In this article, we look at a little-known Greek tax loophole that potentially allows you to pay single-digit tax rates. More importantly, this method is 100% legal – the Greek government wants you to take advantage of this regime.
Think Europe’s all about high taxes? Think again. Many European countries have low tax rates, while others offer special tax breaks for foreigners. There’s the Swiss tax system, there’s Italy’s flat tax regime and then there’s the Greek system.
Of course, legal tax reduction is only a part of what we do at Nomad Capitalist. Our goal is to put all the different pieces together to create a complete holistic strategy for our clients.
So, for example, you could apply for a Greek golden visa to gain EU residency while diversifying your investment portfolio, then take full advantage of the country’s special tax regime — just one of the many highly profitable possibilities we can present to you as a Nomad Capitalist client.
Greek Tax Loophole: TLDR
This tax regime is for high-net-worth individuals who have never lived in Greece before.
So if you’re from the US, Canada, or Australia, for example, and you’re looking to obtain residency in Europe and enjoy some Mediterranean sunshine while also reducing your tax burden, this is one of the options you should look into.
By taking advantage of this flat tax regime, you need only pay a €100,000 lump sum each year for 15 years, regardless of how much you earn.
Of course, this is just one of many options we can advise you on. So, if you’re looking to move overseas while taking advantage of significant legal tax reductions, talk to the experts at Nomad Capitalist today.
Wait – Seriously, Greece?
Yes, seriously, Greece.
We know it’s not a country that ever gets added to anyone’s list of tax havens, like Monaco or the Cayman Islands, but sometimes going where you’re treated best means not following the herd and trying something different.
And sure, Greece may not have the best economic reputation in Europe, to put it mildly. That’s usually enough to scare off the more risk-averse investors who don’t have the stomach to try something different.
So, as usual, they’ll miss out on all the benefits.
But they’re generally not the type of people we tend to attract here at Nomad Capitalist. Our audience comes to us because they know we like to challenge the so-called conventional wisdom.
The Greek Government Wants You To Pay Less Taxes
See the other way to look at it is that having faced economic hardship, the Greek government has had to come up with some new ways to attract more foreign investment.
Therefore, although, like most countries in the region, the Greek government isn’t exactly the most efficient, they are willing to offer you generous tax incentives and then just leave you be.
It makes sense when you think about it – if you’re Greek, you already pay Greek taxes. If you’re foreign, you pay into your home country’s tax system.
But, by luring people who’ve never lived in Greece and most likely would never have considered doing so previously with flat tax rates, the government can expand its tax revenue further to those who would have otherwise remained outside of the system.
Greek Tax Incentives For Retirees
In addition to the tax incentives on offer, living in Greece means you get to enjoy all the benefits of EU residence in a warm, sunny country with beautiful scenery, a rich culture, and a low cost of living.
This has helped to make Greece a hugely popular destination for retirees who can take advantage of a 7% flat pension tax.
Of course, to get the full benefits, you need to make sure you are not being taxed elsewhere.
That said, US citizens can still benefit somewhat thanks to the double tax treaty. So while they may not get the full tax benefits as other citizens (unless they renounce), they still get the benefits of cheap living, warm sunshine and affordable healthcare.
The 7% retiree regime is another example of how the Greek government is looking for creative ways to boost its tax revenue by bringing foreigners into the fold.
But for us, the main event is the flat tax for wealthy investors and the additional benefits Greece can offer.
Greek Tax Incentives For Investors
The Greek flat tax system works best for seven or eight-figure entrepreneurs and investors – i.e., our company’s specific target market.
With the lump sum tax system, you only have to pay a flat amount of €100,000 on your income, a privilege you get to enjoy for 14 years.
So, let’s look at how to take full advantage…
Greek Tax Loophole – How It Works
Imagine you’re running a successful business in Canada. Overall, things are going well, but you’re still paying quite a lot in taxes.
You’ve decided to restructure the business somewhat and move the bulk of your operations overseas for tax purposes – something which our company has experience doing.
The Greek tax regime is a good fit in this instance, as the Greeks aren’t so concerned about where your company is or the precise details of what it does.
You don’t want to keep it in Canada, but also, it’s probably not a good idea to move it to Greece either – there are plenty of other countries we advise our clients to offshore to, and we’ll help you find the best one.
So that’s the important thing to clarify and it’s a perfect example of where people slip up when they don’t get the right advice first time around.
You’re moving your company overseas, but the company’s not moving to Greece, you’re moving to Greece to take advantage of the country’s flat tax regime.
So, let’s crunch the numbers.
Imagine you’re netting a profit of €2 million; after the move you only pay €100,000 in taxes.
The following year you make €3 million, but you still only pay €100,000.
See the pattern? Your business is becoming more profitable, but you’re paying less in taxes each year instead of more.
Now imagine after four years you make €10 million. You still pay €100,000, meaning you’ve paid a rate of just 1%.
And you still got ten more years to enjoy this while living in sunny Greece with full, unfettered access to Europe’s multi-trillion-dollar common market.
Plus, as an EU resident, you also enjoy the same travel privileges to travel throughout Europe.
So after enjoying up to 14 years of Greek hospitality with a potential tax rate as low as 1%, if you decide you want to live elsewhere in Europe, that option is open to you now too.
And that’s really at the heart of what we do here at Nomad Capitalist, bringing together various elements, from legal tax reduction to immigration hacks to real estate and offshore banking.
So whatever you’re planning on doing, we guarantee there’s a perfect solution for you that can do it all, so get in touch today and let’s make it happen.
Greek Golden Visa – The Secret Sauce
With more and more European golden visa programs closing, Greece’s golden visa offering has become more sought after than ever.
It’s also an excellent fast-track method to gaining a Greek residence permit, allowing you to take full advantage of the €100,00 flat tax regime.
To be eligible, you must invest a minimum of €250,000 or €500,000 into the country. This can take the form of stocks or bonds, though the route we generally recommend for our clients is to invest in real estate.
One point to remember, however, is whether or not you wish to naturalize. As our founder, Mr. Henderson, points out, the Greek government is “less likely to naturalize you, in my opinion,” compared to other EU countries.
In other words, unless you’re Greek, you’re probably better off looking elsewhere if your goal is to become an EU citizen.
(Are you Greek? Well, in that case, you could apply for Greek citizenship by descent. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you want to tackle the Greek bureaucracy labyrinth alone. Which is exactly why we’ve got our own special citizenship by descent service designed to help you do everything from tracking down paperwork to working through your citizenship application.)
With a Greek golden visa, you need to live in Greece, but you still have EU residence and you can take full advantage of the tax regime for 14 years.
Investment Types
And, of course, you have your initial investment. The minimum amount is €250,000 though we recommend going for the €500,000 amount, which allows you to invest in Athens, as well as Mykonos and Santorini.
The €500,000 amount is the same amount needed to qualify for the lump sum tax deal. So, although they’re separate things, you can connect the two things together and you get EU residence, an investment engine and access to the tax benefits all at the same time.
Which is the very essence of what we do here at Nomad Capitalist.
We look at what different jurisdictions are offering, we see what works, then put the pieces together to create structures that work best for our clients.
Rethinking Greece
All over the world right now, countries are competing for your investment.
The problem is, governments being governments, they’re not very good at promoting their offerings and they’re even worse at explaining them.
Meanwhile, the market is flooded with one-trick pony providers who only handle one jurisdiction and will try whatever it takes to convince you that their region is the best.
And usually, they’re wrong.
But we’re not necessarily trying to sell you Greece. We’re just trying to show you that sometimes the last country you expect could well provide the best solution to your needs.
People often come to us looking for something specific. They want a passport from country X or want to open a bank account in country Y without understanding how all these things fit together.
But, with our years of experience and our global network of partners on the ground, we’ll find a solution that ticks all the boxes, saving you a lot more time, effort and money in the long run.
So don’t try and plan your offshore life piecemeal. Get the benefits of a holistic Nomad Capitalist Action Plan today.
