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Tax Havens: Are the Bahamas all they’re cracked up to be?

Posted November 15, 2007

“Once upon a time, the Bahamas were known as one of the primary offshore tax havens. The Bahamas boasted strict financial and banking secrecy. It still imposes little or no taxes on foreign investors and bank account holders - but other things have changed.” — Bob Baumann

Blogger’s Note: This article first appeared on the site of our friends from Sovereign Society. As the political climate shifts back toward one of engineered class envy and socialization of private property, it is again becoming imperative to look at options to protect your assets from the long reach of the collectivists. TodaysFinancialNews.com will be working with the privacy and asset protection specialists from Sovereign Society to bring you the most accurate and actionable information to protect what is yours.

by Bob Bauman, Today’sFinancialNews.com

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Baltimore — (TFN): A few years ago, The Bahamas ran an international tourism campaign, using the suggestive slogan: “It’s Better in The Bahamas.” The clever marketers never said what “it” was. That was left to the eye (and imagination) of the beholder. Although, the accompanying photos showed white sandy beaches adorned with beautiful young ladies in skimpy swimsuits.

As far as tourism, The Bahamas is indeed a wonderful, friendly place to relax and vacation. I’ve been there many times, including six days last week at The Sovereign Society’s Offshore Advantage Academy on Paradise Island.

I always enjoy my stay and the people I meet. And The Bahamas is only minutes from the U.S. mainland by air, and only hours by boat - perhaps too close for comfort, as I explain below.

Back in a Simpler Time - Pre 2000

Once upon a time, The Bahamas was known as one of the primary offshore tax havens. The Bahamas boasted strict financial and banking secrecy. It still imposes little or no taxes on foreign investors and bank account holders - but other things have changed.

Four years ago next month, I got a reaction in the Bahamian news media with an article in this space entitled: “The Bahamas: 51st State?”

We were flattered that the Bahamians active in the offshore financial community cared enough about The Sovereign Society’s opinion to take note of that particular A-Letter.

What caused a stir was my opinion about The Bahamas parliament approval of a Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with the United States in December, 2003. This was the very treaty that The Bahamas had resisted for many decades.

The TIEA allows the exchange of tax information about Americans with Bahamian accounts. Plus, it applies to all criminal and civil tax matters. I went on to say that the TIEA was another nail in the coffin for The Bahamas lasting as an offshore financial center for Americans.

During the 20th century, these islands off the southeast coast of America blossomed into a major tax and asset protection haven. It was especially useful for citizens of the nearby United States. This island nation offered foreigners tax exemption. The Bahamas also had a series of well-crafted laws allowing international business corporations (IBCs), trusts, offshore banks and insurance - all wrapped in maximum financial privacy, strictly protected by law.

Then in December 2000, the Free National Movement (FNM) government, (currently back in power since May 2007 elections), passed what some locals called the “11 bills of Christmas.” In just one month, they managed to seriously weaken offshore financial and banking laws - especially in all aspects of privacy.

The government wrote many of these laws with the advice of U.S. government “advisors” from the U.S. Treasury and the IRS who were all sent to pressure the Nassau government… causing irreparable economic damage. Read on!

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