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Using Offshore Credit Cards to Repatriate Funds

admin — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:08:02 +0000

One of the problems most investors come across once they have moved offshore is how to repatriate their offshore funds.

Sending wires directly back to your home bank account could involve dangerous invasions of privacy whereas physically going to your offshore bank and withdrawing cash may also breach customs restrictions and invite the risk of theft.

For larger payments, you could ask your offshore bank to wire funds directly to the vendor but the time and effort this involves would not be appropriate for smaller sums.

It is widely recognized that the easiest way of spending your offshore money is with an offshore credit or debit card. An offshore Visa or Mastercard will allow you access to your offshore funds from pretty much any where in the world. Here are some typical features of offshore cards:

Offshore Credit Card - Almost all good offshore credit cards are secured. This means that along with the offshore credit card application you will have to deposit a certain amount (usually 100-150% of the credit line) to use one. For a credit line of 10,000USD at 150%, you would need to deposit 15,000 USD for example. Although this means that they are not strictly credit cards, it does mean that credit checks are not required as with most onshore credit cards.

Furthermore, you can expect from an offshore credit card the same privileges as for any major credit card such as cash advances, car rental benefits, insurance, and travel freebies.

Unsecured offshore credit cards are not issued by offshore banks except to well-known clients. Due to the global nature of offshore banking, credit checks would be too complicated and the risk of non-payment too great.

The vast majority of 'unsecured' offshore credit cards are scams, because such credit lines would simply not be offered without extensive KYC. Most unsuspecting investors who are lured into unsecured credit card schemes end up paying an initial card registration fee and then never hearing from the 'bank' or 'offshore service provider' again.

Offshore Debit Card - Offshore debit cards function in almost the same way as secured credit cards, the difference being you can only spend what is actually funded on the card. The advantage is that they will offer the same privileges, benefits and worldwide acceptance as a major international credit card.

Where can I Use an Offshore Credit Card?

Although many successfully use their offshore credit cards there are some pitfalls associate with their use. For example a US citizen has recently ended up in court charged with tax evasion because he used his offshore card to buy luxuries in the US with un-taxed dollars from an offshore account.

Many people use offshore credit cards in their home countries, however this man did not count on there being video cameras in 400 of the cash points he visited. It is difficult to disprove video being caught on camera using a card with your name on it.

It is still possible to use offshore credit cards at home as long as certain precautions are taken, and if possible, a corporate or even an un-embossed offshore card is used. A corporate card for example can be used to legally pay for equipment, expenses or employee salaries for your offshore company.

Personal offshore credit cards can still be usefully employed on holiday, or if you travel abroad regularly. Using the card abroad will carry less risk than using it at home, while you can still enjoy the benefits of your tax-free nest egg.

So next time you're out with your buddies, you can whip out your offshore Visa or Mastercard and graciously pick up the tab....They only have to know that you're doing so out of the tax savings from your offshore account if you choose to tell them. But be careful, envy is a dangerous thing!

Capital Conservator has more than a decade of experience in helping people to move and grow their assets offshore. Capital Conservator offers a range of offshore credit cards , the most popular being the Platinum card which offers a 10,000EUR daily limit and can be used in 170 countries, 1 million ATMs and 3 million merchants worldwide within the Platinum card network

Top 9 Offshore Bank Account Considerations

admin — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 03:56:20 +0000

One of the misnomers about an offshore bank account is that it is only for the very wealthy. An offshore corporation plus offshore bank account is more economical than one might think. An offshore bank account is an account that you open in a country or jurisdiction outside your own. Thus opening an offshore bank account is a good place to begin on the freedom road and such an offshore banking relationship can provide the foundation of what follows. The most obvious legitimate reason for opening an offshore bank account is the cash-flow advantage of getting interest on deposits paid gross, without the withholding tax usually imposed on non-resident bank accounts. One of the numerous benefits of opening an Offshore Bank Account is that they are often situated within tax havens, which means that the individual pays less tax.

Offshore Bank Account

Most offshore bank accounts come with a cash card that can be used to withdraw funds anywhere in the world. Offshore Bank Accounts the Ultimate Protection Seeking to protect you money in an offshore bank account once someone has laid a claim to your assets just won't happen, its already too late. An additional benefit of an offshore bank account is that if you are not willing to leave a high tax nation you can benefit by moving money to a tax free secure and private haven. Asset security and privacy is what the offshore bank accounts and the financial world are designed to accommodate.

Opening an Offshore Account

To actually open an overseas bank account, you must firstly do some research - which country and which bank will be most suitable for your needs. Although you may not need any of these things; opening an offshore account can be as straightforward as just having a checking or savings account. Most people who open an overseas bank account want to enjoy the significant tax breaks that this will give them. A passport, a driving license, and a untilty bill are all you need to open an offshore account.

Privacy

Offshore privacy can no longer be taken for granted. Having a offshore bank account may be something you can explore in regard to banking privacy, being insulated from predatory lawsuits, building your assets and to legally avoid excessive taxation. This is a popular choice for people who are very particular about their privacy and anonymity. For maximum privacy and asset protection, however, the best advice is this: Establish an offshore corporation to own your offshore bank account. The Anonymous Panama Corporation adds in a nice thick layer of privacy protection. Right now, a secure, private bank account is reserved for your personal use in countries with some of the strongest bank privacy laws on earth.

Investment

An offshore account is an excellent way to diversify investments and take advantage of global tax savings. Sure you have to report your earnings in most places and pay taxes, but you can still open up an offshore bank account for greater investment possibilities, protection from domestic lawyers who might want to sue you for your life savings and for greater financial privacy. And, you must report any interest payments or dividends you have received from any offshore investments made using that account. You can have instant access to the world's best investment opportunities, including currencies and precious metals without concern about your home nation's legal restrictions.

Legal

The proper way to open an offshore bank account is through an experienced law firm offering offshore legal services. As a matter of principle the rights to privacy can be suspended when a criminal investigation is underway. Don't rely on banking secrecy being upheld if you are engaging in illegal activites. Some countries like Panama are more tolerant than others.

Services

Typically a tax free haven is offered by countries that have little or no means of exporting goods and services to offset the imbalance they would otherwise have in terms of their overall currency exchange. You may want to consider other services the bank offers, such as different types of accounts, credit cards and safety deposit boxes. There are advantages either way here - a larger bank may offer greater security and more services, but with higher fees. Many offshore banks offer a full range of private banking services, but have certain terms and conditions that need to be met by their clients. An offshore corporation combined with the quality banking and commercial services found in Panama consistently meet the needs of diverse types of clients.

International

If you're in regular receipt of international transactions it can make sense to establish an offshore company structure in a jurisdiction like the Seychelles where no tax is levied on income generated outside the jurisdiction and where such a company is not required to fill out annual financial or activity reports. Such a company can then open and hold an account which can be used for international personal OR business transactions. If you're moving overseas you have a number of choices available to you - you can let your current bank know and they may change your account type to be an international account. You can then use this account to pay bills back home and conduct international transactions.

Visa

The way these programs work is Visa and MasterCard do not know who the actual card holder is - no date of birth, no address, no tax id numbers etc. So a subpoena to MasterCard or Visa would produce very little and since the bank is in a country with bank secrecy this avenue is going to be a long burdensome process that would be unlikely to be pursued and could only be pursued by a government in a criminal matter. The more private way of doing this is to get a Visa or MasterCard debit card from another bank, not your Panama bank.

Bank ATM Debit Card

Some people obtain an ATM card from another unrelated financial institution. These cards typically have no name imprinted on them which right away adds to your privacy protection. These cards also do not leave a trail to your real bank. Money can be transferred to the ATM card by wire from your Panama or other bank account and then withdrawn as needed. Some people are fond of using these cards to cover corporate expenses like travel, entertainment and other business expenses. Usually the ATM card purchase requires a copy of a passport.

Offshore banking has many advantages, some of which include the access to politically and economically stable jurisdictions, and the lower cost and higher interest rate. You can use a foreign bank account as an integral tool in an aggressive, two-pronged offshore wealth strategy. In other words, an offshore private bank account is not just a place for safekeeping cash. You might think it is a bit odd at first to open an offshore account when away on holiday but if you are going to that destination anyway on holiday it makes something nice to do one day

Offshore with a clue and for profit optimizing, be wise go offshore

admin — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 03:55:32 +0000

For ages it has been well know that large corporations are instantly expanding their business locations to offshore jurisdictions just for better cash flow optimizing and tax purposes, it has nothing to do that they want to conduct business in those countries.

Also for many years now, it has been a closed area to enter into the planning of taking your company offshore with your business, it is worldwide known that Swiss bank accounts have been used to avoid TAX on income and profits in general, but this option is going to close their doors, now you need to find a good and reliable place to STORE your MONEY. Cyprus is one of the only places within the European Union which still has 100% banking secrecy and where it is impossible for an individual or foreign company to open a Cyprus bank account. The Offshore Bank in Cyprus which you need to find will simply deny business cases which haven't been introduce by an official offshore bank introducer.

The question here is, how you as an individual can become a personal or business offshore bank account in an Offshore Bank, and why a Cyprus bank account is the best solution for you and your business.

Furthermore you will need to consider which other benefits it would give you as a business in regards to offshore asset protection. Yea it is right you might not have heard of the term offshore asset protection, but we will teach you what it is and how it will be an important role for your offshore company formation planning.

So, what you need to do, first of you will have to consider if you make enough profit in your business to effort the expanses which are involved in incorporate an offshore company and to become an offshore bank account with an offshore bank.

Offshore asset protection, how; very simple an Offshore Company and for instant an Cyprus company will make it very difficult for any authority in the world to find the real beneficial owner, secondly it costs a lot of time and money for anyone to claim any rights to get access to assets in an Cyprus Company or any other Offshore Company. Finally an Offshore Company and a Cyprus Company will work as an individual entity so it is perfect for offshore asset protection, because you can just take anything from a person which isn't related to the claim! Do you have the picture now? If not it is all about offshore asset protection and to protect your rights to keep you hard earned money. In other words by entering into a consideration of offshore asset protection you just need to keep in mind that no one will be able to get access to whatever assets you might have in the company, even not if you file personal bankruptcy.

The important thing here is as long as we speak about cash, you will need to find a Offshore Bank which will open an offshore bank account for your offshore company or Cyprus company, this you will easily get access to through an offshore incorporation service which typically is able to prepare everything for you in one task. With an Offshore bank account you will have access to your moneys in your offshore accounts 24/7/365 and only you will have access to your offshore accounts, not the offshore incorporation service, not any nominee shareholder or director, no, only you. The offshore bank will send you the codes for your Internet Banking directly to the address you tell them to send it to. There is an 100% secrecy by opening an Offshore bank account or for instant to become a Cyprus bank account in an Cyprus bank / Offshore Bank.

Offshore accounts can be hold in multi currencies like EUR,USD,GBP and CYP almost any Offshore Bank will give you the possibility to have your own IBAN account number and Internet Access but the Cyprus Bank Accounts are the most reliable solution in general, since Offshore Banks in Cyprus are regulated through a strong financial network.

Start today to consider how you can get offshore asset protection, an offshore bank account in an Offshore bank and for instant go and consider to open a Cyprus Bank Account before anywhere else

Small Business Financial & Accounting (f&a) Offshore Outsourcing Cost

admin — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 03:54:52 +0000

Fortune 500 companies have been off shoring the financial and accounting business processes (BPO) to countries like India, Philippians, China, etc. These companies have big budgets and a big team of consultants who analyzes the total cost and ROI of sending their financial and accounting work to the service providers in offshore locations. Though smaller companies have started off shoring their financial and accounting work to offshore locations but like big corporations small businesses do not have huge budget to hire consultants to identify the total cost of off shoring their financial and accounting work to offshore locations. But small businesses can still perform their due diligence in calculating total cost of their offshore engagement and gain critical knowledge in finding ROI of sending their financial and accounting work to offshore locations. In this report we will go through all of the hidden costs of offshoring financial and accounting business processes.

1. Different Costs of Offshoring Financial & Accounting Work

Small businesses mainly consider offshoring their work, they will consider only the hourly rate they need to pay to the offshore vendor for various accounting works like bookkeeping, accounts payable, accounts receivable, etc. There are several other additional hidden costs small business have to face in their offshore outsourcing engagement. Typically a small business goes through following offshore accounting work cycle in their offshore engagement:

• Selecting an offshore accounting vendor

• Sending the work to the offshore vendor

• Answering questions for the offshore vendor

• Receiving the finished work from the offshore vendor

• Verifying the finished work from the offshore vendor

• Monitoring the quality of the finished work from the offshore vendor

2. Cost of Selecting offshore accounting vendor

The cost associated with selecting an offshore accounting vendor will be small compared to other costs. Most of the time small businesses can find a qualified offshore accounting vendor simply by searching in Google or by contacting other small businesses those who are already using an offshore vendor, for detailed discussion on this topic read Offshore Accounting Success. This cost is the one time cost and it will be similar to selecting an onshore vendor.

3. Cost of sending the work to an offshore vendor

Small businesses must consider various types of cost like Scanner, High speed Internet, Backup Server, etc, to send their financial and account documents to an offshore vendor, but the good news is that it will be a one time investment and most of the small businesses will have these in place already. There are three different offshore accounting models you can use to send your accounting and financial work to the offshore vendors and for these you will incur following one time cost.

3.1. Scanner & Scanning software

Most of the accounting and financial data will be in your accounting software like QuickBooks, Peachtree etc, but there will be other documents like Bills, Checks, Invoices, Goods received notes, etc will be on paper and these should be digitized using a scanner and a scanning software to convert it into PDF documents which will be stored in your computer. Once the documents are in your computer then you can give access to the offshore vendor to view the PDF documents or they can retrieve it from your computer to perform their work in the offshore location.

Most of small businesses already have a scanner, if not a scanner (scanning software comes with the scanner) can be purchased for less than $1000.00. The cost of the scanner will go up based on the volume of accounting and financial documents to be scanned in a given day. It will be a one time cost for the small business and also by scanning all their paper based accounting documents; you can improve the efficiency of overall accounting process.

3.2. High speed Internet Connection Cost

You need to have high-speed Internet connection to send and receive the work to and from offshore location. Again all most all small businesses already have DSL/T1 Internet connection if not they can get a DSL Internet connection for $60-100/month.

3.3. Secure FTP software

If small businesses are using Application Service Provider (ASP) like Quickbooks online, cpaasp.com, etc, then it is possible for offshore vendors to directly access your accounting data directly from the ASP vendor. In this case there is no need to use secure FTP software.

3.4. Backup Server

Once small businesses start digitizing their accounting documents for their offshore vendors, they need to start planning for the backup server to backup all their accounting documents. Most of the small businesses will have this feature already, if not it is a good investment to have a backup server to backup all their accounting and financial data from their main computer to the backup server. For any business “Business continuity” is a vital task and the backup server will help the small businesses to recover all the accounting data in case of main computer failure.

3.5. Additional Accounting software License cost

Small businesses use various accounting software packages like QuickBooks, MYOB, Microsoft Office Accounting etc, for doing all their accounting and financial work. When they offshore the work the offshore vendor will use the same accounting software to do the work. It is very difficult for the small businesses to find an offshore vendor who already owns the licenses for all the accounting software. As described in the offshore accounting models if small businesses decides to use Remote Server or ASP then there is no additional cost for small businesses. On the other hand if the small businesses decided to use Secure File Transfer then small businesses needs to buy additional accounting software license for the offshore vendor to use. Small businesses will incur this cost even if they outsource the work to onshore vendors. This cost is truly soley based on the accounting software package used by the small businesses. Accounting software packages comes with various flavors types of software licenses like concurrent users, fixed number of users, CPU based, Network based etc., Some times small businesses can completely avoid this cost altogether.

4. Managing Financial & Accounting offshore vendor

Once you send your accounting and financial work to the offshore vendor, you need to constantly mange and monitor the quality of finished work that comes back from the vendor. Initially you may need a full-time person educating the offshore accountants and bookkeepers about your accounting process and preparing proper instructions for them to follow in their work. Once you and the offshore team are comfortable in the working relationship then all you need is to verify the work periodically. Basically you need to consider the offshore team as your virtual team and educate them in your accounting processes and procedures, once you are comfortable with their work your own employee(s) will spend less time with the offshore vendors.

5. Offshore vendor wage

For the accounting and financial work performed by the offshore vendor, small businesses will pay either an hourly rate or a monthly rate to the offshore vendor. This will be the actual direct cost small businesses will pay to the offshore vendor and all other costs are indirect cost of sending the work to offshore vendor. Typically the wage cost will be 50-70% less than the cost paid to the onshore accounting and financial vendor. For small businesses this cost savings is one of the major reasons to use the offshore vendor for their financial and accounting work.

Small businesses need to consider several costs in their financial and accounting offshore engagement. As shown in the table Small business F&A offshore outsourcing - Fixed Cost Vs Monthly Cost some of the costs are fixed and some of them are monthly expanses incurred by the small businesses. Among the monthly cost only the offshore vendor wage is the direct cost paid to the offshore vendor. While performing ROI analysis small businesses must consider all these costs to find the Total Cost of doing business with offshore vendors. As shown in the table, for certain items finding out the exact cost may not be possible and it is highly based on the individual small businesses and the type of accounting and financial work that has been sent to offshore locations. The total cost may not be a fixed amount and it can change from month to month. For example in some months there will be more questions from the offshore vendor in clarifications and in other months there will be less questions, this cost will vary from month to month.

Offshore Bank Account Tips & Issues

admin — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 03:54:09 +0000

Are you looking for a personal offshore bank account. Maybe you are looking for a corporate offshore bank account. Generally speaking, any bank account opened outside of one's native country can be considered an offshore bank account. The appeal of an offshore bank account is much more apparent during tax time, when assets and income must be reported to the IRS or other government revenue agencies abroad. This is why some companies and wealthier individuals prefer to open an offshore bank account in small sovereign states which allow account holders to remain virtually anonymous. For many years, an offshore bank account was indeed a convenient way to hide profits from illegal activities or underreported business earnings. Many people consider opening an offshore bank account for very legitimate financial reasons.

Bank

There is usually not much difference in service or benefits between the bank on the corner and a bank located in the Cayman Islands. These banks which are well established institutions offer an online corporate offshore bank account, with offshore credit card or debit card, and which can be operated via the internet, fax or phone. All bank accounts can be opened via courier post. None of the shelf offshore corporations have ever been in use or ever held a bank account.

Account

These banks which are well established institutions offer an online corporate offshore bank account, with offshore credit card or debit card, and which can be operated via the internet, fax or phone. The offshore banks were not obligated to report the existence of these accounts, and the account holders could legally pay little to no taxes to the host country. In recent years, however, the rules governing an offshore bank account have become much stiffer. Any bank account containing over $1,000 USD must be reported as income to the IRS, even if that bank account is in the Cayman Islands or Ireland. This is why some companies and wealthier individuals prefer to open an offshore bank account in small sovereign states which allow account holders to remain virtually anonymous.

Panama

One of the greatest advantages of having an offshore bank account in a favorable jurisdiction like Panama is that no one needs to know it exists. With a Panama bearer share corporation, wires moving through the wire system are not associated with any natural persons for more privacy. There is no capital gains tax in Panama on stock market trading gains making Panama a superb offshore stock brokerage jurisdiction. Bearer Share Corporations (Sociedad Anonima) Asset Protection with a full range of effective strategies including Panama Foundations and Corporations Providing corporate nominee directors and resident agent Offshore Bank Accounts in Panama with online banking Anonymous ownership of real estate anywhere Anonymous ownership of boats and planes anywhere Real Estate Investment (Panama real estate appreciating 58% per annum) Panama Passport Program Panama Residency, Citizenship, Visas Stock Trading Accounts in Panama with secrecy Offshore Visa, MasterCard from Panama Bank and other countries Offshore Merchant Accounts for high risk or low risk accounts. Bank secrecy laws in Panama call for prison sentences and/or fines for any bank employee, officer or owner who divulges any information about a bank account or account holder(s). The only way the bank can legally divulge any information about you or any bank account associated with you is by court order from a court in Panama.

Banking

It is important that the proper jurisdiction be selected when deciding which jurisdiction to use as an offshore banking jurisdiction. It may also be far more appropriate for an individual to consider structuring their offshore banking affairs through an offshore company so that they can gain greater confidentiality in their banking affairs. Offshore banking accounts are generally opened under the name of offshore companies or corporations. Offshore banking accounts need to be opened with an initial deposit to activate your account.

Tax

Companies incorporated in the Great Britain must pay tax on their worldwide income regardless of the country in which this income is generated. With the exception of charitable companies, there are no tax-exempt companies in the United Kingdom. Offshore companies or offshore trusts are not the illicit hideaways from tax authorities as sometimes presented. The tax-free status of the jurisdiction being used is always a major consideration. When selecting an offshore jurisdiction for your foundation one must take into account the following: freedom from taxes including inheritance taxation, anonymity of the foundation, ease of passing assets to beneficiaries, ease of operation and reasonable cost. Our overriding aim is to minimise your tax liabilities whilst maximising your company's income.

Companies

As more and more people worldwide discover the risk-free benefits of placing their business and personal financial-affairs well away from their own countries, offshore companies are being created on their behalf at a rate of over 150,000 per year. Many owners of offshore companies tend to operate the companies directly by themselves. It is absolutely critical that any client seek the information necessary to make a strong decision when opening an offshore account and forming offshore companies. Offshore banking accounts are generally opened under the name of offshore companies or corporations. To assure complete privacy, the shares of International Companies are often held by a discretionary trust.

Offshore banking has been routinely and legally used for many years by individuals and organizations worldwide. As with any type of bank account you have a choice when it comes to determining which offshore bank account best suits your needs and requirements. An offshore bank account will allow you to safely and privately explore, with few restrictions, the far reaches of the vast and diverse financial universe; from the bond markets of Korea to the stock exchanges of Eastern Europe; from ultra-private Liechtenstein trust arrangements to the most successful funds; from unique commodity investments to Caribbean corporations; from Israeli nanotech start-ups to age-old European blue-chips; from the mysterious and secretive world of offshore mutual funds to tax-free Swiss gold accounts; from Isle of Man Insurance contracts to Danish multi-currency investment accounts; from uniquely structured tax-free Austrian funds to Bulgarian mortgages; and much more beyond.