Tax
Every piece we have published on tax. Dated, sourced, and written under a name.
US LLC formation for non-residents in 2026: Delaware, Wyoming and the Form 5472 penalty
US LLC formation for non-residents: about USD 100–110 and one day in Delaware or Wyoming — plus the Form 5472 filing whose penalty starts at USD 25,000.
Thailand company formation in 2026: online-only filing and the end of nominee shareholders
Thailand company formation: THB 5,000 and 3–7 days, but from January 2026 filing is online-only and Thai shareholders must prove they funded shares.
Taiwan company formation in 2026: two to three months, because of the investment approval
Taiwan company formation: a foreign-owned company takes 2–3 months because Foreign Investment Approval runs 6–8 weeks — and 20% tax plus a 5% surtax apply.
Switzerland company formation in 2026: the canton decides your rate, the resident director is not optional
Switzerland company formation in 2026: GmbH from CHF 20,000, effective tax 11.7–20.5% by canton, and the Swiss-resident director requirement nobody avoids.
Sweden company formation in 2026: SEK 25,000, no notary and an EEA board you must satisfy
Sweden company formation: an AB needs SEK 25,000 paid in and SEK 2,400 to file, pays 20.6% — but half the board and the MD must be EEA-resident.
Slovakia company formation in 2026: 10% in the lowest bracket, and a reform landing in August
Slovakia company formation: an s.r.o. needs EUR 5,000 capital and pays 10% up to EUR 100,000 — plus a minimum tax in loss years and an August 2026 reform.
Seychelles company formation in 2026: US$130 to register, and a bank that may never open
Seychelles company formation: an IBC registers in 1–2 days for US$130 with 0% on foreign income — but records are filed twice a year and banking is hard.
Scotland company formation in 2026: the Ltd, the Scottish LP and what identity checks changed
Scotland company formation in 2026: £100 online, one day, no minimum capital — plus what mandatory ID verification did to the Scottish limited partnership.
Qatar company formation in 2026: 10% on foreign profit, an office lease and no remote setup
Qatar company formation: a WLL pays 10% on foreign-owned profit, needs a physical office and attested papers — and the QFC is a different regime entirely.
Netherlands company formation in 2026: the BV, the notary and the bank that says no
Netherlands company formation in 2026: the BV needs EUR 0.01 of capital and a notary, pays 19% then 25.8% — and the bank account is the real obstacle.
Monaco company formation in 2026: the authorisation takes months and it is personal to you
Monaco company formation: a SARL needs EUR 15,000 paid up and prior government authorisation taking 2–3 months — and 25% tax only on non-Monaco turnover.
Mauritius company formation in 2026: the GBC, the 3% and the two directors you must hire
Mauritius company formation: a GBC pays 15% cut to about 3% on qualifying foreign income — but needs two resident directors, a licensed manager and audit.
Malta dividend tax: 0% at the border and the refund that turns 35% into 5%
Malta withholds nothing on dividends. The company pays 35%, the shareholder claims 6/7ths back, the effective rate lands near 5%. The catch is cash flow.
Malta company formation in 2026: the 5% is a refund, not a rate
Malta company formation: a Ltd in 2–5 days for EUR 100, 35% headline tax cut to about 5% by refund — and the cash-flow and audit costs behind it.
Malta capital gains tax: what is actually inside the charge, and what never was
Malta has no separate capital gains tax. Listed assets are taxed as income to 35%, property transfers pay a final 8%, non-doms' foreign gains are free.
Madeira company formation in 2026: the 5% regime closes to new licences on 31 December
Madeira company formation: the MIBC 5% rate needs real jobs and assets, and new licences can only be issued until 31 December 2026, with benefits to 2033.
Luxembourg company formation in 2026: the Soparfi, the notary and the substance test
Luxembourg company formation in 2026: the Sàrl, EUR 12,000 capital now deferrable, ~23.87% tax, and why the Soparfi only works with real substance.
Lithuania company formation in 2026: EUR 30 to register, 17% tax and the fintech reason people come
Lithuania company formation: a UAB costs EUR 30.83 to register and needs EUR 1,000 capital, tax rose to 17% in January 2026 — with 7% for small companies.
Liechtenstein company formation in 2026: the 12.5% is real, the trustee is mandatory
Liechtenstein company formation, straight: 12.5% profit tax, CHF 10,000 capital, 5–10 days — and the trustee fee that decides whether it is worth it.
Indonesia company formation in 2026: the PT PMA and the IDR 10 billion nobody mentions
Indonesia company formation in 2026: PT PMA paid-up capital cut to IDR 2.5bn, but the IDR 10bn investment plan per KBLI code is the real commitment.
Hungary company formation in 2026: the EU lowest corporate tax, and what it leaves out
Hungary company formation in 2026: a Kft. registers in days at zero court fee with 9% corporate tax — plus the local business tax and mandatory attorney.
Guernsey company formation in 2026: GBP 100, fifteen minutes if you pay, and a mandatory fiduciary
Guernsey company formation: GBP 100 and 24 hours, 0% standard corporate rate — but only a licensed fiduciary can file, and its fees are the real cost.
Gibraltar HEPSS in 2026: GBP 39,940 a year, and the job you actually have to do
Gibraltar HEPSS explained: income assessed only up to GBP 160,000, a flat GBP 39,940 tax bill, no net-worth test — and why most applications are refused.
Germany company formation in 2026: the GmbH, the trade tax and the bank account that holds everything up
Germany company formation: a GmbH needs EUR 25,000 capital with half paid up, pays about 30–33% combined — and the bank account is the real bottleneck.
Estonia company formation in 2026: 0% until you take the money out
Estonia company formation via e-Residency: EUR 265, one day, no minimum capital, 0% on retained profit and 22% on distributions — and the banking catch.
Czech company formation in 2026: CZK 1 of capital, 21% tax and a criminal-record extract
Czech Republic company formation: an s.r.o. needs CZK 1 of capital and 5–15 days, pays 21% — and every director must supply a criminal-record extract.
Cayman company formation in 2026: what US$853 buys and what economic substance takes back
Cayman Islands company formation: an exempted company in 3–5 days from US$853, 0% tax and a 20-year exemption undertaking — plus the substance regime.
BVI company formation in 2026: what USD 550 buys and what the register now shows
BVI company formation in 2026: USD 550 to register, 1–3 days, 0% tax — plus economic substance, the annual return and who can now see the owners.
Belize company formation in 2026: the IBC is gone and the bank is the problem
Belize company formation after the Companies Act 2022: no more IBC, USD 150 registration, 1–3 days — and the banking and substance rules that decide it.
Austria company formation in 2026: EUR 10,000 capital, a notary you cannot skip and a 23% flat rate
Austria company formation: GmbH capital cut to EUR 10,000, flat 23% corporate tax, a minimum charge in loss years — and the new FlexCo for startups.
Iran tax residency: the six-month rule is the least of your problems
Who counts as Iranian tax resident, the 15-25% bands, what foreign staff and returning diaspora face, and why the tax is the easy part. Verdict inside.
Hong Kong company formation in 2026: an hour to register, a quarter to bank
Hong Kong company formation for a non-resident founder: the 8.25% tier, the offshore claim the IRD dismantles, FSIE and the bank problem. Verdict inside.
Denmark's 27% researcher tax scheme: seven good years, then the cliff
Denmark's 27% scheme in 2026: who qualifies, the ten-year rule, what year eight costs, the exit tax on shares. Our verdict on who should take it.
Chile's three-year tax exemption is real. So is the wall in year four
Chile exempts new residents' foreign income for three years, then taxes worldwide at up to 40%. Who qualifies, what year four costs, how Uruguay compares.
Belarus residency and taxes: cheap on paper, unbankable in practice
Belarus's residence routes, the 13/25/30% tax bands, the Hi-Tech Park regime and its non-CRS status — plus who should touch it (almost nobody).
Setting up a Gibraltar company in 2026: what to do, and what it costs
A practical guide to Gibraltar company formation. What the state charges, what the work involves, what moves the price — and what a file with us has averaged in 2026.
There are 51 tax residencies that don't report you. You will hate 50 of them.
51 of the 165 countries we track sit outside CRS. The biggest is the United States. Here is what the non-reporting list actually buys you — and what it costs.
Malta income tax rates: the 35% headline and what foreigners actually pay
Malta income tax rates: real brackets to 35%, the non-dom remittance basis, 15% regimes, 8% property tax — and a verdict on who actually pays what.
Gibraltar company formation in 2026: process, timeline and who it's actually for
Gibraltar company formation, straight: the process, the real timeline, 15% territorial tax, no VAT — and our verdict on who should bother.
Cayman Islands taxes: what zero actually costs
Cayman Islands taxes explained: 0% income, corporate and capital gains tax, 7.5% stamp duty — what zero really costs and our verdict on who should go.
Canada departure tax: how the deemed disposition on leaving Canada works
Canada's departure tax explained: the deemed disposition on leaving Canada, what's exempt, the interest-free deferral — and a verdict on timing your exit.
10 countries where the wealthy move themselves, their companies and their trusts
A US passport now costs $450 to hand back. The exit tax is the expensive part. Germany taxes gains you never realised. Norway's billionaires simply left. Here is what leaving actually costs in every rich country, and the ten places the wealthy move themselves, their holding companies and their trusts. Verdict inside.
Your crypto just joined the bank statement
CARF and the expanded CRS went live on 1 January 2026. The verdict: on-chain privacy from your home tax office is now a scheduling problem, not a strategy.
Why your bank hangs up when you say you're American
It is not personal and it is not illegal. FATCA turned every foreign bank into an IRS reporting agent. And for many of them, the cheapest response to a US client is no.
Uruguay's tax holiday still holds. The entry fee just went up
Uruguay kept its 11-year foreign-income holiday but repriced the door in 2026. Who still qualifies free, who gets priced out, and the once-only trap.
Japan shut the cheap door and kept the death tax
Japan made its Business Manager visa six times harder in October 2025. But the real trap for relocating wealth is its worldwide inheritance tax. The verdict.
Britain's 12% window is closing, and it won't reopen
Britain's Temporary Repatriation Facility lets ex-non-doms bring offshore wealth onshore at a flat 12%, but only until 2027. The verdict: don't wait.
The Cayman Islands charge you at the border instead
The Cayman rate table is one line long and every line says zero. Here is what replaces it, and the two qualifiers that decide your actual bill.
Malta's 35% is a headline almost nobody pays
Malta's headline rate is 35%. Trading profits land near 5%, and non-doms' foreign capital gains land at zero. The real rates, and the catch.
Italy's flat tax is not what the romantics think
Italy's flat-tax regime suits the genuinely globally rich and burns the romantics. How it compares with Greece and Portugal. Verdict inside.
Is Paraguay really a zero-tax country? Four people, four answers
Paraguay is sold as a zero-tax country. It is not zero, it is territorial at 10%. Four composite cases showing who pays nothing and who pays plenty.
Gibraltar incorporates in three days. The bank is the hard part
Gibraltar gives you a company in three working days for GBP 100. Getting it banked, and keeping the 15% territorial break, is the hard part.
Cyprus's 20% capital gains tax that hardly anyone pays
Cyprus taxes capital gains at 20%, but only on Cyprus property. Securities are exempt. What the 2026 reform changed, and what non-dom really buys.
Will you be a covered expatriate?
The US exit tax has three tests. Fail one and you are covered. The 2026 figures, Form 8854, and the green card trap at eight of fifteen years.
The end of non-dom
The UK abolished non-dom on 6 April 2025. The 4-year FIG regime, the 12% repatriation window closing in 2028, and the IHT tail that is not 10 years.
The 183-day rule is a myth
Day counting is one test among several and rarely the decisive one. What treaty tie-breakers actually turn on, and why keeping the house loses cases.
Reading is not advice
None of this knows anything about you. When you want an answer that does, we are here.