Are bitcoins the property of the US ?What if I am a sovereign individual living on the seastead
http://seasteading.org/ or
Set up servers which your customers can vpn into on the high seas where it is outside the jurisdiction of the irs.Unless the US wants to be considered a pirate nation they wont want to break maritime laws.
also this-
1. PortugalPortugal's pleasant climate and network of golf courses are not the only reasons for many citizens setting up home on the Algarve.With no capital gains tax charge, a move to Portugal could save someone the Irish CGTcharge of 20 per cent on the proceeds of selling a company.
The strong contingent of Irish expatriates on the Algarve in Portugal makes the country an attractive and sociable tax haven for Irish citizens.
2. Switzerland
Switzerland's low-tax regime has attracted the world's super-rich. Swiss cantons can set their own tax rates, with the town of Zug offering the lowest tax rate. Former tennis star Boris Becker has moved to Zug recently to escape Germany's high taxes.
Other German nationals - Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher, whose wealth is conservatively estimated at €300 million, and former soccer star Franz Beckenbauer - also live in Switzerland.
Limerick bookmaker, gambler and currency trader JP McManus is a tax exile in Geneva. McManus and racing tycoon John Magnier, his friend, are the largest shareholders in Manchester United. McManus's wealth is estimated at anywhere up to €750 million.
Switzerland's banking system is famous for its secrecy. This confidentiality is invaluable for the publicity-shy McManus, allowing him to keep his affairs private.
3. MonacoMonaco's warm climate and luxurious lifestyle, as well as its favourable tax regime, have attracted some of the richest people in Europe. Cardboard and packaging multimillionaire Michael Smurfit has made the principality his home. He lives as a tax exile in Monte Carlo.
The Mediterranean principality's non-existent fiscal laws have created a zone free of income tax, and of wealth, capital gains and inheritance taxes.
Approximately 340,000 bank accounts are registered in Monaco, protected by strict secrecy laws.Only a 10-minute helicopter journey from Nice airport, access to the principality is also relatively painfree.
Under a 1998 law the Monaco monarchy reduced residence qualifications for EU citizens, making ownership of property unnecessary to obtain a ten-year residency if the candidate had €7 million to invest in the country. Individuals can claim to be Monegasque if they lease an apartment in Monaco and visit the principality occasionally each year.
Boris Becker and fellow tennisplayerBjorn Borg, who have been investigated by the authorities in their respective countries (Germany and Sweden) for tax evasion, both settled in Monaco at the pinnacle of their careers. In Becker's case, the German taxman produced the scrapbooks of a 73-year-old fan whose clippings and photographs proved that the player had not been resident in Monaco at the height of his career, but was living in his sister's attic in Germany.
Monaco has also attracted multimillionaires from the world of entertainment and sport. Former Beatle Ringo Starr and racing drivers David Coulthard and Jenson Button have homes there.
4. Isle of Man, Jersey and GuernseyThe Isle of Man and the Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey were among the most popular tax havens for Irish citizens, given their proximity and the fact that many Irish banks had operations there. However, in recent years the Revenue Commissioners has targeted offshore accounts and trusts held by Irish residents on the three islands.
Tax information exchange agreements being negotiated by the Revenue with its counterparts in the Isle of Man, Guernsey, Jersey and the Cayman Islands will allow the Irish tax authorities to access accounts and trusts there.
Revenue chairman Frank Daly told a conference earlier this year: "These agreements will not only facilitate the exchange of bank information, but will also provide access to information about the beneficial ownership of companies and trusts."
Amusement arcade owner Jim Kennedy, who has refused to give evidence concerning allegations of planning corruption at the Mahon Tribunal, lives as a tax exile on the Isle of Man.
5. LIECHTENSTEINThe tiny principality of Liechtenstein has managed to transform itself from a poor far ming country into a wealthy tax haven. It has just 33,000 inhabitants and is situated between Austria and Switzerland.
Switzerland defends Liechtenstein, which also shares its currency, customs union and diplomatic representation. The country has stringent banking and tax secrecy laws and its only double taxation treaty is with Austria.
Liechtenstein, like Gibraltar, attracts people looking for favourable tax rates for international companies, as they charge either a very low rate of corporation tax or no company tax at all.
The authorities in Liechtenstein have assisted with demands from the OECD that it co-operate on money laundering investigations, but the principality's laws state that the non-payment of taxes is an administrative matter and foreign investigators are not permitted to probe tax evasion.
The country's legal system also offers confidentiality. Liam Lawlor, the former Fianna Fail TD being investigated by the Mahon tribunal, used a bank account in Liechtenstein to process the proceeds of a land deal in north Co Dublin.
6. GIBRALTARThe rock at the foot of the Iberian peninsula is a favoured destination for financiers, accountants and high net worth individuals. Irish financier Dermot Desmond is a tax resident there.
One of its major benefits is the fact that Gibraltar-registered companies pay no Vat or capital gains tax, and most companies pay corporation tax at less than 10 per cent. With a highly educated workforce and a state-of-the-art telecoms network, Gibraltar is attractive to the super-rich. It is less than two hours from London by plane.
Gibraltar offers tax exemptions to trusts, holdings and investment companies. It has been recolonised by some of the world's top banks which use the island to target rich customers.
Ireland has no double taxation treaty with Gibraltar, but the Mediterranean province is still an attractive place to establish a company, given the beneficial corporate taxation regime.
7. CYPRUSCyprus charges no capital gains tax and has a double
taxation agreement with Ireland. However, its distance from Ireland means that few Irish citizens choose Cyprus as a tax haven.The Mediterranean island introduced income tax this year, to bring its tax regime in line with that of other European countries.
8. Bermuda or Bahamas
Bermuda, off the east coast of the United States in the Caribbean, attracts international high fliers. Independent News &Media chairman Tony O'Reilly is believed to be a tax resident in the Bahamas.
9. British Virgin Islands & PanamaOnce a hideout for pirates, the British Virgin Islands now attract more respectable visitors drawn by the islands' tax breaks. It takes a day to travel to the islands so it is not a popular tax haven for Irish citizens.
Panama also offers a lowtax regime and banking secrecy for customers who set up companies there to help them to run their business empire in other parts of the world.
Racing multimillionaires JP McManus and John Magnier used a Virgin Islands-registered investment entity called Cubic Expression to buy their shares in Manchester United.
Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch's assets are held by compan ies on the islands. Murdoch minimised his tax bill, as his liabilities and interest were paid out to the low tax jurisdiction.
Control of the company, Paisley Park Investments, which has been investigated by the Mahon planning tribunal for allegedly bribing counc i llors to have lands at Carrickmines in Dublin rezoned, was vested in holding companies based in the Isle of Man, British Virgin Islands and Panama.
10. AndorraThe small principality of Andorra, sandwiched between France and Spain in the Pyrenees, has a population of only 65,000 but is host to 13 million visitors every year.
Companies and individuals in Andorra pay no taxes other than modest annual registration fees, municipal rates and property transaction taxes. It hasno trusts orregimes for offshore entities.The principality's company ownership rules limit offshore business to wealthy individuals.
There are no exchange controls, and although money laundering legislation is designed to stop criminal activity, tax evasion is not a crime. Andorra is expected to sign up to the EU Savings Directive, which will make the principality less attractive as a place to hide money.
