Gibraltar – the jurisdiction of choice for many? I am often asked to provide the reasons why anyone, particularly a high net worth individual, should make Gibraltar their centre for personal and business reasons. It is an obvious question for any individual or professional adviser. There are of course a number of factors to consider. • Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory and a self-governing and self-financing parliamentary democracy within the European Union (EU). • Gibraltar is physically part of Europe; it is not an island and is located at the southernmost tip of Spain allowing easy access to Spain, Portugal and beyond. • It’ modern state of the art international airport has flights to and from various UK destinations on a daily basis. • A great place to live there is a vibrant property market offering an excellent choice of high quality housing. • Diverse marina facilities capable of berthing yachts. • Gibraltar is a Mediterranean territory and as such enjoys excellent weather and lifestyle. • Its EU membership provides passporting rights in banking, investment services, insurance, insurance mediation and reinsurance across all 30 EU and European Economic Area (EEA) countries and access to a market of 500 million people. • Gibraltar is prosperous - the economy is forecast to grow from £1.1 billion to £1.65 billion between 2011 and 2015 and the Government of Gibraltar has maintained a budget surplus throughout the recent economic slowdown that has affected much of the developed world. • Gibraltar operates a low tax regime including a tax residency scheme for individuals with net assets in excess of £2 million (conditions apply) capping the maximum personal income tax at £29,880. • No VAT, no capital gains tax, no inheritance tax ……. • Its currency is the Gibraltar pound which is at par with UK sterling; we are not a Eurozone country. Paul Astengo is a Senior Finance Centre Executive in the Gibraltar Finance Centre team that markets Gibraltar as the finance centre of choice for private clients, insurance and funds. Please contact him on paul.astengo@financecentre.gov.gi also on LinkedIn and Twitter
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