7% flat tax for people retiring to Italy...T&Cs apply

This is a fantastic piece of news for people looking to retire to Italy.  Italy has decided to follow a much admired Portuguese route to bringing more money into the country.    

Christmas means Christmas

I think this might well be my last blog of this calendar year...and what a year it has been. 

Tax Reporting or Tax Planning?

REPORT /rɪˈpɔːt/ verb gerund or present participle: reporting give a spoken or written account of something that one has observed, heard, done, or investigated.   PLANNING /ˈplanɪŋ/ noun the process of making plans for something.

TAX REPORTING OR TAX PLANNING WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?  I am often contacted online for help on calculating Italian tax liabilities for English speaking 'stranieri' living or thinking of living in Italy, but I have a confession to make:  I am NOT a commercialista.

It's a matter of fact...not choice

It seems evident that Brexit will now have a have a serious impact on a number of we Brits living in Italy.

The No Deal Checklist

As you are probably well aware, I am part of the group British in Italy which was set up to campaign to protect the rights of British citizens in Italy post Brexit. I am very proud to say that one of the members of this group has put together a very comprehensive list (non-exhaustive) of things that you may need to do to prepare for a No Deal Brexit scenario, which after today's meeting in Brussels, seems to be becoming an ever-closer reality. 

PEOPLES' VOTE MARCH - LONDON 20TH OCTOBER 2018

I participated in the Peoples' Vote march in London on Saturday 20th October with other members of the British in Italy group. 

The Bond market with ultimately take Italy down...

Taking back control...

Possible Scudo Fiscale?

The Fiscal Shield may return. It sounds like something from the new Avengers movie series. 

Italy goes BOOM!

For Italian politics it looks like it will be the continuation of an interesting battle with the EU, games with the world financial markets and internal cat fighting between the various factions. 

BREXIT It's not just Deal or NO deal

The urgency of the moment is certainly Brexit and we will see whether a deal can be reached with the EU this autumn.  

My soap box moment on taxes!

I love my soap box moment. You see, I have been wanting to write this formally for a long time but never really had the opportunity to do so. I would go on record as saying that I am actually in favour of the radical overhaul of the Italian tax system and whilst I see this proposed flat tax regime as being a little unequally distributed, I do think it’s necessary and despite what the bankers, economists and bureaucrats tell us, I actually think it would be a good thing for Italy. 

All this talk of a flat tax

The current political environment in Italy is one which I find very interesting, notably in how it is perceived in foreign media and presented to us through the usual media outlets.

Are you one of the 30,000?

You will be aware that since January 2016 the Common Reporting Standard has now been in effect. 

Are taxes in Italy really 'that' complicated?

As I walk my son to school in the morning we have the opportunity to walk through the palazzo of an 'Archivio di Stato' in the centre of Rome. 

Preparing 'THE' folder

Living in a foreign country is never easy, but have you thought how complicated it would be for your family if you die suddenly? 

Hands off my pension!

Hands off my pension!   As promised, I thought I would follow up with my last Ezine on the complicated issue of trusts, with a less complicated issue of the tax treatment of pensions / retirement funds in Italy.

SELLING UK PROPERTY AS AN ITALIAN RESIDENT

Selling UK property as an Italian resident.  It’s always good to review certain subjects again and I was recently talking to someone about selling rental / second home property in the UK and the potential tax consequences of doing so. If you have held the property for more than 5 years, from acquisition or inheritance (and excluding any emotional or sentimental attachment to the property for the purposes of this discussion) then the sale of a property could be a tax planning opportunity rather than a consequence.

TRUST IN ME!

Trust in me!  Quite recently I was watching the Disney movie Jungle Book with my son. I am sure that you remember the film. You may also remember the snake in the film, named Kaa, who tries on a couple of attempts to eat the 'man cub - Mowgli'. If you happen to watch the film again you will see that he sings a song to hypnotise Mowgli, that song is called 'Trust in Me'.

My Cittadinanza Application

An update on my Cittadinanza Application

Many of you ask me how my application for Italian Citizenship is going and I like to give you regular updates. Well, you may remember that I have been waiting for an update on the Ministero dell'Interno website which has been a on a 'hold' status for 5½ months.   About a week ago that all changed.   I have been contacted!   My application is now showing as 'in process' and I have summoned to contact the Prefettura to make an appointment and go along with original documents.   I am not sure if 5½ months is a good indication from submission of application to 'in process' but for those of you who are still waiting, hang in there! As and when I have been to the Prefettura I will let you know how it went. 

THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

If you have been following the news recently you will have seen recent wobbles in global stock markets.  A wobble in the best sense because they fell, rose, fell again and seem to have stabilized for the moment.  The main issue driving this volatility is the threat of inflation.  

THE EU TAX CLAMPDOWN

On the 5th December 2017 the EU went one step further in its aim to clampdown on International tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance.  

IF IN DOUBT, DECLARE THE ACCOUNT

The start of 2018 presents an interesting challenge that I am not used to.  My quandary reminds me of my days at the school swimming pool. The water was always cold. The question was do I jump in and get it over with in one go or do I ease myself into the water gently and take it slower?