Is this true? You can live in the Europe for years without owing them taxes?

[khinkali]

I don't know about Spain but I'll guess on some of this for UK:
1. If you're present in the UK 46 to 182 days, from April 6 to April 5 the following year, then UK family, employment, UK presence in previous 2 years and available accommodation are taken into account to decide UK tax residence. I'm sure there are some situations I haven't considered, but offshore passive income to a non-UK tax resident shouldn't normally give you a UK tax bill. That's not to say your country of citizenship, ordinary residence or place of business won't tax you.
2. Likewise for offshore capital gains. There is non-resident CGT for UK land or property, but I can't see that bothering you.
3. If you're continuing the crypto trading you've already been doing, while visiting the UK, then I have no idea how strict they will be. To quote Deloitte, 'Business traveller compliance is in the top three "hot topics" for the UK tax authorities in terms of compliance and risk management'. Of course they're talking about multinationals with big bureaucratic footprints who are already on the tax authorities' radars.

I have the same question regarding other countries. One big concern is that these rules can change fast, and their interpretation and enforcement can change even faster. Also you need to consider where you pass KYC/AML for exchanges and where you bank if you handle fiat (I don't).

My plan was to stay in different EU and South American countries during the year.. It looks like I have to talk to local tax specialist in each one to be 100% safe :/

Yep. I don't buy the idea that it's impossible to be a nomad or that you always have at least one tax residency, but I do accept that sometimes you do, and that it can be a lot easier if you do.

 

[clemens]

Only possible solution is to relocate to a country where the tax fit your expectations.

Yep. I don't buy the idea that it's impossible to be a nomad or that you always have at least one tax residency, but I do accept that sometimes you do, and that it can be a lot easier if you do.

The 180 day rule has been there for ever I feel. Nothing new to it and nothing unusual but I believe it only apply for a fraction of people around here and that's the main issue. You can write as much as you want here and ask as many questions as you like if you don't have anything better to do. Fact is, you need to have hard evidence to proof that you are never in one place longer then 180 days!

So best would be to relocate to a country or area where you don't pay tax or only a small percentage.

 

[khinkali]

People need to stop being so hung up about this 180 days thing.

Yes it happens to be 180 or 182 in some places. It's 182 where I live (GE) but not where I'm from (UK), where there is a more complex but also quite definitive test defined by law and where the 182 threshold only applies in unusual cases.

So best would be to relocate to a country or area where you don't pay tax or only a small percentage.

That suited me; like I said it makes planning things a lot easier. Not everyone has the same needs and it is important to remember that tax residence somewhere else does not necessarily remove you from being due tax where you are (or where you are from, or where you do things).

@Jea if Georgia is a possibility, it might be worth considering public ruling 201. See here and here. It looks promising.

 

[Jea]

@Jea if Georgia is a possibility, it might be worth considering public ruling 201. See here and here. It looks promising.

Yes, I'm aware of this ruling and I plan to rent a place in Georgia and cash out some crypto profits...

BUT I also want to live in different EU countries (as a tax non-resident, in temporary rented "non-permanent" apartments, 2-4 months per country per year) and I obviously want to manage (trade, transfer to fiat, etc) my crypto assets while staying in these countries.

 

[countryfree]

I believe this topic is a bit wrong.

In the countries I know, it makes no difference you stay there one week or 6 months. If you have an income from any country, you must pay tax to that country. And if you have income from several countries, you'll have to pay tax in several countries.

The question here is about the location of the business. If you run an offshore business from an hotel room, you will not have to pay tax on the country where the hotel is, but that's only because your activity is out of the reach of the local taxman (who won't know anything about you).

That is the rule, you can avoid paying tax in the country where you're staying, if you don't have any local business.
Well, actually, you can't call that a rule...

 

[Lakmal]

In the UK the 180 and 90 day rule can be a complete nonsense.
Without me going in to all the details, the turning point for all of this was a case brought by HMRC against someone called Robert Gaines-Cooper to prove he had not severed all his ties with the UK regardless of the 90 day rule which he had complied with (google him you will find some very interesting information)

The case of course set a precedent and has been devastining for a lot of British expatriates and tax exiles who have been hit with enormous tax calculations

Of course the above rules are still in place but now they also have a means test. If you still have any family ties, a home, club memberships along with other things in the UK then the chances are you will still be classed as a UK resident.

If you take a look at the link below you will see there is a lot more to it than just abiding by the 180/90 day rules

https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/residence-domicile-and-remittance-basis/rdrm11500
If you do fall foul of this HMRC will go back as far as they want to calculate your tax liabilities which in many cases brought after the Gaines-Copper case have been in excess of 20 years, they also calculate penalties for none payment and interest for the total period.

 

[bastard]

How can you compare the UK after all with the EU? what will stop you to do moving around the EU if you have 2 - 3 real flats or houses you have bought or rented? You could also have some small offices around.. that would avoid the tax - but it is a different life style I say!

 

[Lakmal]

How can you compare the UK after all with the EU? what will stop you to do moving around the EU if you have 2 - 3 real flats or houses you have bought or rented? You could also have some small offices around.. that would avoid the tax - but it is a different life style I say!

The comments were aimed at anyone originating from the UK. You can have as many homes or offices and residencies as you want around the world you can even not step foot in the UK for sa few years but if you still have property or ties with the UK you will be hit for tax for as many years as you have failed to pay.
Read what happened in the Gaines-Cooper Vs HMRC case.
It wouldn't surprise me if other EU countries tried to follow this line eventually also.

 

[kkein]

I've been wondering about a slight variation of the above scenario.
Let's take @xzars example, Danish citizen (or really anyone who has tax residency in denmark), goes to country B (ex. malta or another tax appealing country), applies for residency and tax residency there, opens a local company, gets a corporate account, and maybe also a personal account from any bank, let's say that can handle €, as we are talking europe now.
All this without actually emigrating from Denmark.
So what the person will do is start reporting less to danish tax authorities (just what she manages to safely get to denmark), and all income that gets paid from any third country gets to the newly formed company, and reported to B.
Questions here are:
- Will Denmark be notified that the person has applied for tax residency in Malta? If not, will Denmark authorities have any mean, under the scope of CRS, to automatically search among all tax residents of Malta for Danish tax residents?
- Under CRS, banks should report to country B. Will they report to anyone else? And will these reports be accessible by Danish authorities? in other words, will Denmark have any way to detect the account, whom it belongs to and the movements directly? (obviously it could be detected if the person will make a mistake, and use the associated credit card in Denmark, for example, or buy something online in Denmark)

 

[Tax Cow]

@kkein

Too much risk for a long term play. 2 Years max for this. CRS complications can be avoided by establishing strong residency ties in Malta, but in an intra-EU affair, all information can be acquired with relative ease. And some information trail goes where it shouldn't by accident.

It's like cheating on wife with your downstairs neighbor. A boy with slimy flu nose plays Minecraft next door and then hears funny noises. All you really need for gossip and an investigation thereafter.

 

[JohnLocke]

Questions here are:
- Will Denmark be notified that the person has applied for tax residency in Malta? If not, will Denmark authorities have any mean, under the scope of CRS, to automatically search among all tax residents of Malta for Danish tax residents?
- Under CRS, banks should report to country B. Will they report to anyone else? And will these reports be accessible by Danish authorities? in other words, will Denmark have any way to detect the account, whom it belongs to and the movements directly? (obviously it could be detected if the person will make a mistake, and use the associated credit card in Denmark, for example, or buy something online in Denmark)

As long as you live in Denmark then it doesn't matter where you are banking or setup a company without substance. You have to pay all your tax in Denmark. Honestly, the tax office in Denmark will give a s**t to what you try to setup, if you don't have a 2000 euro an hour tax lawyer on your site and a certified accountant for the same amount per hour AND you have a really good setup, they will rape you totally and out you in jail.

If you want to avoid taxes in Denmark or the EU then do as most rich and intelligent people already have done, MOVE OUT - far away from this ripp off countries.
Should covid-19 be yet and we start to see many more serious bankruptcies then just see what the EU is going to look like .. you can look far for your money.