1. 15 Of The World’s Most Significant Tax Havens
As long as there have been taxes, there have been tax
avoiders. And as long as there have been tax avoiders, there
have been tax havens. Broadly speaking, any country that is
known for helping individuals or businesses avoid taxes can
be described as a tax haven. Some are very forthcoming and
proudly advertise the tax advantages of living there, while
others are more discreet. In either case, tax havens have a
long and enduring legacy in civil society (with an estimated
$11.5 trillion currently stashed in offshore accounts) and each
one offers something different to aspiring tax dodgers.
Luxembourg
Luxembourg is an attractive place for foreigners to stash
excess wealth, as the entire country (said to be among the
richest in the world – in per capita terms) seems to have a
rather lax attitude toward tax collection. According to one
website that profiles tax havens: “although they have taxes,
nobody seems to work too hard on collecting them.”
Amenities: No tax on bank interest, investment dividends, or
capital gains for non-residents.
Cook Islands
The Cook Islands have much to offer prospective tax dodgers,
including the sheer natural beauty of its beach climate.
Combined with the tax advantages discussed below, it‟s no
wonder shamed Australian entrepreneur Alan Bond stashed
his money here before it all came crumbling down on top of
him. Not everyone has such a rosy view of the Cook Islands,
however. AssetProtectionBook.com describesseveral
instances where Cook Islands-based trusts were successfully

2. invalidated by foreign judges and attorneys, some of whom
actually specialize in going after trusts that are based there.
Amenities: No capital gains taxes, income taxes, or death
taxes levied on investors.
Cayman Islands
Hedge fund managers and investors have grown particularly
fond of the Cayman Islands, which relies solely on indirect
methods of taxation like import duties, tourist fees, and
licensing fees to sustain its government and operations. The
Caymans got major press during the 2008 Presidential
debates when Barack Obama slammed their tax haven
status, declaring “there‟s a building in the Cayman Islands
that houses supposedly 12,000 US-based corporations.
That‟s either the biggest building in the world or the biggest
tax scam in the world, and we know which one it is.”
Amenities: No income, capital gains, gift, or estate taxes on
individuals or offshore corporations.
Channel Islands
Investors with real estate-based investment trusts (or REITs)
in their portfolio will find the Channel Islands much to their
liking. A 2007 Telegraph article notes that UK-based REIT
investors are flocking to the Channel Islands (located between
the shores of France and England) where their investment
income is taxed at far lighter rates than the mainland UK. In
addition to REIT investors, the Channel Islands are also
apparently attracting their fair share of of e-commerce firms
and web companies (including UK retailer Play.com.)
Amenities: Low taxes on property investment income, low
incorporation costs.

3. Bermuda
What could be better than floating in these crystal-clear
waters and sipping an exotic drink with the knowledge that
your business profits are completely shielded from taxation?
These and other benefits help explain why entire companies
(such as Tyco) have moved their operations to Bermuda. And
while other tax havens are coming under intense legal
scrutiny, a 2002 Seattle PI article notes that “what these
American companies are doing in Bermuda appears to
be perfectly legal under the tax code.”
Amenities: While Bermuda does not currently offer much in
the way of tax benefits for individuals, businesses enjoy
a total exemption from income and capital gains taxes.
Dubai
Dubai is the tax haven of choice for those seeking to do
business with Russian companies and investors. It is also
home to a sizable pool of job talent and business contacts of
all kinds. According to one website, Dubai is blossoming into
“leading UAE commercial gateway to more than 1.5 billion
consumers in Asia, Africa, Europe, India and the Middle East.”
Amenities: No taxes of any kind, no tax audits, no
information shared with prying government agencies.
Lichtenstein
Lichtenstein is rumored to be one of history‟s earliest tax
havens, and it has a well-deserved reputation among tax
dodgers. Unfortunately, the success of evading taxes in
Lichtenstein may be leading to its own undoing!
Forbes recently reported that German spies have been

4. dispatched to the country to hunt down suspicious activity
from its own citizens.
Amenities: Very easy for foreigners to set up trusts (just use
a locally-hired attorney or nominee.)
British Virgin Islands
According to a Yahoo! News article, „More than 400,000
companies share a few local addresses” on the British Virgin
Islands, despite having no employees there and often evading
taxes in their native countries as well. Indeed, offshoring is so
integral to the local economy that it provides over half of all
government revenue.
Amenities: Business owners are attracted to the British Virgin
Islands for, among other things, the extremely low
incorporation and trust maintenance fees that the Islands
have to offer.
Andorra
Those who are looking for a “basic” tax shelter to avoid taxes
on personal income (versus sophisticated tax avoidance
schemes for hedge funds, corporations, or investment
vehicles) will find what they have been looking for in Andorra,
a small, landlocked country in Western Europe that is one of
only three countries remaining on OCED‟s blacklist of
“uncooperative” tax havens. While Andorra recently instituted
a small capital gains tax, the overall tax savings still far
outweighs it‟s liability.
Amenities: No personal income tax.

5. Switzerland
No list of tax havens would be complete without the one that
paved the way for them all: Switzerland. Famously utilized by
celebrities and rich people around the world, Switzerland is
best known for its “Swiss bank accounts”, which offer
anonymity and protection from prying eyes of all kinds.
An eye-opening article at Tax Justice USA describes how
celebrities hide their money in Switzerland. It‟s well worth a
look!
Amenities: High level of secrecy and confidentiality, no taxes
on money saved.
Gibraltar
The UK colony of Gibraltar has a proud and distinguished
history as a tax shelter and today, an online
gambling epicenter. But as with many successful tax havens,
Gibraltar‟s reputation is landing it in hot water with countries
who frown upon tax evasion. Most recently, Spain pleaded
with OCED to blacklist Gibraltar as “uncooperative”, as a
result of Spanish efforts to investigate financial corruption
and, allegations that Gibraltar “shelters corrupt businesses.”
The EU has also recently pressured the UK to stop offering
tax breaks to offshore companies based in Gibraltar, but this
yet too have resulted in any significant changes.
Amenities: Low gambling tax (1% on all winnings), low taxes
on offshore corporations

6. Belize
Not all countries are eager to advertise their coziness with tax
dodgers, but Belize has nothing to hide. According to Shelter
Offshore, Belize openly writes its laws with an eye toward tax
avoidance, further noting that Belize “learned from the
successes and mistakes of other tax havens around the world
and designed its legislation carefully so that it would become
THE most attractive tax haven globally.”
Amenities: Names of directors & shareholders of offshore
companies are concealed, very fast incorporation time (1-3
days)
Vanuatu
An important consideration in choosing a tax haven is whether
the country in question will share information with
governments or investigators. This is where the Micronesian
Pacific island of Vanuatu shines, as it shares no account
information whatsoever with law enforcement.
Amenities: Highest level of secrecy, no income, capital gains,
or inheritance taxes.
Greneda
Another tax haven with exceptional climate and cultural
appeal beyond its tax advantages is Greneda, a favorite of
banking trust investors around the world. But be careful! As
recently as 2001, Grenada was entangled in a scandal that
saw roughly $150 million stolen from some six thousand
offshore American depositors. It was also reported that while

7. many tax havens were beginning to clean up their act,
Grenada “has proved a particularly poor regulator.”
Amenities: Strict confidentiality of offshore corporations and
accounts, bank trust laws among the bestin existence.
Cyprus
Named in a recent survey as “one of the most attractive tax
havens in Europe”, Cyprus has almost unprecedented support
from the local civilian and business community regarding its
taxation practices. In all of Europe, no other country‟s citizens
are as happy with the level of taxation currently in effect than
those living in Cyprus. It is also described as an ideal country
in which to form an offshore corporation.
Amenities: Low corporate tax rate (10%), no capital gains
tax, no withholding tax on offshore companies