2nd Passports – Who Needs ‘Em?

If you are reading this article, the likely answer is, “You need a 2^nd passport.”  Of course that is an easy answer to a rather complicated question, so let’s delve into the reasons why you may want to consider a 2^nd passport and the various ways in which to obtain one.

For starters, a 2^nd passport can be the best protection for your life money can buy.  Imagine you are an American, British or Israeli passport holder on a flight from Madrid to New York City and all of a sudden you hear several angry men yelling demands for documentation from all of the people sitting on-board.

You turn to look at the source of the hostility and there is a noticeably agitated Middle Eastern man wielding a makeshift knife standing at your side threatening you if you don’t hand over your passport.  Quick question:  Do you hand him your Israeli (or US or British if that’s what you have) passport, or your Swedish passport?  Which do you think would give you a better chance of survival?

A 2^nd passport can also offer you a lot of freedom in your business, banking and investment opportunities.  For example, many European banks no longer accept American citizens as account holders.  But if you show them your Chilean passport, they welcome you, and your money, with open arms.

Quite frankly there are many investment opportunities around the world that are not available to people from various countries.  A respectable Nigerian businessman finds travel and business opportunities almost impossible without a 2^nd passport.  South Africans and Russians need to obtain a visa to go almost anywhere in the world.

With the current crackdown on perceived offshore tax evasion by Americans, many doors are closed to American passport holders.  With an Irish passport however, you can be exposed to business deals you never dreamed possible.

A 2^nd passport can also give you a way to escape prosecution from crimes you are not guilty of committing, government oppression, civil unrest, or even a litigious ex-spouse.  It effectively gives you a way to escape from your old life and start anew.

By acquiring a 2^nd passport you become a multinational sovereign individual with unbeatable financial privacy.  Contrary to popular opinion, a passport is not personal property.  It is owned by the issuing government.

As a holder of only one passport, you are under the control of that one country.  Your passport can be confiscated or invalidated at any time by the issuing country for any reason they deem necessary.

Did you forget to file your tax return for 2 years in a row?  Did you publish an article in your local newspaper that was critical of a particular administration’s political agenda?  Did you forget to disclose the shares of a company you own in Australia?  Maybe you have 25 unpaid parking tickets that slipped your mind when you moved to Argentina with your girlfriend 3 years ago.  Any of these things could be reason enough for your home country to confiscate your passport rendering you immobile.

Of course, they will happily provide you with a one-use, one-way passport back to your country of origin to clear up any discrepancies.  Either way, you are trapped with no hope of escaping…unless you hold a 2^nd passport.

With a 2^nd passport you are no longer immobilized and grounded.  You can conduct business, do your banking, investing, and travel as you please.  You then have the leverage to negotiate from abroad with your home country to fix the problems that invalidated your home country passport if you chose.

For our purposes here, we will classify 2^nd passports into 3 categories;

• Black
• Grey
• White

I will start with black.  We do not encourage or recommend any connection with black market passports in any way, shape or form.  These 2^nd passports come in a variety of ways, none of them legal.  Many of them can get you into a lot of trouble.

Usually they involve using stolen blank passports and personal details of a recently deceased person.  They could also be complete counterfeits or even existing passports stolen from someone with a craftily altered picture.  Either way, you are treading on thin ice here.

This could only be a viable alternative if your life was at risk and you had no other options – think American or British citizens living in Baghdad immediately following the Iraqi war.

The next category of 2^nd passports could be considered grey market.  These are legitimate passports acquired in ways that are not considered standard governmental programs.  This could be a tip (bribe) to a migration official to expedite the process.  This could be a well connected local lawyer who has the favor of local politicians and can get special treatment granted for various types of gifts.

This process may also involve backdating documents or providing affidavits to confirm your ancestral, religious, or cultural connection to the country.  However obtained, these grey market passports are legitimate passports acquired in by dubious means.  These can be a great option for someone looking for a banking or travel passport, but definitely not a good as your primary citizenship.

The last category of 2^nd passport is what I call white market.  These are the completely legitimate, government sponsored programs.  Citizenship is acquired by naturalization through the required residency period.  Most countries nowadays have extensive residency requirements before you can apply for citizenship.  Many European countries have 5 year minimums while some like Switzerland require at least a decade.  In some cases this may be expedited if you can prove family or religious ties to the country.

There are also a few white passport programs that can be acquired through what is called an economic citizenship program.  Countries like St. Kitts and Nevis as well as Dominica (not Dominican Republic) offer these programs.  However they are very pricey costing upwards of over $100,000.

Regardless of how you obtain a 2^nd passport, we highly encourage liberty minded, freedom seeking individuals to seriously consider their options.  A 2^nd passport could be your ticket to freedom.

If you are interested in receiving a passport from a country that offers fully legitimate citizenship after a 2 1/2 year ‘paper’ residency (you don’t need to actually live there) for under $20,000 please contact us.  BankerTrust@gmail.com

The US is turning into a police state and many countries around the world are following behind Uncle Sam. The time to act is now. So what should you do?

First, make sure you have access to funds outside of your home country. This is one of the most important flags that you can plant.  You should open a foreign bank account , and/or consider storing precious metals in a private storage facility overseas.

Second, you should really be thinking hard about foreign property. Why? Because it can be a great investment; it's an easy, non-reportable way to move money overseas; and it can be your escape hatch when you're finally ready to hit the eject button.

Remember, I'm not talking about a 50 million euro villa in Monaco; you can pick up cheap land in Latin America for less than $20 per acre, and I'm pretty sure that everyone reading this letter has at least 20 bucks to spare.

Third, if you have the means, you should really consider obtaining second (or third, fourth, etc.) citizenship. Second citizenship can be the ultimate emergency exit if things get really bad, and it effectively serves as the most comprehensive insurance policy you could even have. 

Fourth, give serious consideration to your finances; unless you are already independently wealthy or have sustainable income streams, think about what you would do to earn money if you lost your job today.  

Think about what skills you have-- what problems can you solve that other people are willing to pay you for? What opportunities to you see around you that can be quickly and profitably exploited? 


Banker Trust can assist you with any of the above. Just contact us. BankerTrust@gmail.com

4 Steps that can help keep your assets safe from an out-of-control government

By keeping all your assets in the country where you live, you commit, ahead of time, to ratify whatever policy your home government might adopt, no matter how objectionable, unreasonable or pernicious that policy happens to be. If the next new mandate is "Register today to get a nail pounded into your head," you're already signed up.

Americans, by and large, run all their affairs within the confines of the US. The US economy is so large and so varied that it's easy to assume that everything you want to do with your wealth can be done without crossing any borders. And people in the US, like people anywhere, live with the habits and attitudes developed over generations. They're only human. In the case of Americans, those habits grew out of long experience with a government that was small and that generally practiced the rare virtue of following its own laws. In a happy exception to mankind's experience with rulers, there was little to fear from it.

Stay at home is still the norm for Americans, but it's a norm that is slowly fading. Every billion-dollar tick of the government debt clock, every expansion of the government's regulatory apparatus, every overreaching judicial decision made in the name of a compelling public need, every inversion of protection for citizens into license for the state and every intellectually tortured discovery of a new meaning in the Constitution's 4,400 old words leaves a few thousand more people wondering how prudent it is to consign all their eggs to a single national basket. Encounters with high-handed IRS agents and eager TSA gropers do nothing to ease that concern. And for those who listen thoughtfully, the messages from our designated leaders and their would-be replacements only hurry the dawning sense of unease.

Specific worries include exposure to predatory lawsuits, especially claims that could draw extra go-power by association with politically favored causes or legally favored groups; fear of where income tax rates might climb; the prospect of losing a family business in a regulatory battle or simply through estate tax; the fragility of financial institutions that have operated for forty years with the assurance that the Federal Reserve would rescue them from any folly; the possibility that a government desperate to protect the dollar from collapse might impose foreign exchange controls or capital controls; the memory and precedent of the forced gold sales of 1933; and the thought that a government floundering in deficits might start pilfering from IRAs and other pension plans.

But beyond those particular worries and perhaps more important than any of them is the sense that from here on, anything goes. The politicians will do whatever they find convenient, because there is no longer anything to stop them – not an electorate that is jealous of its freedoms and certainly not the Constitution, which is now just a playhouse for judicial imagineering. No one can know what's coming next from the government and the financial system it has fostered, but for many of us there is an awful suspicion that we are not going to like it.

Most Americans still have yet to stick a single financial toe across the border, but more and more are considering it. Many, perhaps millions of toes are now twitching at the thought. Their owners want to end their absolute dependence on what happens in the US. They want to prepare for whatever is coming down the road, even though they don't know what it will be. They want to be as ready as possible, even though their worries can only guess at what's ahead.

Because internationalizing your financial life means dealing with the unfamiliar, the project can seem more complex than it really is, so it's best to start with the simplest measures, even if by themselves they don't give you all the safety you're looking for. Even from a simple beginning, what you learn with each step will make the next step easier to plan. Start with the first rung on the ladder of internationalization. Then climb, at your own speed, to reach the right level of protection.

Step 1: Coins in Your Pocket

Gold coins that you've stored personally give you something whose value doesn't depend on the health of the US economy, doesn't depend on any financial institution in the US and doesn't depend on any US government policy. Gold coins are portable and hold their value no matter where in the world you might take them. They're internationalization in a wafer. Safety cookies.

It's best to buy the coins for cash, for maximum privacy. And there is a good reason to favor one-tenth-ounce gold Eagles. Gold coins mean readiness for troubled times; if you ever need to dispose of the gold in an informal market, it will be easier to do so with small-denomination coins that are widely recognizable and whose value matches the scale on which large numbers of people normally trade.

The premium on one-tenth-ounce coins (the price compared with the value of the gold content) is higher than on the larger coins – usually about 15% for the small coins vs. 5% for one-ounce Eagles. But the premium isn't a dead cost, like a commission or bid-ask spread. The premium is a second investment; it's what you pay for the packaging, and you can expect to recover it when you sell or trade. And in the circumstances when you would have the strongest reasons for thanking yourself for having bought some gold, the premium you paid will look like a bargain. We recommend storage of these coins in our non-US bank safe deposit box.

Step 2: A Foreign Bank Account

On its own initiative, the IRS can freeze any bank account in the US without warning. The action might arise from mistaken identity, from an erroneous filing by some other taxpayer, from your failure to respond to an IRS notice in time or even from a postal error. And that's what can happen without malice. Other government agencies have similar powers to act on their own, without giving you an opportunity to object in court. And any one of them might act against you for any of their specialized reasons – perhaps because someone resents your inattention to the needs of the migratory birds that visit your property or perhaps because someone thinks it would be fun to point to you as a terrorist, drug smuggler, arms dealer or child-porn merchant.

In principle, there are legal avenues for undoing a freeze or a seizure. But you'd need a lawyer, and being suddenly penniless could get in the way of hiring one. A foreign bank account protects you from being trapped in such a nightmare. The US government can get to your foreign bank account eventually, because it can get to you. But a lightning seizure is very unlikely, because it would require a foreign government to override its own legal processes, which it generally wouldn't be willing to do except in a grave emergency. So if your liquid assets at home were frozen, you would have cash outside the US to fund the legal cost of untangling the problem.

A foreign bank account is also a way to step back from the uncertainties of the US dollar, since the account could be denominated in another currency. The US government has seen to it that Americans are no longer welcome customers at foreign banks. So forget about opening a Swiss bank account in your own name. However, Banker Trust can help you open a bank account in the Dominican Republic which is compliant with US rules and safe from confiscation. 

Step 3: Gold Abroad

The forced gold sales of 1933 were the work of an executive order signed by President Roosevelt. The purported legal basis for the order was the Trading With The Enemy Act, a legislative artifact of World War I. I have yet to find an explanation of how the authority for an order requiring Americans to sell their gold to the government at the government's official price of $20 per ounce could be found in the Trading With The Enemy Act, but the fact that the enemy in question had gone out of business 15 years earlier didn't seem to interfere with the legal logic.

The forced sale was a prelude to an increase in the official gold price to $35. The government's reason for wanting that price rise was to gain leeway for a substantial, though limited, inflation of the dollar while keeping the dollar on the international gold standard. The forced sale was a way for the government, which operated in a political environment that still disfavored deficit spending, to capture the profit from the price rise. That profit would be a kitty for more spending without more borrowing.

Today there is no gold standard for the government to stay on. And deficit spending isn't something politicians especially want to avoid; they've promoted it as a civic duty, to stimulate the economy. So the depression-era motives for a gold grab don't seem to apply. Yet you can't listen to a conversation between two gold investors without hearing the seizure topic coming up.

Are they just scaring each other? I don't believe so. There are two potential motives for the government to again treat gold differently from everything else. If the dollar's slide in foreign exchange markets threatens to turn into a panic, the government might want to use gold sales to foreigners to mop up foreign-held dollars – in which case it might see a need to mop up the gold owned by its own citizens. That's bad enough, but a second motive is a good bit nastier. At a visceral level, people who have centered their lives on government just don't like gold. It's an affront to the government's authority to command and control and an insult to government's supposed aptitude for solving economic problems. So disrespectful. From their point of view, every ounce purchased by an American is another tomato hurled at the political class. And the purchasers still constitute a tiny minority of the voting population. What could be more satisfying and convenient for the politicians than to kick sand in the face of gold investors for being such lousy citizens?

A new attack on gold ownership probably wouldn't be a point-for-point reenactment of 1933. There are many weapons for mugging gold investors. It could be a prohibition on gold ownership coupled with a prohibition on sales of gold to foreigners. The only one left to buy would be the government, and being the only bidder, it would be a very low bidder. It could be a commandeering of privately owned gold, with token compensation like the $15 per day paid for jury duty. It could be a super tax, say 90%, on gold profits, which would get the job done slowly... or quickly if it were accompanied by a mark-to-market rule. Or it could be something none of us has thought of yet.

Not only can't we know the shape of a future gold grab, we can't know whether or how the rules would touch foreign-held gold. Owners of gold stored outside the US would be a minority of a minority. Their gold wouldn't be the low-hanging fruit – it would be higher up in the tree and more trouble to get to. That's why, in a casino sense, gold overseas is a different bet and a better bet than gold at home. Maybe it will turn out that storing gold overseas won't matter at all, in which case a little effort will have been wasted. And maybe it will turn out to matter a great deal. We recommend storage of gold in our safe deposit boxes. 

Step 4: Foreign Real Estate

Owning real estate in another country gives you a suite of protections that distinguishes it from other steps toward internationalization.

First, the property's value will depend on economic conditions in the country you've chosen, not on what happens in the US. If the economy of the foreign country grows and prospers, there is likely to be a spillover effect on the market value of your house, apartment, farm or patch of land – regardless of what is going on in the US.

Second, a foreign real estate investment would be hard to digest for any future capital controls imposed by the US. New rules could compel you to repatriate the cash you have in a foreign bank; rules forcing you to liquidate your foreign real estate and bring the money home would be another matter. Selling real estate isn't quick or easy. How does the government compel an unwilling citizen to do what an eager seller often finds difficult to accomplish?

Third, as a potential prize for a lawsuit attacker, foreign real estate is a stinker. Even if he wins a judgment against you, foreclosing on your foreign property would be difficult to impossible, since it would require the cooperation of the courts in the foreign country, about whose rules and procedures the attacker's attorney probably knows nothing. But he does know that even if he persuades a court in the US to order you to sell the property, the inherent illiquidity of real estate would give you plenty of opportunities for foot-dragging.

Where to buy? The whole world is open to you... which can be a problem. So many possibilities and no obvious place to start. One approach is to think about where you've been that you'd like to visit again or about some place you've long wanted to see. Plan to spend a few weeks there. Minimize your hotel hours, to maximize your exposure to the rest of the locale. Try to meet Americans, perhaps expatriates, who know their way around the place and who can point you toward a real estate broker who won't try to treat you as an out-of-town sucker.

Buying foreign real estate isn't for everyone. It requires a big investment in time and effort, but it could repay you with an asset that is low on the list of things anyone might try to take from you. Please contact us for current real estate possibilities.

One Toe over the Line

It's a long way from walking into the local coin shop and buying a few one-tenth-ounce gold Eagles to setting up a trust in a foreign country. But the distance isn't nearly as great as you might imagine, and it will get shorter both in fact and in apprehension with each step you take.

As you move up the ladder, you'll learn about the reporting requirements for US taxpayers. Step 1 (gold coins in your pocket) entails no reporting. Step 4 (foreign real estate) also is free of reporting requirements, at least for now. But under rules in effect now or soon to come, everything else covered in this article entails filing a form with the US government. The most reliable way to make sure that you stay within the rules, so that internationalization adds to your safety and not to your problems, is to let your accountant know what you are doing. Keep him informed, so that he can see to it that all the reporting requirements are satisfied.

[Every day you delay beginning your internationalization strategy is another day your bank accounts are hemorrhaging.

How the US is Spying on YOU

Here's a quick crash course in how the intelligence business works these days.  Despite the Hollywood mystique of suave, womanizing, pun-dropping men of mystery flitting around the world, it's much more mundane.

In reality, government operatives from a host of three-letter agencies are working to develop large networks of informants. These are mostly folks who deal with other people and are in the know-- the bartender in Beirut, the luxury car dealer in Bogota, the money changer in Riyadh, the hotel manager in Shanghai, etc. 

These assets are constantly being pumped for information-- who did you see, what were they buying, where did they go next, who were they with, what were they discussing, etc. And in exchange, informants typically get paid. 

In the United States, there are a number of laws on the books which are theoretically supposed to prevent the three letter agencies from spying on US citizens. Naturally, the government dispenses with such inconvenient formalities in its sole discretion, and Congress frequently passes legislative exceptions (USA PATRIOT Act, NDAA, etc.)

There's a little known division of the Treasury Department called the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) whose mission is to "to enhance U.S. national security, deter and detect criminal activity, and safeguard financial systems from abuse by promoting transparency in the U.S. and international financial systems."

Here's a government agency rule of thumb: The more noble-sounding the mission statement, the more villainous the agency. 

FinCEN is basically the CIA of the financial system. But unlike the CIA which is technically not allowed to spy on US citizens and typically has to pay informants, FinCEN has complete legal authority over US persons. And they've managed to turn the entire financial system into the world's largest network of informants.

Simply put, your banker is an unpaid, often unwilling spy of the US government. 

Case in point-- last week, FinCEN announced that a California banker had been slapped with a $25,000 penalty for notifying a customer who had become the subject of a federal "Suspicious Activity Report" or SAR. 

SARs are required to be filed by bankers, brokers, money changers, check cashers, and even casinos. You may have been the subject of dozens of SARs and never know, because it's against the law for your banker to notify you. 

As for what is considered "suspicious", there is no clear guidance on this. It could be anything-- depositing or withdrawing too much cash, ATM withdrawals in foreign countries, unusual fund transfers into your account. Basically, anything that's a departure from a completely sterile existence.

What's more, financial institutions frequently have a minimum quota of SARs to fill out, and those who do not comply face severe penalties. Financial institution employees can even face CRIMINAL charges for failing to file a SAR.

Now, your banker may be a good guy, but do you think s/he's willing to do jail time? No chance. 

This is how normal, everyday people end up on government watch lists or have their assets frozen 'pending investigation'. And with the recent passing of the National Defense Authorization Act and its catch-all terrorism clauses, we can only expect this to get worse.

It's truly despicable when you think about it-- the federal government creates a currency monopoly at the point of a gun (try buying your groceries with Swiss francs). Then they make it nearly impossible to function in this world without using the banking system, and then turn the entire banking system into a network of spies.

If you want to reduce these risks and dull the impact of the coming wave of SAR-driven civil asset forfeiture, it would be a really smart move to open a foreign bank account. 

Nearly every country in the world has anti-money laundering rules now. Some, are easier than others. But the bottom line is that you'd be moving your money out of the jurisdiction where you live, and into a place where those agencies have zero (or limited) authority.

And if you want even more financial privacy, I'd strongly recommend holding precious metals in an overseas vault. 

How the US government will seize your retirement account

Here's how it will go down: First, there will be some event... some sort of financial cataclysm, similar to the market meltdown we saw in 2008 after Lehman. Bear in mind that most IRAs are managed by boneheads at big financial institutions; they get compensated not based on the performance of their portfolio, but on the total amount of assets under management. Your interests and their interests do not align. As such, most IRAs are callously tossed into S&P index funds or some such generic vehicle, citing the safety of broader market diversification, as if that nonsense they teach in MBA finance classes is how the real world actually works. When a big crash occurs, these unhedged broad market positions get hammered the most. Don't worry though, your fund manager will still get a big fat bonus check, because his performance is irrelevant. This is when Congress will step in. Citing its desire to 'protect' the American people from future market shocks, the politicians will mandate that a portion of all managed retirement funds be invested in the 'safety and security' of US Treasury bonds. And, just to be on the safe side, let's park them in 30-year bonds that yield 4.35%. Sound fair? Well who asked you anyways... just be a good citizen and turn over your money already. The important part is that the big financial institutions still get their big fat fees, and the government gets its hands on the mother lode. This is how US taxpayers will end up being forced to loan their hard earned retirement savings to the government at rates far below any expected inflation. Right now, there is a window of opportunity to take action; US taxpayers with retirement accounts can set up a special kind of IRA structure that allows you to take control of your retirement savings, and even ship it offshore if you want to, completely legitimately. After taking control of your IRA, you can do any number of things-- buy and store gold and silver coins overseas; hold foreign currencies in an offshore bank account; buy securities on international stock exchanges; purchase agricultural property overseas, or even a beautiful apartment on the beach in some sunny country. The possibilities are incredible... but the most important thing is that you get this retirement money off the radar of the politicians before the rule change, virtually overnight. These things can happen very, very quickly. See www.Banker-Trust.com and contact us if we can help.

Why International Diversification is so Critical

Apparently the Chinese didn't learn much from the US property bust; they've made precisely the same mistakes, and it's starting to have serious effects on the broader economy. Meanwhile, speaker after speaker acknowledged the massive insolvency issues that await the United States... and further argued that Greece is just the beginning of Europe's problems. Here's the thing about governments going bust-- it's been happening for centuries. Default is nearly as old as the concept of the sovereign bond itself, and history is generous with examples. Spain has defaulted 15 times since the 16th century. Greece has defaulted 5 times since the 19th century. Portugal has defaulted 7 times since the 16th century. What's happening right now is nothing new. Neither is government response. You see, when governments get deeper and deeper into debt, their options start to run out. They become desperate, and history shows a common pattern: First, they impose capital controls. They compel individuals and businesses to repatriate funds from abroad, or prevent them from moving new funds overseas. This is happening in several countries right now. For example, Argentina's fascist president Cristina Fernandez just ordered oil, gas, and mining exporters to repatriate all export revenue back to Argentina. This was her very first presidential decree after winning re-election just days ago. The second thing they'll do is direct capital into government bonds. Pension funds, central banks, commercial banks, private corporations, and even individual investors will be forced into the 'safety and security' of government debt. That means YOU. This is also happening all over the world right now-- Hungary, Ireland, Argentina, etc. Third, they'll inflate away the debt by conjuring more money out of thin air. Everyone holding government bonds will lose money against inflation. Again, this is also happening. Last, they'll selectively default against politically weak bondholders. Example-- paint the Chinese out to be economic terrorists, then stiff them. It's a slippery slope delay tactic that usually results in full-blown default. This is why international diversification is so critical. When the gates starts closing around your capital and livelihood, it's important to have taken the appropriate defensive measures IN ADVANCE.

Canadian Citizenship

As more and more Canadians visit the Dominican Republic we thought it a good idea to look at acquiring Canadian Citizenship. In the last few years, Canada has become more attractive as a destination for would-be immigrants. The country invariably scores near the top of various international life-style country rankings. For starters, Canada has a very stable political and financial system, which stood up well during the 2008 Credit Crisis. Canada is also widely recognized for its health care system (accessible to all its residents), yet it boasts the lowest corporate tax rate among the G-8 nations. Moreover, Canada is the second largest country in the world (bigger than either the United States or China), but has a population that is roughly the same as just Pennsylvania, Michigan and Ohio combined. As a result, Canadians enjoy a high standard of living due to their abundant agriculture and natural resources (including water, timber, hydrocarbons and minerals), which are spread out over very few individuals. Among those who have been increasingly looking at Canada as an option for residency and citizenship are high-net-worth Americans. As the U.S. debt grows to unmanageable heights and the government is increasingly applying new force and security measures, Americans are seeking refuge for safety and a chance at future prosperity. Canada is familiar to most Americans and it is geographically located for easy access from anywhere in the US. Generally speaking, there are two options for Americans to become a citizen of Canada. The first is the Quebec Investor Program. This program entitles the applicant to immediate permanent resident status (the precursor to citizenship) upon application approval and the investment of $800,000 CAD with the government of Quebec. The investment is repaid five years later but interest-free. Most banks in Canada will lend the investment amount to the applicant for a one-time payment of $220,000, but there is a net worth threshold of $1.6M. Canadian citizenship is obtained in three years from the date of obtaining permanent residence. The second option is to obtain a work permit in Canada first, and then apply for permanent resident status. Americans have the unique ability (along with Mexicans) to obtain residency through employment or investor programs under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). NAFTA's Treaty Investor classification allows an American to come to Canada to direct and develop the operations of an enterprise in which he or she has invested a substantial amount of capital. The subject investment must be lawfully acquired or created and involve capital at commercial risk. In other words, capital must be at stake in a legitimate business operation. Vancouver, BC The Professional or "TN" classification allows an American working in one of the professions listed in Appendix 1603.0.1 of NAFTA to petition for a work visa at any point of entry into Canada. There is no annual limit on the number of admissions under the Professional category from the United States, but a job offer is needed for applicants to be considered. Dependents (spouses and unmarried children under 21 years of age) are entitled to live in Canada and may attend school, but may not be employed except in the case of the spouse of a principal applicant under the Treaty Investor classification, who is entitled to a work permit. Once permission to work is obtained, an application for permanent residency status can be started, which takes between 18-24 months for approval. After obtaining PR status, you can apply for citizenship in about two more years. Dual citizenship is legal in both Canada and the United States. Moreover, Americans acquiring Canadian citizenship do not automatically lose their US citizenship. Americans can voluntarily renounce their US citizenship by applying to the US government (however, any applicant must be up to date on all tax and foreign bank account filings.) Anyone renouncing their American citizenship loses their rights in respect of the United States, including their US passport. Subsequent entry into the US will then require a visa. However, under NAFTA guidelines, Canadian entry into the US is granted on the spot at the port of entry, without application to a Consulate for a visa. Taxation Issues Americans are taxed based on their citizenship. Canadians, on the other hand, are taxed, not based on citizenship, but rather on residency. Generally speaking, Canadians who live outside of Canada do not pay taxes in Canada. Americans who live outside of the United States are entitled to exclude from their taxable income approximately $90,000 of foreign earned employment income, plus housing costs. Many Canadian residents avail themselves of planning that creates a third party entity that is legally a non-resident of Canada. Certain investment and business income can grow tax-free under such planning. In short, there are a number of opportunities for tax mitigation for Canadians that are not available to Americans. Finally, with the imposition of FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) by the U.S. on financial institutions around the world, many banks and investment brokers will no longer accept Americans as account holders. In addition to all of the other benefits of obtaining Canadian citizenship, American immigrants can use their Canadian citizenship to open bank accounts and invest funds worldwide without restriction. If you are interested in Canadian Citizenship, please contact us BankerTrust@gmail.com

Why you need a 2nd Passport, an IBC and a Offshore Bank Account

Yesterday we had a client inquire about offshore asset protection planning and the PT lifestyle. He didn’t understand why anyone would want or need a 2nd passport, a Dominican company (IBC), or offshore bank account. Understandably, this is a common concern for many people, and you may not know the reason for establishing this type of financial and life planning. Clearly, the majority of you reading this understand the need or else you probably wouldn’t be reading my newsletter, but many of you are still reluctant to pull the trigger. There are many reasons one may consider this type of offshore asset protection planning, but ultimately they all come down to privacy and wealth preservation. Recently we had a call from a guy; let’s call him Victor, who had been through a nasty divorce. Like many people over the past few years, Victor had been significantly impacted by the current economic situation in the US. Before 2008, Victor earned a fairly large income well into the mid 6 figures. He had a nice, big house, expensive cars, country club membership, and all the other trappings of wealth that keep you competitive with your neighbors. He also had a wife; let’s call her Svetlana, who very much enjoyed the expensive lifestyle. Fast forward to 2011. Victor’s business took a dramatic hit (real estate), as did his income. He had to liquidate many of these symbols of wealth and cut back expenses. He had to get a job, but now earns around $80,000 per year. Luckily, Victor was wise enough to save some money during the boom times as well as the cash he got from selling his expensive house and toys. Unfortunately, Svetlana was just not willing to accept this reduced standard of living. She was very unhappy now that she was unable to have expensive 3 martini lunches with her gal pals, tennis lessons, or free-for-all shopping trips on a weekly basis. To cut to the chase, Svetlana left Victor and took him to court for alimony support. In court, the judge awarded Svetlana 50% of all marital assets, which Victor was fine with. But the kicker was when the judge ordered Victor to pay $8000 per month in alimony to poor, little Svetlana. Remember, Victor didn’t even earn that much. Regardless, the judge didn’t believe Victor’s hard case story and somehow figured he could find a way to earn the difference. Now he is in a difficult situation, both from a financial and personal perspective. Victor cannot afford to pay, but if he doesn’t he risks going to jail. His assets will be immediately frozen and his ability to work will be cut off thus digging him even deeper in the hole with his ex-wife. Victor does have a few options here, but unfortunately his situation would have been much better had he taken the precautions before his assets and his freedom were at risk. If Victor had done some very basic asset protection planning like setting up a Dominican company (IBC) and offshore bank account, he could have moved his liquid assets outside of the jurisdiction of the US court system. This would have given him a financial ‘escape hatch’ and prevented the judge from freezing his assets. Keep in mind, offshore jurisdictions like Dominican Republic respect your privacy and do not recognize foreign judgments except in very rare, extreme cases. In other words, your Dominican company (IBC) and offshore bank account would be completely safe and outside the reach of poor, little Svetlana. Another step Victor could have taken was to establish residency and/or citizenship in a foreign country which would have given him the ability to leave the US for the new country of residence and potentially get a passport. While this may seem extreme for someone like Victor during his happily married, and much wealthier years, there are also various other benefits for establishing residency and/or citizenship in another country aside from the ability to run and hide from a future, potentially vicious ex-wife. Please keep in mind, the illustration of Victor’s dire situation merely as an example of one reason why someone may want to seriously consider offshore asset protection planning and foreign residency and/or citizenship. Write us at BankerTrust@gmail.com for information on securing an IBC, offshore bank account and 2nd passport.