Up next in 10
Relocating to SPAIN from the US? What you NEED to know from somebody who has done it | BayRadio
1K views
Oct 29, 2024
If you're looking into relocating to SPAIN from the US, there are many things you need to consider...especially if you are a taxpayer and have investments. Kal's regular guest Rich Reynolds has already made the move to the Valencia region, and they were joined this Tuesday by Christina Brady from @BlacktowerFM Financial Management, who have a dedicated US office that can make the process much smoother. For any enquiries contact info@blacktowerfm FAO Christina or get in touch through the website: www.blacktowerfm.com Be sure to Like and Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more insights from BayRadio Spain, and follow us on Social Media: Website: http://www.bayradio.fm/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BayRadioInSpain Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bayradiospain/
View Video Transcript
0:00
Rich Reynolds our us correspondent joins
0:02
us afternoon Rich yeah man and it's dou
0:05
double pleasure this week because
0:06
Christina Brady is with us from Black
0:08
Tower financial management as well hi
0:10
you how are you too hot too hot but hey
0:13
we've turned the air conditioning down
0:15
there's always that question do you turn
0:16
it down or do you turn it up it's down
0:18
isn't it that's all right yeah got it
0:20
sorted for you um and we we'll start
0:22
today by looking at American xats moving
0:27
if people who haven't moved as yet what
0:29
want to move and and things that um you
0:31
need to think about investment and
0:33
pensions and pic what what is pic I had
0:36
to look this up the passive foreign
0:39
Investment Company rules okay you
0:41
remember these rich cuz I do not you
0:44
just wor about them I'm probably in
0:47
violation but but I'm telling you I beat
0:49
that rep and so uh and the cops will
0:52
never will never catch up with me don't
0:54
make me long let's find out I mean how
0:56
how difficult is it what what
0:58
difficulties did you find when you were
1:00
thinking about moving to Spain you know
1:02
the biggest the biggest thing for me was
1:04
to decide what to bring what not to
1:06
bring uh how to fill out the
1:09
forms uh and in what order to fill the
1:12
forms because as we know you you do this
1:15
and then you do this and then you do
1:16
this and when this is approved you do
1:17
this and that was the hardest thing but
1:19
right now the hard I just I just
1:21
finished my got my fiveyear my fiveyear
1:23
card and that was getting the
1:26
appointment to go to the police station
1:29
that was the hardest most frustrating
1:31
thing I think we're all finding that at
1:33
the moment no matter what nationality
1:35
getting that you know that the
1:37
appointment for anything at the police
1:39
stations or anything to do with your
1:41
residency is a bit difficult at the
1:42
moment but youve just got to hang on in
1:43
there yeah well July and August you've
1:45
got no chance anyway because in August
1:47
everything closes down so if you haven't
1:50
got your appointments now it's more
1:51
likely to be sort of the Autumn time if
1:53
you're lucky so where do you start with
1:56
this when you are thinking perhaps about
1:58
moving to Europe moving to Spain
2:00
specifically I think the figures show
2:02
that something like 42,000 uh Americans
2:05
live in Spain now something like 5.4
2:08
million Americans abroad but do you know
2:10
what they don't really know because they
2:11
don't count the figures they're not
2:13
really sure yeah that's right um and
2:15
that and that you said 34,000 uh it's 42
2:19
42,000 in in Spain well that that sounds
2:22
low to me yeah well that you see again
2:24
we we think about this with Brits the
2:26
Americans were very good at tracking
2:28
their citizens no no apparently not um
2:31
no well not according to but not
2:33
according to what I've been reading the
2:34
association of Americans resident
2:36
overseas very difficult to work it out
2:39
because we don't count the numbers they
2:40
say so oh but something like 5.4
2:43
overseas anyway plenty more moving to
2:45
Spain as we know and it throws up all
2:47
kinds of uh different issues can I ask
2:49
Rich how do they move to Spain now what
2:51
sort of visas do they need because with
2:53
the golden Visa going what visas can
2:56
they get they can get a uh I'm on a non
2:59
lucrative Visa right now meaning I can't
3:01
I can't make a a living and my the other
3:04
Visa is digital
3:06
digital for everyone else yeah there are
3:09
a number of them aren't there and we're
3:10
going to be exploring that actually rich
3:12
in a few weeks with the alante lawyers
3:14
and we'll run through all of the
3:16
different types of of them but the main
3:19
ones are that that non-lucrative uh
3:21
there's the The Nomad as well uh that
3:24
people have been using there still a lot
3:25
of paperwork you have to do in America
3:28
you know what it really wasn't bad but
3:29
the I remember uh because I lived on the
3:31
west coast my my uh uh the uh what do
3:36
you call that I need to go to my
3:39
uh Embassy that I had to go to I'm sorry
3:42
was in uh consulate my consulate was in
3:45
San Francisco and to me it was a huge
3:48
cash grab because what we had to do is I
3:50
had had to fly to San Francisco which
3:52
was a uh an hour and a half flight at a
3:55
cost yeah my wife and I went to went to
3:58
San Francisco and we brought all of our
4:01
Reams and Reams and binders and they
4:03
just wanted to make sure we had enough
4:04
money family history family history and
4:07
and my fingerprints and my a criminal uh
4:11
background check from the FBI not from
4:13
the cops the FBI so we showed up at this
4:16
thing and the guy they took they took
4:18
everything in and of course they made
4:19
tried to make it very difficult and they
4:20
said oh well uh everything had been
4:23
translated but they said we were missing
4:25
our name at the top of the financials
4:28
like on every page and and they said
4:30
well how do we know this is yours and I
4:31
go cuz they're all together and they
4:33
said well I'm sorry and oh yes by the
4:36
way they closed at 1:00 and now it was
4:38
like 12:30 because they had they had we
4:40
were late getting in so now it's 12:30
4:43
and he says well you're going to have to
4:45
come back tomorrow and I said no we're
4:47
not coming back tomorrow so we we ran to
4:49
Kinkos and we got some I called my
4:51
financial guy and we got everything we
4:53
got everything sorted out and it was
4:54
fine but it they they really tried to do
4:58
that so in other words they said well
4:59
how long as it's going to be they said
5:00
before we get approval they said you
5:02
know could be a week could be two weeks
5:05
could be two months could be three
5:06
months and so we got home three months
5:08
later three weeks later we got approval
5:10
oh you you got your Visa oh that's
5:13
that's very that sounds really quick to
5:14
me it does the way here's the way things
5:16
work in the states and maybe in the UK
5:18
when you get a a license when you get a
5:20
a thing when you get it they mail it to
5:23
you not here they said you need to fly
5:26
back to San Francisco we flew back to
5:28
San Francisco to say that you know
5:30
carrying the hotel and everything it was
5:32
easily $1,000 so we go to San Francisco
5:35
we walk in they go here here you go
5:38
that's it and that was your nearest um
5:41
every there I think there maybe about a
5:43
dozen in the whole country but you know
5:45
you're we
5:47
were we're about 500 miles away from San
5:49
Francisco so that's nothing in the
5:51
states 500 miles you drive that in the
5:53
afternoon it's nothing yeah it's like in
5:56
the UK you've just got London or you've
5:58
got the one in Scotland haven't you
6:00
and I have to say you it's not just this
6:02
way around as well you I know that
6:03
European citizens and Spanish citizens
6:05
in Britain have no end of hassle with
6:07
getting their paperwork sorted as well
6:09
um certainly post brexit so um you know
6:11
I think it's the world over it is I
6:13
think it make it more and more difficult
6:15
but but the whole idea if you want to
6:16
get your card your fiveyear your
6:19
twoyear mail it to me yeah yeah Ma why
6:22
do I have to come in for everything why
6:24
do I have to stand there and you know
6:26
that's the thing I don't understand and
6:28
that that being said I I door living
6:30
here and it's been it's been a wonderful
6:32
yeah but in Spain you have to like when
6:33
I picked up my ti you had to go and give
6:35
your fingerprint you know so no one
6:38
could go for you so if you were unwell
6:39
or something there was no chance they
6:41
wouldn't mail it you had to go in person
6:44
they're very strict aren't they I think
6:46
I think it's three goes it took me it's
6:47
a throwback from the Franco era isn't it
6:49
when there was lots of red tape and it's
6:51
just carried on on on on three goes it
6:53
took me is that
6:56
right not cuz I couldn't get my
6:57
fingerprints right or anything it was
6:58
just that was that was the last time
7:00
that went it was just they turned me
7:02
down turned you down kept turning me
7:04
down was that criminal record was that
7:07
it no I don't have a are you a bad
7:09
driver I just didn't like the look of
7:11
him you can understand he walked in and
7:15
the guy said no seor no that was just
7:18
paperwork going in it was it was no a
7:20
few times but that happens that happens
7:22
I got someone to do the paperwork for me
7:24
so I didn't have to worry but I feel
7:25
sorry I had someone coming the other day
7:27
and give me their TI card and I noticed
7:30
that they'd put their date of birth as
7:33
2020 which meant this woman was only
7:35
four years old so now she's got to go
7:36
through it all again even though it's
7:38
their
7:38
mistake and get it all done again and
7:41
wait for the appointment so be very very
7:43
careful that you know they get
7:44
everything right for you all right but
7:46
ultimately you know it does work out in
7:48
the end for most people and it might be
7:51
a difficult process and as I was
7:52
pointing out it's not just here
7:54
difficult process in Britain for lots of
7:56
Europe everywhere it's across the world
7:57
I think at the moment it is um so uh
8:00
paperwork then be aware make sure that
8:02
you're ready for delays um I I guess
8:05
we've got out of that first part of uh
8:06
talking about getting and be patient
8:09
very patient and get everything
8:10
translated because they are a stickler
8:12
for that okay easily done in the states
8:14
getting Spanish translations though
8:16
thought um yeah yeah there are there are
8:18
people who do it you have to look it up
8:20
you have to Google it and get somebody
8:21
to do that but even even your financials
8:24
even the numbers you know numbers are
8:26
different expressed differently over
8:28
there you have a com instead of a
8:30
thought exactly exactly and it's uh
8:33
maybe you weren't as rich as you thought
8:34
you were rich I like I go is this all
8:36
the money I
8:38
have1
8:40
19 is all I have in my account so sorry
8:45
was that 19
8:46
million billion I'm not sure which we go
8:49
um so what about then investment and
8:52
pensions for us expat how can you bring
8:55
it here without breaking the rules I
8:57
think you've got to be very very careful
8:58
because we've just started dealing with
9:01
us experts we've got a US office and so
9:04
now we can deal with them and there's
9:05
this thing called pect which is the
9:07
passive foreign Investment Company
9:11
rules and you have to comply with it if
9:13
you deviate at all that the fines are so
9:18
punitive it is unbelievable so what it
9:22
means is basically if you invest in
9:24
anything that isn't us-based it has to
9:28
follow certain rules and I've got the
9:30
list here oh my God yeah oh oh right
9:35
they have certain rules that they have
9:37
to apply to companies foreign
9:38
corporations and they have to meet these
9:40
tests before you can invest in them so
9:42
one of them is the income test I think
9:44
75% more of the corporation's gross
9:46
income has to be passive income and
9:49
there's an asset test which means 50% of
9:52
the company's average assets have to
9:54
produce passive income or are held in a
9:57
product that is passive income so it's
9:59
very very confusing um and you have to
10:03
find out is the investment based or
10:05
regulated outside the USA is it a
10:08
collective investment um does the
10:11
investment do most of the work for you
10:12
I.E is it passive and you have to make
10:14
sure that everything you have is perect
10:17
compliant and one thing you can't do is
10:19
you can't invest in open or ended funds
10:22
open or close sorry funds and ETFs now
10:25
ETFs are my favorite because they're
10:27
lowcost easy to invest in so ETS you can
10:30
only invest in them if they're domiciled
10:32
in the UK in the US sorry if they're not
10:34
you can't so what we're offering at
10:37
Black Tower is this service where you
10:39
come to us and we have got a couple of
10:41
discretionary fund man managers that
10:43
have put together pit compliant
10:46
investment portfolios so it means you
10:48
will never ever fall fail of this rule
10:51
so you don't have to worry and what they
10:53
do is they will give you all the reports
10:56
you need so they give you the tax
10:58
reporting for the IR
11:00
everything so you don't have to worry
11:02
that they're going to suddenly come to
11:03
you and say look you've got one and even
11:05
if your investment is say
11:08
0.5% of your portfolio is nonp compliant
11:12
the whole thing is nonp wow okay so you
11:15
have to be very very careful and if
11:17
you've got a nonp compliant investment
11:20
and then it becomes compliant that
11:22
doesn't apply because it was once
11:24
non-compliant so you have to be so very
11:27
very careful how does it work is there a
11:29
curs for pensions come like we have for
11:32
Brits it's mostly Investments the Cs
11:34
anything to do with pensions we tend to
11:36
hand over to our us office who will deal
11:39
with it in the US and make sure it's
11:41
compliant with everything that you need
11:43
in the US and people move their money
11:45
here or do they keep it in the usw
11:47
Investments they tend well it depends if
11:49
they move here most some of them do
11:51
change their Investments to here okay
11:53
because they need someone to advise them
11:55
here and it's very you know people our
11:58
financial advisor in the US on
12:00
investment portfolios can't advise them
12:02
because exactly the same as we've seen
12:03
with the UK but with the pensions it's
12:06
all done through the US office because
12:08
there's different pension regulations
12:10
and they have to take special exams and
12:12
it's very very complicated oh my God
12:15
pension rules in the US I think they're
12:17
bad here and in the UK so we have a team
12:20
in the US who do that I had one
12:22
gentleman who used to live in denya he
12:23
moved to Florida he has a cure Ops and
12:26
so I've handed him over to the USX but
12:29
because I don't want him to fall fall
12:30
fail of any us tax laws or any
12:33
investment laws within his portfolio I
12:35
don't want him to have any fines or any
12:36
worries you know he's he's in his late
12:38
70s early well nearly 80 and you want
12:42
peace of mind you don't want to be
12:43
sitting there thinking have I done the
12:44
right thing but if you are a us exper
12:46
and you're living in Spain or Portugal
12:49
we've doing quite a lot of business with
12:50
us say it's not just um Spain either and
12:53
France um we can actually sort out your
12:56
Investments for you to make sure they
12:58
are perect compliant and we've actually
13:00
got this deal with a company in the US
13:03
and they're called I have to find hbi
13:05
global provid a no cost in initial tax
13:08
consult consultation when you're
13:11
referred by black toil so they will make
13:13
sure that you are IRS tax compliant and
13:16
you know what the IRS is like it's not
13:18
very nice if it gets hold of you not
13:19
nice people they're not into it for fun
13:23
you know I I used Al They probably do
13:25
enjoy it themselves I used to have
13:26
another job but this is way too much did
13:29
you did you work no
13:31
no I I was I was about to get some
13:34
machete no I can't threaten violence
13:37
I've I've never even gotten a call from
13:39
there I've never even dealt with these
13:41
people all right so um if people are
13:43
moving to Spain what can a US citizen
13:46
expect would the pension be taxed in
13:48
Spain for instance well if you take
13:50
income obviously you've got double
13:51
taxation treaties so you can't be taxed
13:53
tce okay but obviously it's like the UK
13:56
if it has to be taxed in the US it will
13:58
and then any extra tax will be deducted
14:00
by the Spanish authorities so is there a
14:03
limit amount no why is there a limit I'm
14:06
asking is there gosh they'll take as
14:08
much tax from you as they possibly
14:10
can you know sort of a level you can go
14:12
to where they won't take any tax from
14:14
you no it's just get taxed anyway there
14:16
is it's Fantasy Land it is you know the
14:18
more taxes they're putting in each day
14:20
some will just give them our money and
14:21
they'll give us a little slipp it bit a
14:23
little bit back for us to spend you know
14:25
there's tax on everything but no you
14:26
have to be very very careful and as we
14:29
know in Spain different regions have
14:32
different tax rules and that's where
14:35
people get very very confused a bit more
14:37
complicated yeah because in France it's
14:39
just one rule for the whole country same
14:40
for Portugal but in Spain you move from
14:43
Al County to Mia it changes you go to
14:46
and Lucia it changes you go to Barcelona
14:49
it changes so wherever you live it's
14:51
really important that you get the
14:52
correct advice and also you know you're
14:54
compliant with what the US want because
14:56
they've got much bigger teeth than
14:58
anyone else and they could be a little
15:00
bit more nasty I realize that apart from
15:03
well along with Panama Costa Rica
15:05
Ecuador Greece B I used to live there
15:08
Nicaragua the Philippines Portugal is
15:10
the country where uh there is a tax-free
15:14
requirement for Americans abroad so it's
15:16
quite a good one then yeah and there
15:18
used to be in Portugal a really good tax
15:21
uh loophole with your pensions so lots
15:23
of people moved but that's being closed
15:24
now and Portugal did stop the golden
15:26
Visa but I've just read something today
15:28
they might be starting up again I
15:30
haven't I because they're having a
15:31
changing government so I'm not sure
15:33
what's going on there I know Spain is
15:35
having problems with uh stopping the
15:37
golden Visa because they don't know what
15:38
legislation to use to stop it right so
15:41
offic officially the golden Visa has not
15:44
stopped no no people are still applying
15:46
and still them we heard that it was
15:48
going to it was going to be it will
15:50
eventually when they can figure out
15:52
they're trying to sneak it through
15:54
Parliament attached to another bill so
15:56
people don't question it but obviously
15:58
it's a very Hot Topic because it affects
16:01
a lot of people um and they're trying to
16:03
find the right legal statute or wording
16:06
whatever you want to say to make sure
16:08
they can pass this through at the moment
16:10
you can still get golden people are
16:12
still applying and they're still getting
16:13
them and they're actually quite quick as
16:14
well so at the moment they are doing it
16:16
very very quickly um so I think you know
16:19
they must get paid a lot to push them
16:20
through um I shouldn't say that on air
16:22
but maybe that's the case but no they
16:24
are still here at the moment and in
16:26
Portugal I did read something just
16:27
before I came out saying they're looking
16:29
at the golden Visa again because it's
16:30
the EU that's been pushing for the Stop
16:32
they don't don't like it all no they're
16:35
saying that it's it's in it's it's
16:38
compatible with um their values or yeah
16:40
it's going to the wrong type of people
16:42
if you look at the most people have
16:43
Chinese and Russians Chinese and
16:45
Russians are the most people have got
16:46
the Visas and you know the EU the
16:49
America anti-china anti-russian at the
16:52
moment and you know what in the US too
16:54
they're they're taking a good hard look
16:56
at at how many Chinese people can buy
16:58
certain Parcels of land we know that
17:01
obviously just had the big EV thing from
17:04
the US Europe are now doing it as well
17:05
so and also the Chinese have bought up
17:07
most of South America if you look at
17:09
what they're doing in Peru Etc so
17:11
they're trying to get a foothold in the
17:12
world um you know they're offering the
17:14
money incentives and you've got to stop
17:16
this I think to a certain degree um but
17:20
for Golden visa for some people was the
17:23
only Visa they could apply for you know
17:25
they needed to work or and if you go for
17:28
the non-lucrative you've got to have
17:29
that income from Investments or pensions
17:33
so it has proved very very difficult so
17:34
if anyone is thinking of applying for a
17:36
golden Visa you know I'd get it in as
17:38
soon as possible and get it sorted out
17:40
ASAP before they find a way to pass it
17:42
through good advice okay people thinking
17:44
about moving from the US then and need
17:46
to talk about their Investments and
17:47
their pensions Christina who do they
17:49
talk to they can get in touch with
17:51
myself and I what well that's amazing
17:55
stop it stop it and I was going to add a
17:57
caveat to that and if I can't help them
17:59
I'll pass them on to the correct person
18:01
in the US who can um so yeah if you just
18:04
email our normal email which is info@
18:07
black toow FM that stands for financial
18:09
management.com and put for the attention
18:11
of Christina it will come through to me
18:13
someone will phone you just to make sure
18:15
who you need to talk to and we will try
18:17
and help you but if you've got any
18:18
questions at all if you are a US expert
18:20
and you're not sure please get in touch
18:22
one of our experts will be able to help
18:24
you and even if it's a taxation query as
18:26
I said we've got this company that will
18:28
give you the initial consultation free
18:30
you might as well take them up on that
18:31
offer if you're referred by turn down
18:33
free don't don't screw up at the
18:35
government no don't come to your taxes
18:38
yeah cuz they are little they are little
18:40
b s t r DS's I knew there'd be one word
18:43
like that in there somewhere today thank
18:45
you Christina thanks for your your info
18:48
on on that uh and we'll catch up again
18:51
in fact I think you're on with Moody
18:52
next time um talking about various
18:55
different Investments sure but he's a
18:58
bit of isn't he well he's standing in
19:00
the corner that's why said that's right
19:02
because he's being punished that's why
#Retirement & Pension
#Travel Guides & Travelogues