Schiff Sovereign's Take on Andorra
Andorra is a tiny and gorgeously beautiful country up in the Pirenees, sandwiched between France and Spain.
It is a nature lover’s paradise. There’s great skiing in winter and lots of outdoor activities in summer. And it’s sunny all year long. If you are from the US, weather-wise, Andorra is a bit like Colorado.
Curiously, Andorra never signed up for European Union membership, and it is one of the lowest-taxed places in Europe.
Historically, there was no income tax at all, but now they charge a flat 10% tax if you earn more than €40,000. The Value Added Tax is 4.5%. Both are low by European standards.
And most of your investment income remains tax-free. There is still no wealth, gift, inheritance or capital gains taxes on most types of property. Many French and Spanish nationals have relocated to Andorra to lower their taxation.
It also helps that Andorra is surprisingly inexpensive, especially considering how developed the place is. It is also one of the safest environments you will ever encounter.
Business-wise, Andorra is a tiny market, so it’s hard to go big there. But you could certainly run an online business from there.
From a lifestyle perspective, Andorra can feel a bit remote. It doesn’t have a commercial airport or a train station. To get there, you will most likely fly into Barcelona and then drive for three hours to get there.
You can become a resident in Andorra by investing around €350,000 in local real estate or financial instruments. There is also a cheaper way to get in – by running a local business.
And reportedly, the country also plans to roll out their own version of electronic residency, similar to Estonia’s e-residency, which will make it easy to form and run a company within Andorra’s low tax environment. However, the plans were put on hold due to the pandemic.
But you can probably forget about becoming a dual citizen in Andorra. For starters, you will have to spend between 10 and 20 years as a resident to qualify, and you will also need to renounce your existing citizenship.
It is a nature lover’s paradise. There’s great skiing in winter and lots of outdoor activities in summer. And it’s sunny all year long. If you are from the US, weather-wise, Andorra is a bit like Colorado.
Curiously, Andorra never signed up for European Union membership, and it is one of the lowest-taxed places in Europe.
Historically, there was no income tax at all, but now they charge a flat 10% tax if you earn more than €40,000. The Value Added Tax is 4.5%. Both are low by European standards.
And most of your investment income remains tax-free. There is still no wealth, gift, inheritance or capital gains taxes on most types of property. Many French and Spanish nationals have relocated to Andorra to lower their taxation.
It also helps that Andorra is surprisingly inexpensive, especially considering how developed the place is. It is also one of the safest environments you will ever encounter.
Business-wise, Andorra is a tiny market, so it’s hard to go big there. But you could certainly run an online business from there.
From a lifestyle perspective, Andorra can feel a bit remote. It doesn’t have a commercial airport or a train station. To get there, you will most likely fly into Barcelona and then drive for three hours to get there.
You can become a resident in Andorra by investing around €350,000 in local real estate or financial instruments. There is also a cheaper way to get in – by running a local business.
And reportedly, the country also plans to roll out their own version of electronic residency, similar to Estonia’s e-residency, which will make it easy to form and run a company within Andorra’s low tax environment. However, the plans were put on hold due to the pandemic.
But you can probably forget about becoming a dual citizen in Andorra. For starters, you will have to spend between 10 and 20 years as a resident to qualify, and you will also need to renounce your existing citizenship.
