Although
residents of Gibraltar pay reasonably high income
taxes, and there is estate duty, there are several
tax-efficient mechanisms for making investments
through Gibraltar.
Non-residents
are taxable on their income received in Gibraltar,
but not if it is channelled through a trust
or an exempt
company. Also bank interest is exempt from tax,
although the EU's Savings Tax Directive, which
came into effect in July, 2005, means that payments
of interest and other savings returns made to
EU citizens are reported totheir home tax authorities.
Residents
can make use of High
Net-Worth Individual (HNWI) status, and
some expatriate executives are given tax-privileged
regimes; in both cases the total tax bill is
capped, so that additional income over the cap
is free of tax.
High
Net-Worth Individuals have traditionally been
permitted to hold shares in an exempt company,
and to hold deposits in Gibraltar banks; income
from these sources has only been taxable (for
the company) if paid to the HNWI for his own
use in Gibraltar.
(NB:
In
July 2002 Gibraltar's Chief Minister, Peter
Caruana announced a new corporate taxation policy,
which was updated again in 2007, following a
long-running dispute with the European Union.
See Direct Company Taxation
for full details.)
For
full information on the available types of corporate
entity, fees payable and the taxation system
in Gibraltar, see the Gibraltar
Fact-File.
The
main types of investment available through Gibraltar
are as follows:
-
GIBRALTAR INVESTMENT FUNDS
- GIBRALTAR REAL ESTATE
- GIBRALTAR PENSION INVESTMENTS
- GIBRALTAR BANK DEPOSITS
