Thailand offers retirement visa for a select group of countries. Vietnam offers 12 months tourist visas only to Americans. The Philippines is open to all countries but will require all who work/earn online to register and pay tax while in The Philippines. Consider Panama if you fall into their friendly nations list.

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#14

Hi Bob,

It would help to know which country you are currently resident in and where these assets that are giving you capital gains reside. You may be over complicating this. Some countries let you become non tax resident by filling out a form and staying away. There are lots of ways your taxable assets can be held offshore and then since you donā€™t stay permanently in any country long enough to become tax resident you become a citizen of the world and a tax resident of nowhere.

#15

Are you still interested? I can send some information and thoughts on it. Good for retirement but depends on your budget and liquid assets.

#16

Hello Akan and community. I am planning on getting a retirement VISA in Thailand. I already have a bank account there. I want to keep my income source based here in USA which consists of rental income and stock investments primarily in NYSE. Will I be paying a Thai tax on income that is already taxed in USA? What is the capital gains tax based on that Ive heard mention in a few threads here? Any insights would be helpful. Thanks, John

#17

Hello John, the fact that you already have a bank account there means that you already know the advantages of living there. Maintaining your source of income in the States while living in Thailand is a very good idea. You can only be taxed for earnings you made the same year you bring said funds into Thailand. Outside of that, there is no tax to be paid from your foreign earnings.

The type of retirement visa you choose will also determine how much cash you will have to have in Thailand (not to mention if you are planning an active retirement). Regardless, you will have a fun and wholesome retirement while being the best you that you choose to be.

All the best.

P/S do post some pictures to motivate or make us envious of the quality of your choice as you never know who you could end up educating and assisting with the info you pass on :wink:

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#18

You did not mention in which country you have citizenship. If you are a US citizen, then you arenā€™t going to accomplish much being in a no tax country.

My understanding is that MOST countries do not tax you if you donā€™t have tax residency which is an amorphous concept, but generally less than 183 days a year.

I am not really familiar with the rules on who taxes you if you donā€™t have tax residence anywhere. In the US, you would get snagged by automatic withholding rules and I assume there are similar rules elsewhere that the country holding your investments is going to tax you on gains if you arenā€™t taxed elsewhere.

#19

For his specific question, he did not need to. Please note that regardless of if he is an American or not, the tax on his American investments are affected by his strategy and not his passport. His question was on tax in Thailand if I understood him correctly.

Thailand has only a small list of approved countries that their citizens can apply for a retirement visa and you are not required to pay any tax on income made outside of the country especially when said income was not earned in the same year.

You are correct but this rule is not used in Thailand as it is a territorial tax country

Not having tax residence anywhere opens you to a free for all. Its not easy to do while earning any type of income as even passive income requires some type of KYC or at the minimum, a forwarding address which is more than enough to get taxed by a number of countries. The thing is, unless you are planning not to have any tax residence, why stress yourself about how to work it?

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