How U.S. Taxpayers Can Safely Purchase Offshore Funds
If you're a citizen or resident of the United States, it's a challenge to purchase many of the tens of thousands of offshore mutual funds traded worldwide—at least not without…
If you're a citizen or resident of the United States, it's a challenge to purchase many of the tens of thousands of offshore mutual funds traded worldwide—at least not without…
Variable annuities and life insurance have a reputation as pretty boring investments. Yet, they're some of the most flexible contracts available to achieve tax deferral, asset protection, and a degree…
In yesterday's blog entry, I described the rapidly increasing risk that identity theft poses to every American. Fortunately, you can take a simple and nearly foolproof precaution that will virtually…
It's a piece of cake for someone to steal your identity. And if they do, you can count on spending countless hours dealing with police, credit bureaus, and banks to…
In yesterday's blog entry, I described Internet scams offering allegedly legitimate "instant passports" from nearly a dozen countries, including members of the European Union and Switzerland. These documents are all…
Looking on the Internet, you'd think the world is your oyster if you want to purchase a second passport. Just a cursory search using Scroogle (www.scroogle.org, a private alternative to…
In yesterday's blog entry, I described the legal precedent for the U.S. government to again confiscate privately held gold and silver, as it did in 1933. What are the best…
Not many Americans are still living who remember the day that President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared that the "hoarding" of gold and silver bullion by "subjects of the United States"…
The explosive growth in lawsuits mean that many U.S. businesses find it difficult or impossible to obtain liability insurance at a reasonable price. Perhaps yours is one of them. One…
At least once or twice a month, a reader contacts me to ask about an "instant passport" program from Panama. My response has always been the same. Panama does NOT…
Alternative passport and citizenship scams are alive and well. I recently discovered a Web site offering second passports from several countries, including Switzerland, Belize, The Bahamas, and Panama. I'm also…
Thanks to those intrepid treaty negotiators at the U.S. Treasury Department, there's now a bright, shiny, new "Protocol" in effect between the United States and Canada. The good news about…
Today, I'm going to say something nice about the IRS. Really! Thousands of Americans have tax reporting obligations they don't know about for various offshore transactions. Among the most common…
A $54 million lawsuit for a missing pair of pants has led to the dismissal of an administrative law judge in Washington, D.C. In 2005, Judge Roy Pearson, who I…
One of the most interesting offshore opportunities isn't an investment. It's merely keeping valuables—or valuable records—in an offshore safety deposit box or private vault. This strategy has several advantages. The…
Are you serious about protecting yourself from identity theft—the world's fastest growing crime? If you are, starting tomorrow, you'll have the ultimate tool to do it. It's called a "credit…
In the last few months, I've received several e-mails requesting assistance in obtaining an "Anti-Terrorist Clearance Certificate."Â They supposedly need the certificate to claim a monetary award, generally for US$100,000 or more, purportedly from an offshore source.
If you live or do business in the United States, you're almost certainly a criminal, even if you don't know it.
A passport from a European Union country is one of the most desirable travel documents you can possess. Most EU members have extensive network of countries to which passport-holders can…
U.S. shareholders in foreign corporations are subject to some of the most complex and confusing tax rules in the entire Tax Code. I'll be attending a workshop (see below) in…
Life insurance enjoys uniquely preferential treatment under U.S. tax law: All earnings accumulate free of taxes until withdrawal; The death benefit can pass to beneficiaries tax-free; Tax-free loans are possible;…
Offshore investments are an indispensable component of a globally balanced portfolio. But unfortunately, Congress has placed numerous obstacles in the way of Americans who venture offshore. Probably the most obscene…
Joe’s an average American guy. He and his wife Jane live in a three-bedroom tract home in the suburbs with a couple of children. Joe has a middle-class occupation. So does Jane—they…
A few years ago, I read Christopher Reich's massive novel, Numbered Account, billed as an inside look at the "anonymous" world of offshore banking. While the book is definitely a…
As I described in yesterday's blog entry, Austria has one of the world's strongest bank secrecy laws. Critics of bank secrecy laws claim that they help criminals shield illicit gains…
There's no point denying it—banking fees and commissions in Austria—and many other offshore financial centers—are substantially higher than in the United States. Fortunately, there are some ways to reduce them.…
Nearly every physician practicing in the United States has sworn to uphold the 2,000-year-old Hippocratic Oath. Among other provisions, a physician taking the oath makes the following pledge: "I will…
Corporations are the traditional way to limit personal liability in a business. A corporation has a separate legal personality from its owners, officers, and directors. This legal personality provides a "corporate…
I've warned many times that you should avoid any "instant citizenship and passport" program that doesn't have a solid basis in law. Someone selling you a passport from a country…
It’s Happy Hour at the Balas Bar at the Fort Young Hotel in Roseau, Commonwealth of Dominica. I’m sitting here enjoying a glass of Kubuli, the locally brewed beer, and…