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Tax
The tax efficient Mediterranean Lifestyle
By Gavin Gafan, Assistant Manager, Tax Department & Hannah Clark, Manager, Tax and Company Services, Deloitte
inner side of a train, bus or the tube, among other adverts, you might observe an invitation to visit a Mediterranean destination, and the lure is simple yet effective. A close-nit family, all smiling and with healthy-blushed skin, gathering around a table laid with healthy dishes, behind which sprawls the yellow sands of an idyllic beach setting. Therein lies the concept of the Mediterranean lifestyle, a perfect balance between work and leisure, family and great food.
However, is this concept of an idyllic lifestyle attainable? From a professional perspective it could be perceived that sunnier countries might not offer this perfect work- to-leisure balance, thus detracting from the go-get mentality prevalent in successful Northern European countries.
Then there is also that soul-destroying word that would demotivate any entrepreneur, professional or business-person wishing to relocate their family to a Mediterranean country, ”bureaucracy,” which like the sun can become more evident the further south in
Europe you travel to. But what if there were a southern
jurisdiction that combined sun and sea with a northern European way of doing business.
Well hold on tightly to the inside of that congested train, bus or metro because your answer may lie only a stone’s throw away. Or rather ‘Rock’ in this instance, the Rock of Gibraltar.
Pillars of Hercules
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory situated at the southernmost tip of Spain, flanked by both the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The territory is a short dis- tance from northern Africa as evidenced by the beautiful Moroccan mountain Jebel Musa which can be viewed clearly from Gibraltar, and which together with the Rock of Gibraltar form the legendary “Pillars of Hercules”. Suprisingly to some, Gibraltar is not an island, it is connected to southern Spain, one of the world’s premier leisure destinations, by a land frontier. Travelling to the jurisdiction is easy,
Queensway Quay
It is safe to say that we currently live in a fast-pace society. One only has to take an early morning walk through any bustling
metropolis in order to witness the flood of suits regimentally marching to their own
respective offices, traffic squeezing through practically choked city streets, and public transport that barely manages to cope with an incessant stream of commuters. Fixed on the
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Gibraltar International
www.gibraltarinternational.com