Errors of technology transfer No. 3 / “Errors of offshore” + APDATE
By helping to bring development and business to foreign markets, it is necessary to constantly observe the same mistakes, and as a result - failures and losses.
The losses are all the more offensive, given that these errors are repeatedly described and analyzed in dozens of open and publicly available sources.
Without in any way pretending to be new and exclusive, we will try to collect in this series of posts a dozen of the most frequent, obvious and relatively easily obviated errors, the elimination of which greatly increases the chances of success.
For convenience, error descriptions will sort by increasing their complexity.
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" Errors offshore "
INTRODUCTION
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For a proper understanding of the topic, it is necessary to make a small preface.
The fact is that in the Russian Federation under the " offshore " is often understood the poor island natives, who for two dollars are naked photographed with visiting tourists, and for glass beads, the juice of an agave is stamped on palm leaves.
This view was due to the fact that in many offshore zones the fees for registration and annual validation are less than the cost of a tourist trip to the same places, and the registration itself is supposedly not burdensome, allegedly does not require any materials and documents, and allegedly does not carries no consequences.
However, this has nothing to do with the real state of affairs.
Offshore zones are one of the main instruments of the global financial system, and there are far fewer such zones in the world than countries with nuclear weapons.
(in fact, she is generally alone, but this is a separate conversation)
The fact is that within the framework of Western public democracies, all state bodies and institutions are constantly under the sword of Damocles of possible lawsuits, parliamentary investigations and other similar troubles.
But effective work often requires instruments that are formally unrelated to the state, not accountable to it, and not controlled by anyone.
In addition to state bodies, there are other, and often much larger and more influential participants in the global financial system, with substantial capital, whose connection, and even more so, their dependence on a particular state, is rather relative.
These are transnational companies, non-public banking associations, sovereign and resplendent royal houses and other " oligarchs ".
They all need tools that are outside the framework of traditional state and even international control.
It was for the " basing " of such forces, which were formally independent and not controlled by anyone, and international offshore zones were created.
These zones are the main “ hubs ” of the world markets for currency, gold, oil, government treasury obligations, credit default swaps, secondary mortgages and reinsurance pools, large blocks of shares of the world's largest companies, commercial sea and passenger air fleets, etc. etc.
The total turnover of the Caribbean and Virgin offshore companies is much larger than the GDP of the United States, Europe and China combined.
Only one turnover of dollar derivatives, most of which go through offshore, pulls more than a quadrillion dollars ($ 1,000,000,000,000,000).
No natives, natives and glass beads there - no.
Moreover, in order to curb the efforts of real natives and natives in their desire to make themselves “the same” - the International Anti-Money Laundering Group (FATF) was specially created, which quickly and painfully heals any attempts to even look in this direction.
In a crisis, between shareholders - sometimes there are various discussions, and then events such as cancellation of anonymous accounts in Switzerland, the collective refusal of billionaires from US citizenship, or the move of Europe's largest bank to Hong Kong occur.
But this is all - purely family disassembly (family - often in the literal sense).
However, for a number of reasons, the procedure for entering and incorporating into these zones has been made open to any, even microscopic, third-party businesses.
Why should the shareholders, at quadrillion revolutions, allow foreign users and collect ridiculous $ 500 registration fee from them - it’s a long conversation, for this presentation it’s enough to know that the ease of entry is deceptive and fraught with serious dangers, but with accurate and proper work, even small Russian IT businesses may well be a little nip off this holiday of life.
It is only necessary to soberly and clearly understand the basic principles and not to make obvious mistakes.
Error number 1
The most common mistake of Russian technology entrepreneurs starting to use offshore is ... using offshore.
For external users, offshore is a complex, developed and as a result - not very cheap (if used correctly) tool of tax PLANNING and tax ADMINISTRATION.
Accordingly, the need, relevance and feasibility of its use requires the presence of two components:
1. Taxes are either already paid or they are supposed to be paid.
2. Taxes paid, or supposed to pay MUCH
If taxes are not supposed to be paid, a tool for planning and administering such a payment is at least not needed.
If taxes are supposed to be paid, but these taxes will not be very much, the cost of using a complex and developed instrument will substantially exceed the savings from its use.
The specificity of this error is that the offshore being pushed into the transaction is visible per kilometer, and the other side of the transaction immediately has a fair question why this offshore is needed there.
In all developed countries, the issues of taxes and laundering of criminal funds are very serious and sensitive, and any unusual or absurdity greatly complicates the deal.
When a small developer from the Russian Federation sells the utility to a US buyer for $ 10K, where the address often begins immediately with a two-letter state code, and the buyer sees the Cyprus contract and the account in the parex bank, it will immediately have a fair question what Cyprus is and who is a parex bank.
If the transaction is voluminous, multi-way and requires advanced structuring and tax optimization, the parties can always calmly and jointly think about its implementation and without any offshore companies choose the most optimal schemes for all participants.
Pushing off-shore-bought on all offshore cases - shows, first, disrespect for other parties to deals, and second, about the lack of understanding of the very meaning of offshore.
Error number 2
The second mistake in relation to the first one is a mirror one, and consists of not using offshore areas where it can and moreover is needed.
If an online toy is sold for $ 2, and most of the buyers pay for the purchase from their accounts in online payment systems, it doesn’t make sense to substitute your clear details and real data into the transaction.
Especially if such a sale is not entirely clear, for example, from the point of view of copyright, guarantees, restrictions, prohibitions, or subsequent taxes.
In this case, it is fully justified and even advisable to substitute for the transaction an anonymous dummy that was created or purchased offshore.
Error number 3
This error is the reverse side of error No. 2.
All offshore jurisdictions have agreements with all major countries on the exchange of information.
All payment transactions of all payment systems, as well as most electronic communications, are always and unconditionally documented and stored indefinitely.
In recent years, all previously disparate databases of disparate documents are combined into unified end-to-end accounting systems, and if an online email address was sold for $ 2, an email address was specified, which two years later was listed as a technical support address for the utility that was distributed from a specific The IP addresses, which after another two years were used to send an online payment through the bank-client system, with confirmation from the phone with the IMEI code, which is ......, all this data will be summarized linked together and to them - Sun will be added other data, including social networks profiles, SMS, name, etc.
And it’s not a fact that collecting all these data in one place, and even more so their correlation with each other (and this is done automatically) will bring great joy to the characters of the description.
This error is bypassed by the old Soviet rule " Worked - remove the workplace ."
Fortunately, the cost of the simplest phones, new sim-cards, Wi-Fi adapters, mailboxes, etc. in comparison with possible troubles - they are simply ridiculous.
There should be no fingerprints when using offshore.
Error number 4
This error is a continuation of error No. 3, it closes up a short series of errors, and approaches error No. 1 on the other hand, and already at a higher level.
Anonymous work with workaround for error number 3 is a short business.
The entrepreneur does not pay any taxes and fees, but firstly, he takes a lot of risks.
When buying a “ ready-made ” offshore, or offshore with personally unknown nominal operators-secretaries, and especially directors and shareholders, or offshore with bearer shares, his entire business can disappear instantly, therefore it is necessary to drain the cashier upon reaching the limit of $ 1K, which is far away not always convenient.
It's not about the insidiousness of Caribbean or Virgin Islanders, but that with the slightest suspicion, or even just irritation, they can simply arrest the funds in their accounts, and kindly ask them to send an exhaustive confirmation of the legality of the funds and operations, that if they are anonymous or fashionable in Russia buying ready-made offshore " turnkey " will mean the loss of all funds.
Moreover, despite all the ostentatious " anonymity ", for all offshore jurisdictions there is a " long hand rule " by which the authorities of any country can recognize any activity as organized specifically for tax cuts and recalculate taxes as they see fit.
In addition, as stated in the introduction, offshores are made solely for servicing super-large and often anonymous operations in global financial, foreign exchange, derivative, oil, gold, etc. markets.
If a visitor arriving on the islands establishes a quiet banking, investment, insurance, holding, financial, shipping or aviation business, especially legal businesses, he is assisted, since all these businesses bring small, guaranteed, and most importantly calm profits to the islands.
However, when dealers in socks from the Cherkizovsky market begin to abuse the kindness of their owners, and to drive thousands of $ 5 payments from stolen credit cards, the islanders' patience may come to an end, and they can “ turn off the light ” without any warning or even comment.
This is not a joke, but a harsh reality.
So firstly it is a risk.
And secondly, without paying any taxes, the entrepreneur often deprives himself of quite interesting opportunities.
As stated in the description of the error number 1, offshore, it is a developed tool for tax planning and tax administration.
However, very often, with detailed planning of expenses and profits, it turns out that a clean and legal payment of completely non-burdensome (especially in the initial period of the business) payments allows you to receive " much more valuable fur " than saving penny (especially in the first year) taxes.
This will make it possible to get closer to potential buyers as close as possible by opening an office in their state and city, and an account in their bank, which can greatly facilitate the conclusions of the first, most important transactions.
All legal payments can be attributed to the costs of doing business, which will then allow you to receive numerous benefits and deductions.
Phone bills, pizza checks, hotel bills, airline tickets, contracts, letters, faxes, DHL, FE receipts, souvenir pens, cigarette lighters, etc. can be used, which in the case of offshore will be impossible.
By legal incorporation, the company immediately receives local status, and as a result, access to all municipal and federal tenders and orders, and to all support programs, of which there are many.
The company immediately opens up ample opportunities for lending and attracting portfolio and venture capital investments, which is impossible in the case of offshore.
The company immediately acquires the possibility of real estate transactions, which is either impossible for an offshore, or as difficult as possible.
Naturally, with all loans, tenders, ventures and major deals, due diligence will be conducted, and all the dirty laundry described earlier in “ Error No. 3 ” will pop up and crawl out.
But if cleanliness and order in the workplace will be strictly observed, problems should not arise.
In addition to material benefits, legal incorporation carries other possibilities.
Let a very small, but working company immediately receive the possibility of visa support, which would otherwise cost much more, and a year after starting work, the owner of even a tiny business can initiate a permanent residence.
The staff can be decorated in hundreds of different ways that are optimal for each specific situation.
You can even try to get an SSN (Social Security Number), and practically free of charge to build up a medical insurance and a pension, which is much more real than from local Fursys.
At the same time, the range of possibilities is infinitely wide.
A foreign company can be a “single” (by itself), it can be a subsidiary of a Russian one, it can be a parent for a Russian one, it can be a Russian representative office, or, on the contrary, a Russian one - a foreign representative office in the Russian Federation (it’s not a legal entity, it doesn’t pay profit tax and property tax).
They may conduct joint activities with the division of profits and losses, etc.
For IT business, in which dependence on material equipment and real estate is minimal, any structuring and administration of a business can be done completely legally.
As a matter of fact, almost all well-known Russian IT companies work according to such schemes.
And if with such structuring and administration it is advisable to use elements of one or another offshore regimes, these elements can and should be used.
Offshore is a tool for tax planning and tax administration.
If this tool is used for its intended purpose, then it works perfectly.
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Previously:
- " Individualization errors "
- " Disclosure Errors "
Further:
- " Mistakes of authorship "
- " IP Security Error "
- " Errors of budget money "
- " Errors of double technologies "
- " Toxic Investment Mistakes "
- " License Errors "
- " Positioning errors "
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APDATE
Quite unexpectedly, the topic of offshore (in our opinion, for start-up companies is not so important) caused an increased interest, and a large number of questions.
It became clear from them that the main message of the material was not as clear and clear as it was originally supposed.
Let's try to clarify and clarify this topic.
Rejection of the population and entrepreneurs of the Russian Federation from inadequate local authorities and from the exercise by these authorities of their power functions to collect taxes and distribute collected money leads to mass exodus to the shadow, cash and offshore (which is understandable and fair), but beyond that - to transfer such an attitude to completely other innocent countries and territories, which is wrong and unreasonable.
In all generally accepted normal countries, taxes and fees are not a forced “ tribute ” to armed robbers, but market-based payment for services.
With fair pay and the requirement of getting paid.
And when a businessman from the Russian Federation chooses jurisdiction for his business according to the “ cheaper ” criterion, at best he gets exactly what he paid for.
In the real world, " freebies " - and there can not be.
A product with a guarantee costs more than a product without a guarantee, a product of a large and well-known brand costs more than a similar noname product, a product in a large shopping center costs more than exactly the same (?) Product with hands in a dark subway.
Half of the global banking business, the entire global insurance business, and the entire market for credit default swaps are all about buying / selling guarantees.
The basis of business is trust in a partner.
The less trust - the worse the terms of the transaction.
But in order to trust the partners with them, one should speak in a language they understand, and use generally accepted signs and symbols.
The emergence of offshore in the ordinary business is - flashing light.
This is a well-visible sign of " attention ."
The sign itself is neither good nor bad, it is just a sign.
The tragedy of many businessmen from the Russian Federation entering the foreign market is that they put it on, but at the same time they don’t see it and act as if it isn’t.
This causes surprise and bewilderment among others.
This is the main mistake.
In itself, the use of offshore companies is neither a bad nor a bad thing, it’s just a tool, but in what hands it is, skilled or crooked, that’s another question.
If from a site on an anonymous hosting, for $ 2 a broken software is sold, which legally costs $ 2,000, then the flashing light means " all claims for quality - stick yourself in the train. ..".
This sign is well seen by all, and is well understood.
But this is no offshore, it’s just a cesspool, or even a cesspool, but in general it’s just an impersonal account on webmoney or paypel.
And in this case - there can be no checks, real cards, telephone numbers or fixed IP.
About the " value " of offshore.
The size of the registration fee and the annual fee are those things that should never be worried under any circumstances.
It is like choosing a clinic by the fact that even or an odd number of steps has its entrance.
99.9% of the cost of real offshore is the cost of the local staff + rent.
Only two numbers matter - the total cost of ownership of the company, and the cumulative benefit of running a particular type of business with specific partners through the company.
Since the network is one, there are no miracles in it, what are the fees, so is the service.
About the size of the " taxes ".
He does not matter.
If in abstract Singapore 5%, and in no less abstract Hong Kong 15%, then this does not mean anything.
If 5 were definitely less than 15, everyone would have moved from Hong Kong to Singapore in a month, and the question would have been closed.
However, if such figures have been at least five years past, and no one even moved, then it’s not about them.
AvtoVAZ - is much cheaper than a Mercedes, well, so they are different, so they stand in different ways.
Only two numbers matter - the total cost of ownership of the company, and the cumulative benefit of running a particular type of business with specific partners through the company.
All the rest is the wiring of merchants offshore (which, by the way, have nothing to do with the zones themselves).
Now directly from the initial post.
It goes within the framework of the series “ Transfer Errors ”, and for this reason considers all phenomena (in this case, offshore companies) in the context of the positive / negative impact on this transfer.
We do this, we look only from this point of view, and pay attention only to errors and jambs in our direction.
If real estate professionals write on this topic, they will write from a different, probably different, position and practice.
If they write people involved in divorce and division of inheritance - the third.
Those who work on the line of emigration - with the fourth.
Those who take out people for treatment - from the fifth.
Etc.
And from the point of view of output of developments and businesses to the world market, this topic is clear and transparent.
To test the market and demand, and to collect $ 2 from the nose, anonymous, strictly anonymous garbage dumps, which then have to disappear without a trace, are quite acceptable.
And when it has already been decided to move forward, it is necessary to build clean and fluffy companies from scratch, and to build as close as possible to the first, most valuable clients, so that they simply cannot have any unnecessary questions.
When a building is being built, large concrete blocks or one monolithic slab should be laid in its foundation, then the stability of the structure is guaranteed.
If, as a foundation, bales of straw are being wrapped around - no need to be surprised when everything starts to falter and fall.
Everything that concerns taxes, and especially offshore companies, should be dealt with by the financial director of an already operating company, and even better, by its auditors.
Any other " entry " in this topic is an error that costs certain expenses and losses.
Legal incorporation of a small IT-company in the same US - costs less than an offshore company in Hong Kong or Singapore, and in addition to the lack of questions from customers provides a bunch of additional bonuses and opportunities.
A wonderful American proverb says, " If you don’t pay for a product or service, then you are the product ."
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“ I would like to hear more about the reasons why they can block funds in the account .”
Any doubts of the payment operator (bank clerk, or nominee secretary of the company) about the legality of the funds or payment purposes.
He decides for himself whether he has doubts or not.
Really - it could be anything, up to his desire to buy new sneakers.
He, unlike you, sees perfectly well that the offshore is left and anonymous, and no one will ever come to his island for this $ 1K, and the bosses will be far away.
The most common reason is to receive a request of any kind of Interpol, and the suspension of all operations similar to the one for which it was requested.
If the company is nominal (not anonymous), clean, etc., then it has its own real secretary on the island, and no one will touch it.
" It is planned to withdraw to the account offshore ~ $ 30-100k for several months with pieces of $ 7k each. What is better to take to insure ?"
Insure - from what?
If the company is anonymous, you can immediately forget about this money.
If it is not anonymous, then it is not clear what then it is planned to do with this money.
If they are supposed to be transferred to a Christian shelter in one payment, OK. - can slip.
If not to the shelter, it is unclear how the recipient will explain from whom and for what he was sent such a lot of money.
And he will have to explain this first of all before his bank.
$ 100K is very serious money.
Any companies registered in the United States are required to report on all, without exception, accounts in any banks, if more than $ 10K has accumulated there.
We need to communicate with the final recipient, and ask him if he can accept such a payment.
" But could you please give more specific numbers (taxes) for which it makes sense to open an offshore. It is also interesting: how much does it cost to spend on supporting an offshore so that everyone is happy ?"
Everything is elementary.
You are called by the financial director of your strictly white foreign company, or even better, by an auditor, and says, " but not to do it offshore ."
All other options are direct losses.
" Over the sea, the heifer is a sheepskin, and the ruble is transport. "
Administration of legal offshore and transaction costs for payments and bookkeeping (do you know how much an accountant in Hong Kong costs?) Eat up any savings.
" Offshore should always be selected for a specific business ."
Not even for a specific business, but for specific personal plans for the next at least 10 years.
Offshore may not be required for your particular current business, but there may be some controversial issues with your wife, or making a large acquisition, or a desire to transfer an inheritance not through a torn registry of a local notary flies, especially if the inheritance is outside the Russian Federation.
Or, looking at the general situation - thoughts may appear to receive a pension from other sources.
Etc. etc.
It is a powerful and advanced tool that can be used in different ways.
Mythical penny taxes are not the most important thing.
" It turns out that for off-line projects for small online projects, it makes no sense at all. In any case, you will have to pay% of income (20% on average). Am I right in my reasoning ?"
Taxes are paid not from exacerbated honesty, but for legalization of funds, that is, for the possibility of their subsequent legal use.
For " small online projects " this is not relevant.
If you are making an anonymous trash can, then you don’t pay anything and nothing but registration fees.
Collect $ 2 from the nose, $ 1K limit - make up your mind.
Although it is easier without offshore - just through anonymous accounts in payment systems.
“X would clarify, 1k is how I understand the cost of supporting the company itself - per month or per year? And also what these funds are leaving for (salary to the “director”, an accountant who hands over papers for us, etc.) . ”
This is depending on what area, what company, what turnover, what service is provided.
Maybe a year, maybe a month.
Maybe a week.
99.9% of the cost of offshore is the cost of the local staff + rent.
Calculate the amount of work needed, multiply by the average salary in that place, estimate the required rent, and get an approximate order of numbers.
" I do not agree that you do not need to use offshore "
This was not mentioned.
And can and should be.
You just need to apply correctly and correctly.
" Offshore is not always useful, and it is better to work clean through a Western company ."
Of course not always.
This is just a tool.
Outright through its Western company, it is profitable to work only with the volume of recouping costs.
" what to do if there is some misunderstanding on the part of the software business grants regarding licenses, and the payments from end users themselves will be in the amount of $ 2..5 ."
All such penny payments - it is better to do on anonymous accounts.
Especially, if there is a misunderstanding.
"Do we understand correctly that even if the owner of a business is understandable, there will be no personal lawsuit against him ? "
A personal lawsuit costs money.
If there is no prospect of receiving reimbursement for court costs, there will be no court.
But funds in the accounts can be arrested and in order to return them, they will have to go to court themselves.
And in a personal direction, they can, for example, not issue a visa, or cancel it upon arrival.
"The author confuses the lack of taxes when registering on island territories like Seyshel, Belize, etc. when operating outside these territories (the same mythical and real 0%) with tax optimization . "
No, it does not confuse.
Optimization - consists in accounting for all expenses, including taxes, and registration fees, and the actual costs of optimization itself (the hour of work of auditors and tax attorneys - costs more than the registration fee, and normal advice on opening and using an offshore company - costs 2- 3 times more expensive than the very opening of such a company).
Not to mention the correction of errors and the analysis of disputable situations, and even more so the courts with the tax authorities.
Regarding " activities outside these territories " the question is difficult.
The practice of applying the rules of " long arm " and " collecting at the source " shows that here you can get into unpleasant situations.
Unpleasant doubly in the case of the accrual of fines, and triple - in the case of claims not Belize offshore, and the real company partner.
We are not engaged in the sale of offshore companies, moreover, we are not engaged in tax optimization, this is not our area.
We are engaged in the sale of developments and businesses, and as part of this activity, we analyze stocks and mistakes, and hinder sales.
And practice shows that in 99.99% no offshore companies are needed for sale.
If they exist, and they are spent on their maintenance from $ 10K per year (not taxes, but net expenses), then such an offshore business does not interfere with sales (it doesn’t help, though), but if it was spent less, sales may not be available at all.
"the main question is which bank your money will be in "
This is just - does not matter.
They may lie generally nalom in a suitcase under the bed.
The most important question is to what account customers will pay you, and from which you will pay partners.
Therefore, it was written that it is optimal to have a bank account of the main / first client so that the payment does not even leave the bank.
If your account in the left bank, no normal partner will not transfer $ 1 there.
"It is much easier to overcome offshore and it will be absolutely legal ."
An anonymous offshore is easier, but you don’t need to squeeze it out, just print and signatures and that's it.
Legal clean is already more difficult, you need to steal keys and passwords.
Although the local island secretary can crank everything and without keys.
It all depends on whom you fall for.
After all, having learned that you have not accumulated $ 100K on your account, or you have hung up a shopping center in an offshore Russian Federation, your offshore - you can simply file a lawsuit that you are from a distant Russian Federation - you can’t quickly and lossless to fight off, or repulse which will cost you $ 150K.
Therefore, it is said that cash in such places is drained at a limit of $ 1K.
Anything higher is at your own risk.
" you need to choose a jurisdiction with a minimum corporate tax / dividend tax, for example, Latvia with its 15% / 10%, then any bank will be happy to open an account, your legal entity will be white and fluffy, and your sleep will be calm "
As an option. (but not for working with the USA)
Latvia is not an offshore, but a member of the EU, with all the rattles due.
And it is close and all the Russian language.
When working with Europe - quite convenient.
Although companies in Cologne, or Paris - will cause even less questions.
" But to pay or not to pay taxes at your place of residence (as a physical person) is a completely different story. "
Repatriating profits is really a completely separate conversation, but if the work goes not through an anonymous offshore company, but through a white company, such a white company allows greatly facilitate the use of honestly earned funds.
"Many companies offer to issue an offshore on a front person, while the owner of an offshore is issued a card and access to Internet banking. Is it worthwhile to consider this option for offshore “one-day” or is this option identical to the case with an anonymous account? “A
one-day offshore or anonymous account is yours, and nobody knows about them except you and the operator on the islands (well, the one who helped you to do them).
And the corporate card is a communal one when someone does offshore one-day, and then on it - gets a hundred bills and cards, or sometimes even one bill, and a hundred sub-accounts. (By buying an unnecessary offshore, you yourself can do it and pay for it)
For a revolving transfer of payments for $ 10 - $ 50, this is quite a normal option. They always die suddenly.
"Here it would be specifics ... "
At the present time it is quite simple.
Gossip a list of the main so-called" offshore "zones, put them on the map, check the history of the creation of these zones, enough circumstances to get them independence.
And the whole picture will appear in front of you which the sun never sets before (although on the other hand it is the presence of a single host that ensures the absence of competition between zones (some merchant fleets graze, others diamonds, third banks, etc., none of each other leads the ), and most importantly - clear and b Uninterrupted operation of the entire system 24/7/365)
Therefore, the question of anonymity is a binary, or completely impersonal trash with a limit of $ 1K, or - a completely clean and fluffy structure for real full names.
Medium - does not happen.
In the global market, everyone knows this very well, and they expect the same knowledge from their partners.
The losses are all the more offensive, given that these errors are repeatedly described and analyzed in dozens of open and publicly available sources.
Without in any way pretending to be new and exclusive, we will try to collect in this series of posts a dozen of the most frequent, obvious and relatively easily obviated errors, the elimination of which greatly increases the chances of success.
For convenience, error descriptions will sort by increasing their complexity.
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" Errors offshore "
INTRODUCTION
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For a proper understanding of the topic, it is necessary to make a small preface.
The fact is that in the Russian Federation under the " offshore " is often understood the poor island natives, who for two dollars are naked photographed with visiting tourists, and for glass beads, the juice of an agave is stamped on palm leaves.
This view was due to the fact that in many offshore zones the fees for registration and annual validation are less than the cost of a tourist trip to the same places, and the registration itself is supposedly not burdensome, allegedly does not require any materials and documents, and allegedly does not carries no consequences.
However, this has nothing to do with the real state of affairs.
Offshore zones are one of the main instruments of the global financial system, and there are far fewer such zones in the world than countries with nuclear weapons.
(in fact, she is generally alone, but this is a separate conversation)
The fact is that within the framework of Western public democracies, all state bodies and institutions are constantly under the sword of Damocles of possible lawsuits, parliamentary investigations and other similar troubles.
But effective work often requires instruments that are formally unrelated to the state, not accountable to it, and not controlled by anyone.
In addition to state bodies, there are other, and often much larger and more influential participants in the global financial system, with substantial capital, whose connection, and even more so, their dependence on a particular state, is rather relative.
These are transnational companies, non-public banking associations, sovereign and resplendent royal houses and other " oligarchs ".
They all need tools that are outside the framework of traditional state and even international control.
It was for the " basing " of such forces, which were formally independent and not controlled by anyone, and international offshore zones were created.
These zones are the main “ hubs ” of the world markets for currency, gold, oil, government treasury obligations, credit default swaps, secondary mortgages and reinsurance pools, large blocks of shares of the world's largest companies, commercial sea and passenger air fleets, etc. etc.
The total turnover of the Caribbean and Virgin offshore companies is much larger than the GDP of the United States, Europe and China combined.
Only one turnover of dollar derivatives, most of which go through offshore, pulls more than a quadrillion dollars ($ 1,000,000,000,000,000).
No natives, natives and glass beads there - no.
Moreover, in order to curb the efforts of real natives and natives in their desire to make themselves “the same” - the International Anti-Money Laundering Group (FATF) was specially created, which quickly and painfully heals any attempts to even look in this direction.
In a crisis, between shareholders - sometimes there are various discussions, and then events such as cancellation of anonymous accounts in Switzerland, the collective refusal of billionaires from US citizenship, or the move of Europe's largest bank to Hong Kong occur.
But this is all - purely family disassembly (family - often in the literal sense).
However, for a number of reasons, the procedure for entering and incorporating into these zones has been made open to any, even microscopic, third-party businesses.
Why should the shareholders, at quadrillion revolutions, allow foreign users and collect ridiculous $ 500 registration fee from them - it’s a long conversation, for this presentation it’s enough to know that the ease of entry is deceptive and fraught with serious dangers, but with accurate and proper work, even small Russian IT businesses may well be a little nip off this holiday of life.
It is only necessary to soberly and clearly understand the basic principles and not to make obvious mistakes.
Error number 1
The most common mistake of Russian technology entrepreneurs starting to use offshore is ... using offshore.
For external users, offshore is a complex, developed and as a result - not very cheap (if used correctly) tool of tax PLANNING and tax ADMINISTRATION.
Accordingly, the need, relevance and feasibility of its use requires the presence of two components:
1. Taxes are either already paid or they are supposed to be paid.
2. Taxes paid, or supposed to pay MUCH
If taxes are not supposed to be paid, a tool for planning and administering such a payment is at least not needed.
If taxes are supposed to be paid, but these taxes will not be very much, the cost of using a complex and developed instrument will substantially exceed the savings from its use.
The specificity of this error is that the offshore being pushed into the transaction is visible per kilometer, and the other side of the transaction immediately has a fair question why this offshore is needed there.
In all developed countries, the issues of taxes and laundering of criminal funds are very serious and sensitive, and any unusual or absurdity greatly complicates the deal.
When a small developer from the Russian Federation sells the utility to a US buyer for $ 10K, where the address often begins immediately with a two-letter state code, and the buyer sees the Cyprus contract and the account in the parex bank, it will immediately have a fair question what Cyprus is and who is a parex bank.
If the transaction is voluminous, multi-way and requires advanced structuring and tax optimization, the parties can always calmly and jointly think about its implementation and without any offshore companies choose the most optimal schemes for all participants.
Pushing off-shore-bought on all offshore cases - shows, first, disrespect for other parties to deals, and second, about the lack of understanding of the very meaning of offshore.
Error number 2
The second mistake in relation to the first one is a mirror one, and consists of not using offshore areas where it can and moreover is needed.
If an online toy is sold for $ 2, and most of the buyers pay for the purchase from their accounts in online payment systems, it doesn’t make sense to substitute your clear details and real data into the transaction.
Especially if such a sale is not entirely clear, for example, from the point of view of copyright, guarantees, restrictions, prohibitions, or subsequent taxes.
In this case, it is fully justified and even advisable to substitute for the transaction an anonymous dummy that was created or purchased offshore.
Error number 3
This error is the reverse side of error No. 2.
All offshore jurisdictions have agreements with all major countries on the exchange of information.
All payment transactions of all payment systems, as well as most electronic communications, are always and unconditionally documented and stored indefinitely.
In recent years, all previously disparate databases of disparate documents are combined into unified end-to-end accounting systems, and if an online email address was sold for $ 2, an email address was specified, which two years later was listed as a technical support address for the utility that was distributed from a specific The IP addresses, which after another two years were used to send an online payment through the bank-client system, with confirmation from the phone with the IMEI code, which is ......, all this data will be summarized linked together and to them - Sun will be added other data, including social networks profiles, SMS, name, etc.
And it’s not a fact that collecting all these data in one place, and even more so their correlation with each other (and this is done automatically) will bring great joy to the characters of the description.
This error is bypassed by the old Soviet rule " Worked - remove the workplace ."
Fortunately, the cost of the simplest phones, new sim-cards, Wi-Fi adapters, mailboxes, etc. in comparison with possible troubles - they are simply ridiculous.
There should be no fingerprints when using offshore.
Error number 4
This error is a continuation of error No. 3, it closes up a short series of errors, and approaches error No. 1 on the other hand, and already at a higher level.
Anonymous work with workaround for error number 3 is a short business.
The entrepreneur does not pay any taxes and fees, but firstly, he takes a lot of risks.
When buying a “ ready-made ” offshore, or offshore with personally unknown nominal operators-secretaries, and especially directors and shareholders, or offshore with bearer shares, his entire business can disappear instantly, therefore it is necessary to drain the cashier upon reaching the limit of $ 1K, which is far away not always convenient.
It's not about the insidiousness of Caribbean or Virgin Islanders, but that with the slightest suspicion, or even just irritation, they can simply arrest the funds in their accounts, and kindly ask them to send an exhaustive confirmation of the legality of the funds and operations, that if they are anonymous or fashionable in Russia buying ready-made offshore " turnkey " will mean the loss of all funds.
Moreover, despite all the ostentatious " anonymity ", for all offshore jurisdictions there is a " long hand rule " by which the authorities of any country can recognize any activity as organized specifically for tax cuts and recalculate taxes as they see fit.
In addition, as stated in the introduction, offshores are made solely for servicing super-large and often anonymous operations in global financial, foreign exchange, derivative, oil, gold, etc. markets.
If a visitor arriving on the islands establishes a quiet banking, investment, insurance, holding, financial, shipping or aviation business, especially legal businesses, he is assisted, since all these businesses bring small, guaranteed, and most importantly calm profits to the islands.
However, when dealers in socks from the Cherkizovsky market begin to abuse the kindness of their owners, and to drive thousands of $ 5 payments from stolen credit cards, the islanders' patience may come to an end, and they can “ turn off the light ” without any warning or even comment.
This is not a joke, but a harsh reality.
So firstly it is a risk.
And secondly, without paying any taxes, the entrepreneur often deprives himself of quite interesting opportunities.
As stated in the description of the error number 1, offshore, it is a developed tool for tax planning and tax administration.
However, very often, with detailed planning of expenses and profits, it turns out that a clean and legal payment of completely non-burdensome (especially in the initial period of the business) payments allows you to receive " much more valuable fur " than saving penny (especially in the first year) taxes.
This will make it possible to get closer to potential buyers as close as possible by opening an office in their state and city, and an account in their bank, which can greatly facilitate the conclusions of the first, most important transactions.
All legal payments can be attributed to the costs of doing business, which will then allow you to receive numerous benefits and deductions.
Phone bills, pizza checks, hotel bills, airline tickets, contracts, letters, faxes, DHL, FE receipts, souvenir pens, cigarette lighters, etc. can be used, which in the case of offshore will be impossible.
By legal incorporation, the company immediately receives local status, and as a result, access to all municipal and federal tenders and orders, and to all support programs, of which there are many.
The company immediately opens up ample opportunities for lending and attracting portfolio and venture capital investments, which is impossible in the case of offshore.
The company immediately acquires the possibility of real estate transactions, which is either impossible for an offshore, or as difficult as possible.
Naturally, with all loans, tenders, ventures and major deals, due diligence will be conducted, and all the dirty laundry described earlier in “ Error No. 3 ” will pop up and crawl out.
But if cleanliness and order in the workplace will be strictly observed, problems should not arise.
In addition to material benefits, legal incorporation carries other possibilities.
Let a very small, but working company immediately receive the possibility of visa support, which would otherwise cost much more, and a year after starting work, the owner of even a tiny business can initiate a permanent residence.
The staff can be decorated in hundreds of different ways that are optimal for each specific situation.
You can even try to get an SSN (Social Security Number), and practically free of charge to build up a medical insurance and a pension, which is much more real than from local Fursys.
At the same time, the range of possibilities is infinitely wide.
A foreign company can be a “single” (by itself), it can be a subsidiary of a Russian one, it can be a parent for a Russian one, it can be a Russian representative office, or, on the contrary, a Russian one - a foreign representative office in the Russian Federation (it’s not a legal entity, it doesn’t pay profit tax and property tax).
They may conduct joint activities with the division of profits and losses, etc.
For IT business, in which dependence on material equipment and real estate is minimal, any structuring and administration of a business can be done completely legally.
As a matter of fact, almost all well-known Russian IT companies work according to such schemes.
And if with such structuring and administration it is advisable to use elements of one or another offshore regimes, these elements can and should be used.
Offshore is a tool for tax planning and tax administration.
If this tool is used for its intended purpose, then it works perfectly.
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Previously:
- " Individualization errors "
- " Disclosure Errors "
Further:
- " Mistakes of authorship "
- " IP Security Error "
- " Errors of budget money "
- " Errors of double technologies "
- " Toxic Investment Mistakes "
- " License Errors "
- " Positioning errors "
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APDATE
Quite unexpectedly, the topic of offshore (in our opinion, for start-up companies is not so important) caused an increased interest, and a large number of questions.
It became clear from them that the main message of the material was not as clear and clear as it was originally supposed.
Let's try to clarify and clarify this topic.
Rejection of the population and entrepreneurs of the Russian Federation from inadequate local authorities and from the exercise by these authorities of their power functions to collect taxes and distribute collected money leads to mass exodus to the shadow, cash and offshore (which is understandable and fair), but beyond that - to transfer such an attitude to completely other innocent countries and territories, which is wrong and unreasonable.
In all generally accepted normal countries, taxes and fees are not a forced “ tribute ” to armed robbers, but market-based payment for services.
With fair pay and the requirement of getting paid.
And when a businessman from the Russian Federation chooses jurisdiction for his business according to the “ cheaper ” criterion, at best he gets exactly what he paid for.
In the real world, " freebies " - and there can not be.
A product with a guarantee costs more than a product without a guarantee, a product of a large and well-known brand costs more than a similar noname product, a product in a large shopping center costs more than exactly the same (?) Product with hands in a dark subway.
Half of the global banking business, the entire global insurance business, and the entire market for credit default swaps are all about buying / selling guarantees.
The basis of business is trust in a partner.
The less trust - the worse the terms of the transaction.
But in order to trust the partners with them, one should speak in a language they understand, and use generally accepted signs and symbols.
The emergence of offshore in the ordinary business is - flashing light.
This is a well-visible sign of " attention ."
The sign itself is neither good nor bad, it is just a sign.
The tragedy of many businessmen from the Russian Federation entering the foreign market is that they put it on, but at the same time they don’t see it and act as if it isn’t.
This causes surprise and bewilderment among others.
This is the main mistake.
In itself, the use of offshore companies is neither a bad nor a bad thing, it’s just a tool, but in what hands it is, skilled or crooked, that’s another question.
If from a site on an anonymous hosting, for $ 2 a broken software is sold, which legally costs $ 2,000, then the flashing light means " all claims for quality - stick yourself in the train. ..".
This sign is well seen by all, and is well understood.
But this is no offshore, it’s just a cesspool, or even a cesspool, but in general it’s just an impersonal account on webmoney or paypel.
And in this case - there can be no checks, real cards, telephone numbers or fixed IP.
About the " value " of offshore.
The size of the registration fee and the annual fee are those things that should never be worried under any circumstances.
It is like choosing a clinic by the fact that even or an odd number of steps has its entrance.
99.9% of the cost of real offshore is the cost of the local staff + rent.
Only two numbers matter - the total cost of ownership of the company, and the cumulative benefit of running a particular type of business with specific partners through the company.
Since the network is one, there are no miracles in it, what are the fees, so is the service.
About the size of the " taxes ".
He does not matter.
If in abstract Singapore 5%, and in no less abstract Hong Kong 15%, then this does not mean anything.
If 5 were definitely less than 15, everyone would have moved from Hong Kong to Singapore in a month, and the question would have been closed.
However, if such figures have been at least five years past, and no one even moved, then it’s not about them.
AvtoVAZ - is much cheaper than a Mercedes, well, so they are different, so they stand in different ways.
Only two numbers matter - the total cost of ownership of the company, and the cumulative benefit of running a particular type of business with specific partners through the company.
All the rest is the wiring of merchants offshore (which, by the way, have nothing to do with the zones themselves).
Now directly from the initial post.
It goes within the framework of the series “ Transfer Errors ”, and for this reason considers all phenomena (in this case, offshore companies) in the context of the positive / negative impact on this transfer.
We do this, we look only from this point of view, and pay attention only to errors and jambs in our direction.
If real estate professionals write on this topic, they will write from a different, probably different, position and practice.
If they write people involved in divorce and division of inheritance - the third.
Those who work on the line of emigration - with the fourth.
Those who take out people for treatment - from the fifth.
Etc.
And from the point of view of output of developments and businesses to the world market, this topic is clear and transparent.
To test the market and demand, and to collect $ 2 from the nose, anonymous, strictly anonymous garbage dumps, which then have to disappear without a trace, are quite acceptable.
And when it has already been decided to move forward, it is necessary to build clean and fluffy companies from scratch, and to build as close as possible to the first, most valuable clients, so that they simply cannot have any unnecessary questions.
When a building is being built, large concrete blocks or one monolithic slab should be laid in its foundation, then the stability of the structure is guaranteed.
If, as a foundation, bales of straw are being wrapped around - no need to be surprised when everything starts to falter and fall.
Everything that concerns taxes, and especially offshore companies, should be dealt with by the financial director of an already operating company, and even better, by its auditors.
Any other " entry " in this topic is an error that costs certain expenses and losses.
Legal incorporation of a small IT-company in the same US - costs less than an offshore company in Hong Kong or Singapore, and in addition to the lack of questions from customers provides a bunch of additional bonuses and opportunities.
A wonderful American proverb says, " If you don’t pay for a product or service, then you are the product ."
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“ I would like to hear more about the reasons why they can block funds in the account .”
Any doubts of the payment operator (bank clerk, or nominee secretary of the company) about the legality of the funds or payment purposes.
He decides for himself whether he has doubts or not.
Really - it could be anything, up to his desire to buy new sneakers.
He, unlike you, sees perfectly well that the offshore is left and anonymous, and no one will ever come to his island for this $ 1K, and the bosses will be far away.
The most common reason is to receive a request of any kind of Interpol, and the suspension of all operations similar to the one for which it was requested.
If the company is nominal (not anonymous), clean, etc., then it has its own real secretary on the island, and no one will touch it.
" It is planned to withdraw to the account offshore ~ $ 30-100k for several months with pieces of $ 7k each. What is better to take to insure ?"
Insure - from what?
If the company is anonymous, you can immediately forget about this money.
If it is not anonymous, then it is not clear what then it is planned to do with this money.
If they are supposed to be transferred to a Christian shelter in one payment, OK. - can slip.
If not to the shelter, it is unclear how the recipient will explain from whom and for what he was sent such a lot of money.
And he will have to explain this first of all before his bank.
$ 100K is very serious money.
Any companies registered in the United States are required to report on all, without exception, accounts in any banks, if more than $ 10K has accumulated there.
We need to communicate with the final recipient, and ask him if he can accept such a payment.
" But could you please give more specific numbers (taxes) for which it makes sense to open an offshore. It is also interesting: how much does it cost to spend on supporting an offshore so that everyone is happy ?"
Everything is elementary.
You are called by the financial director of your strictly white foreign company, or even better, by an auditor, and says, " but not to do it offshore ."
All other options are direct losses.
" Over the sea, the heifer is a sheepskin, and the ruble is transport. "
Administration of legal offshore and transaction costs for payments and bookkeeping (do you know how much an accountant in Hong Kong costs?) Eat up any savings.
" Offshore should always be selected for a specific business ."
Not even for a specific business, but for specific personal plans for the next at least 10 years.
Offshore may not be required for your particular current business, but there may be some controversial issues with your wife, or making a large acquisition, or a desire to transfer an inheritance not through a torn registry of a local notary flies, especially if the inheritance is outside the Russian Federation.
Or, looking at the general situation - thoughts may appear to receive a pension from other sources.
Etc. etc.
It is a powerful and advanced tool that can be used in different ways.
Mythical penny taxes are not the most important thing.
" It turns out that for off-line projects for small online projects, it makes no sense at all. In any case, you will have to pay% of income (20% on average). Am I right in my reasoning ?"
Taxes are paid not from exacerbated honesty, but for legalization of funds, that is, for the possibility of their subsequent legal use.
For " small online projects " this is not relevant.
If you are making an anonymous trash can, then you don’t pay anything and nothing but registration fees.
Collect $ 2 from the nose, $ 1K limit - make up your mind.
Although it is easier without offshore - just through anonymous accounts in payment systems.
“X would clarify, 1k is how I understand the cost of supporting the company itself - per month or per year? And also what these funds are leaving for (salary to the “director”, an accountant who hands over papers for us, etc.) . ”
This is depending on what area, what company, what turnover, what service is provided.
Maybe a year, maybe a month.
Maybe a week.
99.9% of the cost of offshore is the cost of the local staff + rent.
Calculate the amount of work needed, multiply by the average salary in that place, estimate the required rent, and get an approximate order of numbers.
" I do not agree that you do not need to use offshore "
This was not mentioned.
And can and should be.
You just need to apply correctly and correctly.
" Offshore is not always useful, and it is better to work clean through a Western company ."
Of course not always.
This is just a tool.
Outright through its Western company, it is profitable to work only with the volume of recouping costs.
" what to do if there is some misunderstanding on the part of the software business grants regarding licenses, and the payments from end users themselves will be in the amount of $ 2..5 ."
All such penny payments - it is better to do on anonymous accounts.
Especially, if there is a misunderstanding.
"Do we understand correctly that even if the owner of a business is understandable, there will be no personal lawsuit against him ? "
A personal lawsuit costs money.
If there is no prospect of receiving reimbursement for court costs, there will be no court.
But funds in the accounts can be arrested and in order to return them, they will have to go to court themselves.
And in a personal direction, they can, for example, not issue a visa, or cancel it upon arrival.
"The author confuses the lack of taxes when registering on island territories like Seyshel, Belize, etc. when operating outside these territories (the same mythical and real 0%) with tax optimization . "
No, it does not confuse.
Optimization - consists in accounting for all expenses, including taxes, and registration fees, and the actual costs of optimization itself (the hour of work of auditors and tax attorneys - costs more than the registration fee, and normal advice on opening and using an offshore company - costs 2- 3 times more expensive than the very opening of such a company).
Not to mention the correction of errors and the analysis of disputable situations, and even more so the courts with the tax authorities.
Regarding " activities outside these territories " the question is difficult.
The practice of applying the rules of " long arm " and " collecting at the source " shows that here you can get into unpleasant situations.
Unpleasant doubly in the case of the accrual of fines, and triple - in the case of claims not Belize offshore, and the real company partner.
We are not engaged in the sale of offshore companies, moreover, we are not engaged in tax optimization, this is not our area.
We are engaged in the sale of developments and businesses, and as part of this activity, we analyze stocks and mistakes, and hinder sales.
And practice shows that in 99.99% no offshore companies are needed for sale.
If they exist, and they are spent on their maintenance from $ 10K per year (not taxes, but net expenses), then such an offshore business does not interfere with sales (it doesn’t help, though), but if it was spent less, sales may not be available at all.
"the main question is which bank your money will be in "
This is just - does not matter.
They may lie generally nalom in a suitcase under the bed.
The most important question is to what account customers will pay you, and from which you will pay partners.
Therefore, it was written that it is optimal to have a bank account of the main / first client so that the payment does not even leave the bank.
If your account in the left bank, no normal partner will not transfer $ 1 there.
"It is much easier to overcome offshore and it will be absolutely legal ."
An anonymous offshore is easier, but you don’t need to squeeze it out, just print and signatures and that's it.
Legal clean is already more difficult, you need to steal keys and passwords.
Although the local island secretary can crank everything and without keys.
It all depends on whom you fall for.
After all, having learned that you have not accumulated $ 100K on your account, or you have hung up a shopping center in an offshore Russian Federation, your offshore - you can simply file a lawsuit that you are from a distant Russian Federation - you can’t quickly and lossless to fight off, or repulse which will cost you $ 150K.
Therefore, it is said that cash in such places is drained at a limit of $ 1K.
Anything higher is at your own risk.
" you need to choose a jurisdiction with a minimum corporate tax / dividend tax, for example, Latvia with its 15% / 10%, then any bank will be happy to open an account, your legal entity will be white and fluffy, and your sleep will be calm "
As an option. (but not for working with the USA)
Latvia is not an offshore, but a member of the EU, with all the rattles due.
And it is close and all the Russian language.
When working with Europe - quite convenient.
Although companies in Cologne, or Paris - will cause even less questions.
" But to pay or not to pay taxes at your place of residence (as a physical person) is a completely different story. "
Repatriating profits is really a completely separate conversation, but if the work goes not through an anonymous offshore company, but through a white company, such a white company allows greatly facilitate the use of honestly earned funds.
"Many companies offer to issue an offshore on a front person, while the owner of an offshore is issued a card and access to Internet banking. Is it worthwhile to consider this option for offshore “one-day” or is this option identical to the case with an anonymous account? “A
one-day offshore or anonymous account is yours, and nobody knows about them except you and the operator on the islands (well, the one who helped you to do them).
And the corporate card is a communal one when someone does offshore one-day, and then on it - gets a hundred bills and cards, or sometimes even one bill, and a hundred sub-accounts. (By buying an unnecessary offshore, you yourself can do it and pay for it)
For a revolving transfer of payments for $ 10 - $ 50, this is quite a normal option. They always die suddenly.
"Here it would be specifics ... "
At the present time it is quite simple.
Gossip a list of the main so-called" offshore "zones, put them on the map, check the history of the creation of these zones, enough circumstances to get them independence.
And the whole picture will appear in front of you which the sun never sets before (although on the other hand it is the presence of a single host that ensures the absence of competition between zones (some merchant fleets graze, others diamonds, third banks, etc., none of each other leads the ), and most importantly - clear and b Uninterrupted operation of the entire system 24/7/365)
Therefore, the question of anonymity is a binary, or completely impersonal trash with a limit of $ 1K, or - a completely clean and fluffy structure for real full names.
Medium - does not happen.
In the global market, everyone knows this very well, and they expect the same knowledge from their partners.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/143482/
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