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Tax Havens on the Net
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Tax Havens on the Net
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compiled by James R. Hart
sources:
Internet Connectivity List -- Larry Landweber, U.Wisc.
ftp.cs.wisc.edu ../connectivity_table Version 9,
August 1993
Hoyt L. Barber, _Tax Havens_, McGraw-Hill 1993
Codes used to indicate sites in each country with access to
the Global Multiprotocol Open Internet:
BITNET
b: minimal, one to five domestic BITNET sites
B: widespread, more than five domestic BITNET sites
IP INTERNET
I: = operational, accesible from entire IP Internet
i: = operational, not accesible via the NSFNET backbone
UUCP
u: minimal, one to five domestic UUCP sites
U: widespread, more than five domestic UUCP sites
FIDONET
f: minimal, one to five domestic FIDONET sites
F: widespread, more than five domestic FIDONET sites
OSI
o: minimal, one to five domestic X.400 sites
O: widespread, more than five domestic X.400 sites
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and without further ado:
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Aruba
net access: ---f-
languages: Papiamento, English, Dutch, Spanish
currency controls: none?
bank secrecy: moderate (numbered accounts not
permitted)
preferred legal entities: Aruba Exempt Company,
NV (Dutch legal tradition, bearer shares allowed)
taxes: no income tax on AEC or shareholders, no
witholding of any kind
tax treaties: none?
Austria
net access: BIOUFO
language: German
currency controls: ??
bank secrecy: good; numbered accounts available
preferred legal entities: limited liability company, stock
orporation
taxes: corporate tax. no bank interest tax. 20% divident
ax.
tax treaties: many, OECD model, primarily personal and
orporate income
contact: Price Waterhouse, Austria
Barbados
net access: --u--
language: English
currency controls: some (none for offshore banks &
nsurance)
preferred legal entities: company, public company,
offshore bank, exempt insurance
company, foreign sales corporation ,
international business company
taxes: income tax offshore banks and international
business companies 2.5%, exempt insurance
companies and foreign sales corporations none
tax treaties: double-tax treaties with 5 major countries (incl.
U.K. & U.S.)
Bermuda
net access: --uf--
language: English
currency controls: none for nonresidents
bank secrecy: moderate
preferred legal entities:
local (conduct business in Bermuda, must be 60%
Bermuda owned),
exempt (only conducts business outside
Bermuda)
-- min. capitalization US$12,000
-- extensive background check on the
principles
taxes: no income, profit, sales, value added, witholding, or
capital gains taxes
tax treaties: no double-tax treaties. U.S. can be provided
with tax information concerning civil & criminal
tax cases
Costa Rica
net access: bIuf-
language: Spanish
currency controls: only on local currency, applies only to
citizens or legal entities
bank secrecy: good
legal entities:
individual enterprise/limited liability
collective company
limited partnership
limited-liability company
stock corporation (aka chartered company): most
common
taxes: 15% on dividents for some nonresident
shareholders, moderate corporate
income, payroll, imort, real estate taxes.
Exporters exempt from most
taxes.
tax treaties: no double-tax treaties. Caribbean Basin
Initiative exchange-of-information
agreeement signed but not yet ratified (as of 1/93).
Hong Kong
net access: BI-F-
languages: Cantonese, English
currency controls: none
bank secrecy: moderate?
preferred legal entity: limited-liability corporation
(English common law Companies Ordinance)
taxes: 16.5% domestic source corporate income, 15%
domestic employment wages, 15% on domestic
property rental income
tax treaties: no double-tax agreements
n.b.: treaty to return Hong Kong to Communist China in
1997
Ireland
net access: BIUFO
language: English
currency controls: none?
bank secrecy: moderate?
preferred legal entity: noresident company (private
corporation w/limited liability,
must conduct operations outside Ireland)
taxes: only on Irish operations
tax treaties: many double-tax treaties
n.b.: those with Irish grandparents can obtain second
citizenship
Leichtenstein
net access: ---f-
languages: German, Alemanni
currency controls: none
bank secrecy: excellent
preferred legal entities: allows any type found anywhere
in the world (!)
establishment (limited liability, unlimited duration)
company limited by shares
foundations and trusts
taxes: none for income outside Leichtenstein. Net worth
tax of 0.01% on capital and reserves (min. 1,000
Swiss francs), local resident taxes
tax treaties: not party directly or indirectly to any
exchange-of-information agreements
double-tax treaty exists only with Austria
n.b.: bankers won't assist law enforcement officials with
drug, fraud, theft, or tax investigations. They
might assist in money laundering and insider
trading investigations, informing the customer
first.
Luxembourg
net access: bIUFO
languages: Letzeburgesh, French, German, English
bank secrecy: moderate
preferred legal entity: holding company
taxes: holding companies pays only 10% registration fee
on issued shares and
0.20% annual capital tax on issued capital bonds.
tax treaties: many double-tax treaties
n.b.: EC member
Malta
net access: --u--
languages: Maltese, English
currency controls: none
bank secrecy: good
preferred legal entities: offshore notrading, trading,
banking (overseas, subsidiary, local), insurance, trusts
taxes: nontrading exempt, trading very low
tax treties: many double-tax treaties
n.b.: EC member
Netherlands
net access: BIUFO
language: Dutch
currency controls: ??
bank secrecy: poor
preferred legal entities: private or public NV (can have
bearer shares)
taxes: complex, high (many loopholes for large offshore
companies)
tax treaties: many
Panama
net access: b-uFO
languages: Spanish, English
curency controls: none
bank secrecy: good; numbered accounts permissable
preferred legal entity: corporation
taxes: none on income generated outside Panama
tax treaties: only on shipping income
Singapore
net access: bIuF-
languages: Malay, Mandarin, Tamil, English
currency controls: none
bank secrecy: moderate; numbered accounts available
preferred legal entities: private limited company
taxes: none on dividends, foreign deposit interest, or
income derived from
outside Singapore.
tax treaties: many
Switzerland
net access: BIUFO
languages: French, German, Italian, Romansch
currency controls: none
bank secrecy: moderate to good; numbered accounts
available
preferred legal entity: AG (stock company under Laws of
Obligation)
taxes: 3.6-9.8% worldwide income tax for operating
companies, 35%
witholding tax on interest and dividends
tax treaties: many double-tax treaties
Vanuata
net access: --u--
languages: Melanesian, French, English
currency controls: none
bank secrecy: moderate?
preferred legal entities: holding, trading, agency, mgmt.
service, contracting
taxes: no income or capital gains taxes
tax treaties: none
Western Samoa
net access: --u--
languages: Samoan, English
currency controls: none
bank secrecy: good
preferred legal entities: international company, offshore
bank, insurance company
taxes: none for companies under offshore acts
tax treaties: none
If you like having this information, let me know. Also let
me know what other kinds of information you need on tax
havens and net access; I'd love to be of service. If you
have corrections to or additional information for the Tax
Havens on the Net list, I'd be happy to add it with full
attribution (or full privacy, as you prefer). To preserve
your privacy, feel free to use anonymous remailers and
encryption. My PGP key enclosed below.
James R. Hart [email protected]
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