Get Offshore:
The first step to gaining true financial independence, both for yourself as you enjoy retirement and for your kids and grandkids to enjoy when you are gone, is to set up an offshore account. There are plenty of reasons why offshore investors choose the jurisdictions they do. If you are looking for easy, secure, and private banking opportunities, then you must be looking to go offshore. Offshore income under certain structures accumulates tax-free, giving you more to invest in now. And, those investments do not face capital gains tax. That’s immensely profitable compared to any onshore investment setup. Offshore banks also offer competitive interest rates that are much, much higher than anything available in the U.S.
Expatriate/Gain Residency:
In some offshore jurisdictions, becoming a resident comes as simply as purchasing real estate. In others, it is simply a matter of living in the country for a given period of time. There are untold benefits to getting out of the U.S. now, as well as other places like Canada or the UK. These nations are increasingly divided, with class warfare becoming more of a realistic threat with each passing day. The U.S. dollar is becoming particularly treacherous to investors and early or soon-to-be retirees. It logically follows that once your portfolio is divested completely or at least substantially enough to be entirely secure away from the U.S., your time may as well be spent completely or partially where your money best serves you.
Depending on how much of your time you want to spend abroad, you may go so far as to relinquish or renounce your U.S. citizenship or nationality. 2015 was a record year for U.S. citizenship to be relinquished. The government took notice of this trend and hugely raised the fees for doing so. Many are realizing that now is the time to act, before Uncle Sam’s barriers become too obstructive.
To clarify, relinquishing your nationality does not remove your citizenship, but instead only states that you have become a national of another country, and basically are choosing to reside there. Many expats choose this option because they spend all or most of their time abroad, but may occasionally travel back to the U.S. or even retain property there. Renouncing your citizenship, however, means that you are declaring yourself no longer a citizen, a taxpayer, or a resident. You would need a visa to return to the United States once this is done. Renouncement is a big step and only a few thousand people a year do this, but that number is growing each year, and for good reason.
Invest/Real Estate:
By generating income in your new home country, thanks to properly structured investments, it will be much, much easier to make important purchases. The most important hard asset you will ever own is your home. For many people, their home is the biggest single purchase in their lifetime. But for everyone, buying a home is a big decision that will affect how you live each day of your life spent there. Once you have established your finances offshore and begun the process towards nationalization, residency, or citizenship, you will soon ask yourself, “Where am I going to live?” The no-brainer answer, of course, is to add to the most liberating financial move you will ever make by purchasing a new home. And why not purchase a home in a buyer’s market that will provide income while not in use, and where the climate is the tropical paradise you’ve always dreamed of? You will never feel more safe, secure, and happy in your new real estate investment that puts your money to work for you and gives you amazing access to some of the most stunning and exotic locations in the world.
