The cruise industry is impressed with what Belize has to offer, and the Carnival Corporation has just finalized an agreement to build a new cruise port in the Port Loyola area of Belize City. Costing $50 million, it will be the largest cruise port Carnival has built anywhere in the world. 

It is expected to generate more than a billion Belize dollars ($500 million) in revenue over the first 20 years of the agreement. Belize’s far-thinking banking laws have given the nation a distinct advantage when it comes to banking privacy. In an age when the accounts in other jurisdictions are under attack, those in Belize remain secure…no mean feat. And Belize’s retiree program offers attractive incentives to foreigners looking to relocate here—particularly those who are already planning to declare their permanent residency outside the United States.

But what really sets Belize apart from its neighboring countries is that its population speaks English. If you feel you are at the stage in your life when you don’t really want to learn a new language, put Belize at the top of you list as a potential destination for business, retirement, or a new home. 

The real pirates of the Caribbean

In the 16th and 17th centuries Europeans sailors arrived in Belize and many lived as pirates, raiding the Spanish ships of their Mayan gold and other treasures. They then returned to Europe to sell these riches. Belize was a favorite location for pirates because of its lawlessness at that time and because it’s coral reef made its coastal waters shallow enough to protect the smaller pirate’s boats from the larger navy ships that could not sail in the shallow waters. The English sailors soon learned that there was more money to be made in the logging industry and established a colony.

Belizeans themselves and the expatriates their country has attracted over the centuries are fiercely independent. In Belize, people solve their own problems. They avoid taking their petty disputes to court. In a few cases where court action was threatened, the two parties suddenly found a way to settle things themselves. They couldn’t stand the thought of the government (or anyone else) making a decision for them. 

User-friendly trust laws

Thanks to the Trusts Act of 1992, Belize has become a premier jurisdiction for asset-protection trusts. Today, Belize is a haven offering rock-solid protection of assets that are transferred into a Belizean Trust. 

It’s also one of the few trust jurisdictions in the world that offers protection from court action initiated by creditors that might challenge your transfer of property into a trust. 

In the absence of actual fraud in the creation of a trust, the assets of a Belizean trust cannot be attached to satisfy the judgment of a foreign court. Belizean trust laws have been tested and proved solid. 

Avoid taxes with easy incorporation laws

A trust is not the only way to keep your assets intact in Belize. The International Business Companies Act of 1990 gives foreigners an opportunity to incorporate in Belize and enjoy huge advantages. 

IBCs are exempt from taxes on all income. There are no Belizean citizenship or residency requirements for directors, officers or shareholders of IBCs. Meetings of shareholders and directors can be held in any country and may be attended by proxy.   A Belizean IBC requires only one shareholder and one director, each of which can be either an individual or a corporation. Your IBC is not required to have staff members or to establish an office in Belize. And IBCs are not subject to any foreign-exchange controls.

IBCs can be used for financial management, investment holding, ship or property ownership, shared ownership of other companies, leasing of assets, copyrighting and licensing, and general commercial trade. 

There are, however, significant restrictions on IBCs. They’re not allowed to do business with Belizean residents, own real estate in Belize, engage in a banking or insurance business in Belize or act as an agent for another Belizean IBC. 

Belize’s IBC laws are among the easiest in the world to use, and incorporation fees are low. For an IBC with authorized capital of $50,000 or less, the incorporation fee is usually $700, plus registered office/agent fees of $300 a year. Fees typically include the arrangement of the incorporation of the company, the certificate of incorporation and preparation of the minutes of the first meeting of the director(s). To register an IBC, a memorandum and articles of association must be submitted to the Registrar via a registered agent. Contact information for registered agents can be obtained by viewing the list of agents at www.ibcbelize.com.

Corozal

Just under 90 miles north of Belize City, easily accessed by the Northern Highway, is the Corozal District, an adventurer’s paradise with rainforests, coastal lagoons, and miles of untouched beaches. Peaceful and pristine, the Corozal District beckons swimmers and divers to its crystal waters, sunbathers to its shores, and hikers and homesteaders to its tracts of tropical wilderness. 

The soft, white sand and unsullied beaches of the Corozal District shoreline appeal to a certain type of pioneer. The turquoise waters of the conjoining Corozal and Chetumal bays provide a perfect setting for snorkeling, scuba diving, swimming, and sunbathing. Out in the flats, sports fishermen need only cast a line to catch their fill of ladyfish, permit, bonefish, and barracuda...while, out on the nearby reefs, kingfish, grouper, snapper, and jack crevalle make the twin bays a sportsman’s dream.

Cost of living

Belize is not the most affordable place to settle in Central America. You’ll likely find prices for some items to be more than what you’re used to paying in the United States…but then discover that many services actually cost less. Also, your cost of living will depend largely on where and how you choose to live. 

If you settle on Ambergris Caye, the island that attracts the vast majority of Belize’s tourists (and investors) for example, you’ll likely find living a bit more expensive than back home in the States. Being an island, everything is imported so you’ll pay extra for that transport cost. On the other hand, if you decide to live in the north of Belize in Corozal and can take advantage of easy shopping trips to nearby Mexico, you can enjoy all the benefits of English-speaking Belize…but buy your goods for less just across the border. 

Belizean fare

Dining in Belize can be an adventure if you want it to be. You can find dishes made of native game, which Belizeans often prepare with a spicy red sauce. Fresh fish and lobster are delicious and readily available, straight from the coastal waters. Beef and chicken are standard main courses and are often served with fried potatoes. More traditional foods include rice and beans mixed with pork, beef, and vegetables. And you’ll find the Gibnut, or paca, (half rabbit and half rat) on exhibit at the Belize Zoo and on dinner tables throughout the country.  

Other delicacies include iguana, brocket deer, and turtle. Some restaurants add a service charge of up to 20% to your bill; in that case, no tip is necessary. Otherwise, a tip of 10% to 15% is acceptable. 

Health care

While medical care in Belize is adequate, you’d be well advised to take out evacuation insurance if you choose to live here. Though you could certainly have a broken bone set or a cold attended to at a local clinic in Ambergris or at a hospital in Belize City, for anything more serious you’d be better off in Mexico or the States. There are state-of-the-art facilities over the border, and health care in Mexico is inexpensive. If you’re prone to health problems, you should consider this option.

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 Medical facilities and personnel in Belize are sparse. However, doctors who do practice here are first-rate, and many have been trained outside the country, often in the United States. Also, Belize City boasts a relatively new, modern hospital. 

Special benefits for retirees

On September 15, 1999, Belize enacted some of the most attractive “retiree” legislation available anywhere in the world today. The program is aimed squarely at North American and UK nationals already planning to live full time outside their native counties. And it comes with almost no fine print or red tape. 

To qualify, you need to be 45 years and older and be able to show only that you have a monthly income of at least $2,000. In many other countries offering these kinds of foreign retiree programs, you must make a significant financial contribution before you can take advantage of the program’s benefits. 

To keep your “Qualified Retired Person” (QRP) status, you must spend just one month of the year in Belize. 

To entice you to come to Belize, the law allows you to import your car as well as personal and household effects duty-free. (Thereafter, you may import another vehicle duty-free into Belize every five years, as long as your previous vehicle is sold, re-exported, or disposed of in an approved manner.) 

The program will also allow you to import motor vehicles, light aircraft, boats, and other modes of transportation without duty. As for household effects, there are no specifications or limitations as to what constitutes such personal property. Only in cases of abuse, such as when an individual tries to import six refrigerators or 10 air conditioners, would the exempt status be denied.  

Qualified Retired Persons (QRPs) also receive certain tax advantages. For more information on the benefits of the QRP program, visit: www.belizeretirement.org. 

Belize really is a country of contrasts. From the Caribbean coast to the Mayan hills, this nation is unique. Sparsely populated, it remains untouched, for the most part...a feast for the traveler. Whether you’re looking for a place to bank in absolute privacy…own a second home you can visit a few months a year…retire full-time on the beach…or simply travel in style…Belize is a hot destination right now. 

Kathleen Peddicord - has been the editor and publisher of International Living since 1985. For more than two decades, she has spoken and been interviewed on radio and television on the topics of retiring overseas and investing in real estate around the world. She has also edited several books on these and related subjects, including The World's Top Retirement Havens and The World's Best. - She has traveled extensively investigating real estate and retirement overseas, both for International Living and for personal interest. Seven years ago, she moved with her family to the southeast coast of Ireland to open the offices of Agora Ireland Publishing, out of which she continues to publish International Living. She now divides her time between Ireland, France, Nicaragua, and Panama. -