Kevin E. Thorn
A Washington DC international tax lawyer can help you understand the rules for investing offshore. There has been a global crackdown aimed at preventing offshore tax evasion that has changed the landscape for offshore investing, but there are still trillions of dollars being held in financial institutions in various tax havens. In fact, the Tax Justice Network recently released a Financial Secrecy Index that identified the top 10 tax havens for 2018.
Around .5 percent of all global trade in offshore financial services takes place within this small tax haven in the English Channel.
Dubai has the highest secrecy rating of any of the offshore tax havens on the list.
Taiwan is on the top 10 list for the first year ever. It is unclear how much offshore money is actually held in Taiwan because Taiwan doesn't participate in statistics from the International Monetary Fund due to pressure from China because of the 'One China” policy
Germany has around five percent of the market for offshore financial services even though Germany doesn't have as strong of a global financial services market as many other locations on the list. It is a popular destination for offshore investors because of lax tax enforcement and ample tax loopholes
Around $800 billion is invested in Luxembourg and this state within the EU is home to around 12 percent of the total global market for offshore financial services
An estimated $1.8 trillion in assets are held at Singapore banks. This is a favorite offshore tax haven for offshore investors who are based in Southeast Asia
There are $2.1 trillion in assets in Hong Kong even though Hong Kong is considered to be a new destination for offshore investors looking for a tax haven
There are $1.4 trillion in assets held in 200 banks in the Cayman Islands. An estimated 95,000 companies are registered in the Caymans and more investment funds operate in the Caymans than anywhere else in the world
The U.S. now has 22.3 percent of the market for global offshore financial services. The market for global financial services in the U.S. rose 14 percent between 2015 and 2018. The most favorable tax havens in the U.S. include Wyoming, Delaware, and Nevada
Switzerland has around 28 percent of all offshore investments and there is around $6.5 trillion invested in Swiss financial institutions. More than half of all this money was invested by foreign investors.
Kevin E. Thorn, the managing partner of Thorn Law Group, is recognized as a leader in his area of practice throughout the country and across the globe. His clients are individuals, tax professional...
