Where in the world to live? (Fun, Luxury, Tax)

theviewer1985

plumb1_2 said:

So you made use of the nhs on the day you were born and ongoing.Made use of free schooling.
Now you have to give something back by paying taxes, you want to leave.
Let me know the date and departure airport you choose, as I’ll provide a free taxi.

I don't think I'd enjoy sharing a car with you. Appreciate the offer though.

theviewer1985

macman said:

theviewer1985 said:

macman said:

How is corporation tax at 19% 'a killer'? It's lower than it's been for many years, and, if LIz Truss becomes PM, then she has pledged to cut the planned increase to 25%.
Income tax; I assume you are much to young to remember income tax at 90% in the 1970's then?
Argentina: are you serious? The economy is a basket case. Inflation is currently 71% and rising. Move your capital there and it'll be rapidly eroded in value unless you keep it in sterling. And, I'd imagine that if you want to bail out, there are heavy constraints on export of capital.
How about Eire? Corporation tax there is 12.5%. 

I didn't say corporation tax... I said "tax" 

So between Corporation tax, VAT (which does nothing for us, as we have very little expense), income tax and then every other avenue the GOV tries to squeeze us on, it feels as though we would be better off elsewhere seeing as we are veeeeeery flexible. ie. Young, no kids, work online

Eire... good shout. I have considered it once or twice over the years and would help get us back into the EU which is a mega mega plus for us personally.

No, you didn't, but since you claim to be running such a successful business, it's assumed that you would be running it in the most tax efficient way possible and so minimising income tax by using a ltd company, paying corporation tax, and then taking dividends rather than a larger salary?
General taxation is lower in the UK than many EU countries, so I'm not quite sure where this 'gov't tries to squeeze us' line is coming from?
You are working online, from home presumably, so no business rates to pay, no commercial rent?

I think you need to read it again my guy. It quite literally does not mention corporation tax at any stage.

And no, we are newly LTD and although dividends are the long term goal, at present we are paying ourselves the highest salary to speed up our process of getting a mortgage.

Correct, no business rates or rent - partly why I hate being forced into VAT registration.

Finally, be great if you could drop the attitude. If you think England is better than other countries for Taxation, then perhaps explain why, without being a grump. From my viewpoint, we are listed on every website I check, as being one of the highest taxed countries. There are hundreds of cheaper places to live according to all research i've done. But reducing those 100's to a few gems was the meaning of this post.

Grumpy_chap

theviewer1985 said:

And no, we are newly LTD and although dividends are the long term goal, at present we are paying ourselves the highest salary to speed up our process of getting a mortgage.

Are you looking to get a mortgage on a UK property?  That would result in your being anchored to this country, which is the opposite of your aspiration as per the OP.

Outside of the UK, systems may operate differently but, AIUI, most UK lenders will assess a "self-employed" Ltd Co. Director by looking through the business accounts and salary / dividend drawn and require minimum two years of business trading accounts before they will assess lending (certainly the lenders offering attractive interest rates).  Where that applies, two years is two years and will not speed up by drawing maximum salary versus dividend.  This is worth looking into (speak to a mortgage Broker) so that you do not suffer the tax of salary without gaining the benefit you seek.

theviewer1985

Grumpy_chap said:

theviewer1985 said:

And no, we are newly LTD and although dividends are the long term goal, at present we are paying ourselves the highest salary to speed up our process of getting a mortgage.

Are you looking to get a mortgage on a UK property?  That would result in your being anchored to this country, which is the opposite of your aspiration as per the OP.

Outside of the UK, systems may operate differently but, AIUI, most UK lenders will assess a "self-employed" Ltd Co. Director by looking through the business accounts and salary / dividend drawn and require minimum two years of business trading accounts before they will assess lending (certainly the lenders offering attractive interest rates).  Where that applies, two years is two years and will not speed up by drawing maximum salary versus dividend.  This is worth looking into (speak to a mortgage Broker) so that you do not suffer the tax of salary without gaining the benefit you seek.

We actually have a '1 years accounts' mortgage offer. That may be why our mortgage advisor said to go the salary route rather than dividend route as there is only a couple lenders that will accept 1 years accounts. Or it could have been the accountants advise for one reason or another. Im not really clued up on the business stuff, but I do know for sure that its an intentional choice, that we all agreed would cost us more in the short term and that we will be going with dividends once we have a first property locked in.

And yes, we are looking at getting a UK property. Well... sort of. Our theory is that we should buy in the UK first, just so we have our 'base' - a safety net if you like. Im not sure I understand when you say it would anchor us here? Correct me if im wrong, but could we not just rent it out and move abroad with the same level of freedom as always - I thought letting agents offer full management services? Its worth noting, in case this was your concern, that if we were to buy in the UK with the intention of moving abroad, then we would buy well under budget to leave lots of capital spare.

Jeremy535897

The danger of having a UK base is that it can be available accommodation if you have a void period, which can impact on your residence status.

DullGreyGuy

Your mortgage would have to allow you to let it out which normally requires you to have a buy to let mortgage.

As to investing in property overseas... you need to investigate the market well and decide if your lets are holiday lets or long term. For long term lets rents in many countries are significantly lower relative to the value of the property in comparison to the UK. Holiday lets/AirBnB type can be much more lucrative but require much more oversight, it can be outsourced but that then increases your risk of not being profitable.

Probably worth you clarifying your requirement for "luxury"? Are you wanting to live relatively cheaply but be somewhere where you can have the occasional splurges into luxury or are you imaging having a penthouse property with a fleet of your own cars in the garage? The price differential notably shrinks when looking at top tier properties and other luxury items around the world in comparison to your average property.

theviewer1985

Jeremy535897 said:

The danger of having a UK base is that it can be available accommodation if you have a void period, which can impact on your residence status.

Darn. Never thought that was a remote possibility. If anything, I thought it would help matters as it could help show that you'd not become a 'burden on society'

DullGreyGuy

PS. also remember that small tax can also mean small state and so you may save on tax but have to pay expensive medical insurance and $1,000 each time you want to see a doctor 

macman

theviewer1985 said:

macman said:

theviewer1985 said:

macman said:

How is corporation tax at 19% 'a killer'? It's lower than it's been for many years, and, if LIz Truss becomes PM, then she has pledged to cut the planned increase to 25%.
Income tax; I assume you are much to young to remember income tax at 90% in the 1970's then?
Argentina: are you serious? The economy is a basket case. Inflation is currently 71% and rising. Move your capital there and it'll be rapidly eroded in value unless you keep it in sterling. And, I'd imagine that if you want to bail out, there are heavy constraints on export of capital.
How about Eire? Corporation tax there is 12.5%. 

I didn't say corporation tax... I said "tax" 

So between Corporation tax, VAT (which does nothing for us, as we have very little expense), income tax and then every other avenue the GOV tries to squeeze us on, it feels as though we would be better off elsewhere seeing as we are veeeeeery flexible. ie. Young, no kids, work online

Eire... good shout. I have considered it once or twice over the years and would help get us back into the EU which is a mega mega plus for us personally.

No, you didn't, but since you claim to be running such a successful business, it's assumed that you would be running it in the most tax efficient way possible and so minimising income tax by using a ltd company, paying corporation tax, and then taking dividends rather than a larger salary?
General taxation is lower in the UK than many EU countries, so I'm not quite sure where this 'gov't tries to squeeze us' line is coming from?
You are working online, from home presumably, so no business rates to pay, no commercial rent?

I think you need to read it again my guy. It quite literally does not mention corporation tax at any stage.

And no, we are newly LTD and although dividends are the long term goal, at present we are paying ourselves the highest salary to speed up our process of getting a mortgage.

Correct, no business rates or rent - partly why I hate being forced into VAT registration.

Finally, be great if you could drop the attitude. If you think England is better than other countries for Taxation, then perhaps explain why, without being a grump. From my viewpoint, we are listed on every website I check, as being one of the highest taxed countries. There are hundreds of cheaper places to live according to all research i've done. But reducing those 100's to a few gems was the meaning of this post.

No, but since you are a limited company that is doing well, you are going to be liable for corporation tax. If you choose to take more salary and pay more income tax in order just to boost your mortgage borrowing, that is a choice you have freely made.
Why do you want a UK mortgage if you are considering relocating? 
VAT reg is required when your turnover exceeds £85K, but what has that to do with your business overheads?
I didn't say the UK was 'better than other countries for taxation'. I said that it was one of the lowest in (and now out) of the EU, which it is. Compare it to other western European countries, or Scandinavia, with a similarly developed level of state social care or healthcare. It's ludicrous to make comparisons with 'cheaper places to live' in Asia or S. America which offer little or none of these benefits. if you want lower taxes, why not move to the UAE, where there are no personal income taxes? But you'll have to forget about the skinny dipping, and you'll need to get a liquor licence-no drinking on the beach.
There is no 'attitude'. But, if you make presumptious statements about 'killer taxes' on a public forum, you can expect them to be challenged.

macman

Grumpy_chap said:

theviewer1985 said:

And no, we are newly LTD and although dividends are the long term goal, at present we are paying ourselves the highest salary to speed up our process of getting a mortgage.

Are you looking to get a mortgage on a UK property?  That would result in your being anchored to this country, which is the opposite of your aspiration as per the OP.

Outside of the UK, systems may operate differently but, AIUI, most UK lenders will assess a "self-employed" Ltd Co. Director by looking through the business accounts and salary / dividend drawn and require minimum two years of business trading accounts before they will assess lending (certainly the lenders offering attractive interest rates).  Where that applies, two years is two years and will not speed up by drawing maximum salary versus dividend.  This is worth looking into (speak to a mortgage Broker) so that you do not suffer the tax of salary without gaining the benefit you seek.

It may be that the OP has not yet been trading a full two years, or not two years as a ltd co. Vlogging is a relatively new phenomenon and I suspect lenders may see it as potentially ephemeral as a future revenue stream, as the assets of such a company are almost zero, even if it's trading healthily now. It's dependent on the ability of the founders to continue working and generating content, so illness or accident would quickly kill it's revenues.