As safe as money in the bank
By Spectrum IFA
This article is published on: 24th July 2014
More than a fifth of UK citizens think that the best long-term investment is putting their money in the bank. This is the rather discouraging result of a July survey by Bankrate.
One of its questions was, “For money you wouldn’t need for more than 5 years, which one of the following do you think would be the best way to invest your money?”
- 26% – cash
- 23% – real estate
- 16% – precious metals
- 14% – stock market
- 8% – bonds
That thumping sound you hear is me banging my head on my desk!!
I assume those who opted for cash did so because keeping money in the bank seemed to be the safest choice.
However, for long-term investing, that safety is an illusion. The best and safest place to put your nest egg for the future is not in the bank, but in a well-diversified portfolio with a variety of asset classes. And here’s why:
Savings accounts and CDs are safe places to store relatively small amounts of cash that you expect to need within the next few months. The funds are protected by insurance. You know exactly where your money is, and you can get your hands on it anytime you want.
This short-term safety does not make the bank a good place for the money you will need for retirement or for other needs five years or so into the future. It may seem like safe investing because the amount in your account never goes down. You’re always earning interest. Yet, over time, that interest isn’t enough to keep pace with inflation.
The purchasing power of your money decreases, which means you’re actually losing money. It just doesn’t feel like a loss because you don’t see the loss in its value.
In contrast, the stock market fluctuates. The media constantly reports that it is “up” or “down” as if those day-to-day numbers actually matter. This fosters a perception that investing in the stock market is risky.
Combine that with the scarcity of education about finances and economics, and it’s no wonder that so many people are actually afraid of the stock market and view investing almost as a form of gambling.
Wise long-term investing in the stock market is anything but gambling. Instead of trying to buy and sell a few stocks as their prices go up and down, wise investors neutralize the impact of market fluctuations by owning a vast assortment of assets.
This is accomplished with a two-part strategy.
The first is to invest in mutual funds rather than individual stocks.
The second component is asset class diversification. The mutual funds you invest in will comprise all of the asset classes in proportions or percentages falling in line with your appetite for risk (conservative, moderately conservative, moderate/balanced, fairly aggressive, high risk). Ideally, a diversified portfolio should include at least four asset classes.
By holding small amounts of a great many different companies and asset classes, you spread your risk so broadly that the inevitable fluctuations are small ripples rather than steep gains or losses. As some types of investments decline in value, other types will be gaining value. Over the long term, the entire portfolio grows.
In the long term, investing in this way is usually safer than money in the bank.
Perhaps you are holding too much capital in bank accounts and are beginning to realize you will see no “real growth” thereon. Why not give me a call to arrange a mutually convenient time for us to get together to investigate better ways of having your money grow for you? It does no harm in checking and, who knows, you may come away pleasantly surprised.
“With money in your pocket, you are wise, and you are handsome, and you sing well too.”
Jewish Proverb
An Inflationary Tale
By Spectrum IFA
This article is published on: 20th July 2014
An Inflationary Tale
Inflation is a complicated concept. It’s not easy to understand but if ignored, your money will slowly and stealthily reduce. As a teenager growing up in the 70’s I would hear the newscasters talk about inflation and price controls yet could never tell if it was a good or bad thing. Interest rates were going up as were house prices and income. This had to be a good thing I thought but little did I know!. What I learned later in life as I studied inflation is that, like most things, inflation is a double-edged sword. There are winners and there are losers. It is good for some and bad for others. As you read this tale focus on the two main concepts about inflation. Learn what it is and what it means to an investment portfolio.
What Does The Word Inflation Actually Mean?
Type the word “inflation” into a search engine on your computer and you will probably get information informing you that inflation is “A rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation reflects an erosion of the buying power of your money – a loss of real value. A chief measure of price inflation is the inflation rate, the annualized percentage change in a general price index (normally the Consumer Price Index) over time.” If you are like me and read the above definition you are thinking blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. So since the objective of this Newsletter is to keep things simple, let’s just translate this to what it means to you as an investor.
I like to think of inflation in terms of what $100 can buy in the future if I don’t invest it today. Let’s say, for example, if I make 0% rate of return on my $100 bill because I either put it under my mattress or buried it in the ground or kept it in a safety deposit box and then a few years later I want to know what it can buy. This is what inflation means to the investor or consumer. What that $100 can buy is called purchasing power and purchasing power is directly proportional to the rate of inflation. The following table shows what $100 un-invested can buy at different inflation rates over different time periods. I call it my “Mattress Investing table” because it teaches us that you can’t put money under your mattress unless you want to guarantee that you will slowly erode the value of your money.
Mattress Investing
(The Loss of Purchasing Power Associated with Not Investing $100.00)
| Inflation Rate | 5 years | 10 years | 15 years | 20 years | 25 years | 30 years |
| 0% | $100 | $100 | $100 | $100 | $100 | $100 |
| 1% | $95.10 | $90.44 | $86.01 | $81.79 | $77.78 | $73.97 |
| 2% | $90.39 | $81.71 | $73.86 | $66.76 | $60.35 | $54.55 |
| 3% | $85.87 | $73.74 | $63.33 | $54.38 | $46.70 | $40.10 |
| 4% | $81.54 | $66.48 | $54.21 | $44.20 | $36.04 | $29.39 |
| 5% | $77.38 | $59.87 | $46.33 | $35.85 | $27.74 | $21.46 |
| 6% | $73.39 | $53.86 | $39.53 | $29.01 | $21.29 | $15.63 |
| 7% | $69.57 | $48.40 | $33.67 | $23.42 | $16.30 | $11.34 |
| 8% | $65.91 | $43.44 | $28.63 | $18.87 | $12.44 | $8.20 |
| 9% | $62.40 | $38.94 | $24.30 | $15.16 | $9.46 | $5.91 |
| 10% | $59.05 | $34.87 | $20.59 | $12.16 | $7.18 | $4.24 |
How should an investor read this table?
Investors should understand that if they keep money in a mattress for 15 years and the inflation rate over 15 years is 5% per year their $100 can only buy $46.33 worth of “Stuff” 15 years later. If inflation were to average 7% for 30 years their $100 could only buy $11.34 worth of “Stuff.” I know it’s silly to think that anyone would keep their money in a mattress but the reason I use the table above is because it illustrates the important concept about inflation which is loss of purchasing power. Inflation in and of itself is meaningless. What matters to people is what inflation causes which is the loss of purchasing power. As an example, when I get in my car to drive I have a rudimentary notion of how the engine functions. People that know me know I’m not mechanically inclined. I do however know how the steering wheel works. To an investor, inflation is the engine while purchasing power is the steering wheel. You can be completely oblivious to how an engine works and still be an excellent driver. So, if you are so inclined you can spend a disproportionate amount of time studying how the engine works or the nuances of inflation or you can learn how to drive and invest your money to combat the loss of purchasing power. How to invest your money to combat inflation is discussed in A Preservation Tale. I’ll give you a little hint—I am not a Gold Bug but if you put a $100 gold coin under your mattress instead of a $100 bill you have a much better chance of preserving purchasing power during inflationary times.
So once again, how should an investor read the Mattress Investing table?
Let’s focus on the 3% inflation rate since that has been a good approximation for so many decades. What this table shows is that if the inflation rate is 3% and you keep your $100 under your mattress, in 5 years it will only buy $85.87 worth of “Stuff.” I like to use the technical term “Stuff” to describe purchasing power!. To investors, the intended use of a $100 bill is to be able to buy “Stuff.” In and of itself the $100 bill is worthless. Its only value is the amount of “Stuff” it can buy. In this case it can only buy $85.87 worth of “Stuff” so the Mattress Investor has lost $14.13 of “Stuff” by keeping it in his mattress or not investing it. When you hear the term Loss of Purchasing Power it means “Stuff” you can’t buy!.
This leads directly to what I consider the minimum objective for investors and one of my maxims.
The purpose of investing should be to at a minimum maintain your purchasing power. I believe you should invest so that you don’t lose your “Stuff.”
Learn
So what can we learn from this tale that puts money in our pocket? Who wins and who loses from inflation? By now it should be clear that at any inflation rate greater than 0% you must make more than 0% on your money in order to maintain purchasing power. Yet when guaranteed interest rates are not accommodative, like they are today and have often been in the past, the investor must invest in non-guaranteed investments to maintain purchasing power. For investors that have read tales such as this one this presents a quandary. They can intelligently ask themselves, if I want a guarantee and guaranteed rates are so low that I can’t preserve purchasing power then I must accept a loss of purchasing power. However, if I want an opportunity to maintain purchasing power I must assume risk. This is the never-ending portfolio management question that is forever on every investor’s mind and will be at every stage of their life. While most investors answer this question by forgoing guaranteed returns in order to not just maintain purchasing power but to potentially increase purchasing power, others do not. There are investors that choose to avoid risk at all cost and are knowingly watching their purchasing power slowly erode.
Unfortunately, the sad circumstance for most risk-averse investors is that they behave as they do out of ignorance or fear and not based on knowledge. Many are willing to invest their money in bank CDs, money market funds and government bonds at below required levels just to keep it guaranteed. The only guarantee they’re getting during most periods is the guarantee of a loss in purchasing power. When and if there is increased inflation these are the people that will also suffer the most.
Warren Buffet
Lastly, I have included a paragraph from a 1977 article written by Warren Buffett for Fortune Magazine on inflation. Inflation was a big deal back then though we tend to dismiss it today since it’s been so low for so long. But I thought the paragraph would be appropriate since it is easy-to-understand writing and he has a unique way of thinking about inflation as a tax. If you think of it the same way you will quickly understand that inflation is a consumer of your capital. We as a society take to the streets if there is so much as a hint of our elected officials raising our taxes. Yet we have no problem when we willingly or out of ignorance tax ourselves by investing in below inflation rate guaranteed investments. The following is taken straight from the article.
“What widows don’t notice”
By Warren Buffet
The arithmetic makes it plain that inflation is a far more devastating tax than anything that has been enacted by our legislatures. The inflation tax has a fantastic ability to simply consume capital. It makes no difference to a widow with her savings in a 5 percent passbook account whether she pays 100 percent income tax on her interest income during a period of zero inflation, or pays no income taxes during years of 5 percent inflation. Either way, she is “taxed” in a manner that leaves her no real income whatsoever. Any money she spends comes right out of capital. She would find outrageous a 120 percent income tax, but doesn’t seem to notice that 6 percent inflation is the economic equivalent.
If you are concerned that your money is not achieving returns equal to or higher than the inflation rate or wish to review your portfolio so as to make sure it is geared to do so, then please do not hesitate to give me a call.
How to Invest – Basic Investing Strategies
By Spectrum IFA
This article is published on: 19th July 2014
Have you applied these when making an investment?
Recently, while talking to an expat who has been living in Barga in Tuscany for many years, he confided in me that he thought he could invest without advice from other professional quarters. However, after seeing some of his investments post no real returns (ie the net return after inflation is factored in), he was in a quandary as he felt he would “lose face” by speaking to a qualified independent financial adviser. And he also added that he had friends living close by who had shared the same experience.
Learning how to invest your money is one of the most important lessons in life. You don’t need to be college educated to start investing. In fact, you don’t even need to be a high school graduate. You just need to have a basic understanding of business and have the confidence to make a plan — consider it a business plan for your life. You can do it.
Why investing can be scary
For many of us, money and investments weren’t discussed at home. These subjects may even be taboo within certain households — quite possibly, in households that don’t have much money or investments.
If your parents or loved-ones were not financially independent, they probably did not give you good financial advice (despite their best intentions). And even if your family is/was well-off, there’s no guarantee that their financial advice makes or made sense to you. Plenty of parents encouraged their kids to buy a house during the peak of the housing bubble, because in their lifetimes, housing prices only ever went up.
The goal of investing
Of course, everyone has different financial goals — and the more you learn, the more confident you’ll be in determining your own path. But here’s a basic financial goal to strive toward:
Over decades of hard work, most people who are about to retire or those who have already retired, would like to make more money than they spend and then invest the difference. By the time they retire, they would like their investments to throw off enough cash — through dividends or interest – so that they can live on this income without having to sell any investments.
Notice the first part of this goal is about hard work. If you’re hoping to take a little bit of money and gamble it into a fortune in the stock market, you can stop reading now, this article isn’t written for you. But if you have worked for a few decades, and want to make sure that you don’t have to work until life’s end, you’ll need to spend less than you make and invest the difference.
Also, you’ll notice that this goal doesn’t recommend selling your investments. Rich people don’t sell-off their assets for spending money — if they did they wouldn’t be rich for long. They stay rich because their assets provide enough cash flow to support their lifestyle. And these cash-producing assets, through careful estate planning, can be passed down from generation to generation.
Enjoying your twilight years by living off your investment income and having something left over for your loved ones or for a charitable organization is something that all investors should aspire to. It may not be possible for everyone, but it’s the right attitude.
What to invest in?
Before you even start to look at this area, it is absolutely imperative that a “proper” financial risk analysis of yourself is carried out. And this does not take the form of much-used generalised risk questionnaires (that would be like you or your wife doing a compatibility quiz in a woman’s magazine!!) No, the emphasis is on the words “proper risk analysis”
Once this has been done you move on to the most important factor in investment planning.
Diversification (or, Spreading the Risk)
Many, many investors are under the impression that if they have, say, a term deposit at bank/institution A, another at B, and a third at C, they are diversifying. They could not be more wrong.
When investing one looks at doing so across what is commonly referred to as Asset Classes. These comprise Cash (very Conservative Risk ie term deposit), Bonds (Moderate Risk), Equities (high risk) and Commercial Property (Moderately Aggressive Risk). Then, taking one’s appetite for risk (from the Risk Profiler), one invests across the Asset Classes accordingly.
The most common investments are mutual funds (unit trusts), insurance investments, bonds and the stock market. This article is not aimed at those with the time, experience, acumen and who can afford losses by direct share purchases.
Unit trusts/Mutual funds can own shares or bonds and with some commercial property exposure on your behalf.
Know the difference between saving and investing
Your investments and your savings are very different things. What if the stock market crashes? If you do not have a cash savings account to cover for emergencies (usually about six months’ income), you would probably have to sell your investments at the worst possible time. Don’t fall into this trap.
Being a successful investor requires money, patience and, just as importantly, confidence. Having confidence to make and stand-by your financial decisions requires education. Never stop learning.
When last did you do a “proper risk” analyser?
What applied five years ago is not going to necessarily be the same today. We are getting older and as the years go by, more often than not we tend to become more conservative. Hence the need to do a refresher where risk is concerned and then use this to analyse your investments in order to ensure the two correspond accordingly. If not, you actually run the danger of investing by default/error which could have a material impact on your life in the not-too-distant future.
If you realise from the above the importance of risk classification and correct diversification, just as you visit your doctor (or should) for an annual check-up, why not give me a call in order to facilitate a meeting where we can ascertain things. As the saying goes “you owe it to yourself!!
‘Risk’ (with an Italian flavour)
“If no one ever took risks, Michelangelo would have painted the Sistine floor”
Neil Simon, Playwright
Organize and simplify your financial portfolio
By Spectrum IFA
This article is published on: 9th July 2014
SIMPLICITY: freedom from complexity, intricacy, or division into parts: an organism of great simplicity.
In the course of my travels working alongside expat communities, one of the most frequent complaints raised by retirees is how complicated, tiresome and difficult it is to keep tabs on their financial affairs, primarily because they seem to have a host of different people advising them on a number of issues. So rather than enjoying their well-earned retirement, a lot of people seem to devote an excessive amount of time managing their financial affairs whilst trying to keep up to date with changes in the markets and changes in legislation etc.
This was confirmed by a recent survey of investors where 55 percent responded with the statement, “I am trying very hard to simplify my life”. This was up from 48 percent in the previous year. It seems that most people want simplicity in their lives but the truth is that many just don’t know how to go about it. We live in a world of i-phones, i-pads, e-statements and social media – we are constantly online and constantly contactable and so it is difficult to truly switch off.
One of my services is to help clients simplify their financial lives, eliminate clutter, organise accounts and streamline how they manage their money. This is where I can truly add value.
I help my clients to be as efficient as possible with their day-to-day money management by showing them how to make the best use of banking facilities in Italy (and save money in the process), showing them how to save money by paying bills online, using currency exchange services, looking at how to make the most of the tax credits in Italy, possibly moving UK pensions to other jurisdictions, wills, and managing investments more effectively.
By consolidating everything, you can reduce the levels of incoming mail and paperwork, avoid certain fees and also ensure that assets are properly diversified.
Example
In the course of a recent discussion with a prospective client I asked how their portfolio was being managed. He asked me to wait until he retrieved this information and, finally, some 10 minutes later produced approximately eight files each detailing different investments with a variety of companies.
On enquiring as to how each was performing and what their latest values were, he could not tell me, saying we’d have to obtain new statements and that he was “sick and tired of receiving so much investment correspondence, be it in the form of his own portfolio or marketing advice material that he seldom bothered to read through and normally threw them in the bin. At my suggestion we agreed to make another appointment and sit down, ring the various product providers and obtain up-to-date statements. Once this information was received we sat down and reviewed those elements that were performing well, those that were not so good and discussed what could be done to improve his overall situation. I recommended that rather than employing a financial planner, like myself, to manage the day to day investment management decisions, that based on the amount of money that he had invested, he should employ the services of a Private Client asset manager. In this way they could deal with the day to day investment matters and we could concentrate on how to minimise his cross border tax issues, reduce paperwork, and find ways to improve his overall financial position. This freed up time for him to concentrate on his other interests.
One Final Point
In this man’s situation he was clearly eligible for more sophisticated financial management than he had previously been used to, but was not aware he could access these types of services. Our job is to ensure all elements of your financial affairs are well maintained and that you get the best, based on your situation. By consolidating and streamlining financial affairs you have a real opportunity to help yourself manage the difficulties of cross border tax and financial issues that face expats living in Italy.
If you are over awed by the complexities of the Italian tax system or are concerned that you are not making the best use of tax breaks in Italy, or if you merely want your financial life to be simpler then you can contact The Spectrum IFA Group
Pilot Loss of License and Loss of Training Expenses Insurance
By Chris Burke
This article is published on: 26th June 2014
Aircrew undergo many years of hard work at substantial expense to attain their aviation license. However, a commercial pilot’s career and income are always at risk should they suffer serious injury or deterioration in health.
Pilots Loss of License Insurance provides financial support should your aviation career end abruptly; it provides stability while you retrain for a new career. Policies are available on an individual basis should your employer not provide it; similarly members can ‘top up’ their coverage in addition to their company’s existing group policy.
Loss of license insurance is specifically designed for pilots. As such, it negates many of the associated limitations of traditional group insurance products. For instance permanent health and critical illness insurance policies may provide limited cover and significantly reduced benefits in the instance of losing your license.
Who can we insure?
We can cover any individual commercial, fixed rotary or wing pilots including flight instructors, who hold a current license and who are gainfully employed, and actively at work.
Alternatively, if you’re interested in a group policy, please email us directly at chris.burke@spectrum-ifa.com
Key benefits
- Lump sum payment
- Monthly temporary benefit option
- Continuous coverage
- Full psychological illness cover option available
- Market leading cover for alcohol and drug related illnesses
- No extra charge for rotor-wing pilots
- Worldwide cover
I have worked extensively with aviation companies and individuals alike, please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.
Click here for a quote on Pilots Loss of License Insurance
The Full Spectrum
By Spectrum IFA
This article is published on: 26th May 2014
Having recently started working for the Spectrum IFA Group I thought it time I start a weekly Newsletter covering issues important to all of us, one way or another. Especially for expats who have made Italy their home/spend much of their time here. The main thrust/focus of my Newsletter is to impart in an easy-to-understand, but not too lengthy outline, important matters and up-to-date information to expats residing in my area on matters such as investments, tax and general financial planning issues. And being part of the Spectrum Group means I also have access to professionals in various fields of expertise.
So, taking the above into account, I thought a very good and apt place to start would be to give a broad overview of current happenings in world markets, as we are all affected one way or another, especially with the speed at which events are communicated.
Probably 95% of people I have assisted or advised has had or still has capital in the markets in one way or another. There are many ways this could occur, viz a Pension Fund, a Money Market Fund, an Insurance Policy, Unit Trusts (Mutual Funds) or direct Share Investment.
Markets go up and down, and likewise interest rates. And then we have inflation to factor in. We may not be affected by these movements in the short-term, but are almost certainly going to be in the longer term (five years onwards).
Hence the extreme importance of reviewing your finances on a regular basis, at the very least once a year, in order to ensure your investment aims and objectives are still on course. We are all told to have a thorough medical check-up once a year so as to ensure all our parts are functioning correctly. And we are willing to pay for this because we can appreciate the need – after all, we want to be on planet earth for as long as possible.
Likewise the common sense of having a proper financial check-up at least once a year. And in most cases this involves no fee but at the end of it one wants to walk away knowing everything is alright but, if not, then to be able to change the doctor’s prescription! And this gives us peace of mind.
Unfortunately many are the cases where we come across people who consult an advisor, but then forget to review or the advisor disappears and they fail to take remedial action to consult another.
There is so much “doom and gloom” about these days, so it is wonderful to read of or hear about news filtering through regarding the economies of the UK and EU which are quite positive, and this augers well for investors who have experienced a bit of a bumpy ride over the last 18 months and which offers potential for new would-be-investors or those who have been waiting. Matthias Thiel, market strategist at Hamburg-based M.M. Warburg, which is bullish on southern European assets. “The recovery story is playing out as expected,” he said.
The European Commission had, inter alia, the following to say in its Economic Forecast for EU countries……
- United Kingdom: Recovery takes hold, fiscal imbalances still sizeable
- Italy: A slow recovery is underway
- France: Recovery remains slow amid sizeable budget deficits
- Germany: Accelerated growth in the offing
- Portugal: Gradual economic recovery
- Greece: First signs of recovery
- Spain: The recovery becomes firmer while the re-balancing of the economy continues
It is very important to remember that markets experience upturns/good times (good times) as well as downturns (negative periods).
And economic experts never all agree! So when times are prosperous, out of, say, 100 experts, a third will have a certain view or opinion, a third exactly the opposite, and the remaining third will be neutral. And all will have convincing arguments to prove their respective outlook. But true, experienced economists, when asked what they think about a certain economic outlook will be honest enough to simply say “I do not know!”
Economies throughout the globe are all intrinsically linked together, and what happens in one country can impact on another, even if they are miles apart. Like that old adage “If America sneezes we in UK or Italy catch cold.
So, in conclusion, there is much to be positive about but with it comes a caveat: Do not put all of your eggs in one basket but spread your resources across the various asset classes.
In my next Newsletter we will focus on the different asset classes and what it means to diversify.
Until next time, ciao!!
Umbria Expat – Financial Surgeries
By Gareth Horsfall
This article is published on: 14th May 2014
- How do the latest Italian tax laws affect me?
- What are my financial obligations as a resident in Italy?
- How can I reduce the amount of tax I pay on savings and investments overseas?
And what taxes do I have to pay on these in Italy? - What is the retiree tax allowance in Italy and am I eligible for it?
- Are there other money saving opportunities that I can take advantage of in Italy?
If you would like to know the answers to these questions relating to life as an expat in Italy then Gareth Horsfall from The Spectrum IFA Group (Italy) will be holding a FREE, drop in, financial surgery on the following dates and times during the months of May and June 2014.
- 10:00AM – 1:00PM Friday 23rd May at Bar del Castello, Castiglione del Lago
- 10:00AM – 1:00PM Wednesday 28th May at Antico Caffè Giardino, Umbertide
- 10:00AM – 1:00PM Tuesday 3rd June, Bar del Castello, Castiglione del Lago
- 10:00AM – 1:00PM Wednesday 11th June, Antico Caffè Giardino, Umbertide
- 10:00AM – 1:00PM Tuesday 17th June, Bar del Castello, Castiglione del Lago
- 10:00AM – 1:00PM Wednesday 25th June, Antico Caffè Giardino, Umbertide
Addresses:
Bar del Castello,
Viale Belvedere 1,
Castiglione del Lago.
Antico Caffè Giardino,
Via Garibaldi 14,
06019 Umbertide
There is no charge for this service
If you would like to take advantage of Gareth’s availability on these dates then you can contact him in advance on gareth.horsfall@spectrum-ifa.com or on cell: 3336492356 or just pop along and feel free to pick his brains!
Witholding tax on overseas money transfers to Italy
By Gareth Horsfall
This article is published on: 15th April 2014
I would like to bring up the subject of the 20% witholding tax on profit from investment, for Italian residents. This piece of legislation that Italy was going to introduce in February and has now postponed until July. This seemed to be one of the main causes for concern amongst attendees at the recent Tour de Finance Forum events in Italy and so I thought I would write the little that I know of it to assist in preparation for its, possible, return.
To recap, the introduction of the law was aimed at automatically stopping 20% on any monies brought into Italy, from overseas, (for personal account holders only) on the assumption that this money was ‘profit from investment’ and not other types of income. Profit from investment can be clarified as rental income on properties overseas, sales of shares, bonds, or other types of financial assets.
Of course, stopping 20% on ALL transfers into Italy would also catch those who are legitimately bringing in pension income, income from employment, banks savings etc, and therefore to avoid the fiscal authorities automatically witholding 20% on these monies a self certification, in the guise of a letter, would need to be submitted to your bank to declare that this was NOT profit from investment. If you submitted the letter then your personal details would be passed to the fiscal authorities (who we can assume would then start to track your money movements through Internationally agreed exchange of information controls)
Now it is worth noting before I continue, that in essence the law itself was a smart move from the Italian fiscal authorities, in that it would force those who do not wish to be caught in the witholding tax to announce to the Italian authorities that they are bringing money in and out of the country. Hence, they are more easily trackable. In addition, and I think this is the more likely target, it would also force those who have not yet registered assets overseas with the Italian authorities, to do one of 2 things.
1. Carry on regardless and therefore run the risk that when they are found out they could be fined anywhere from 3-15% of the undisclosed assets, and should those assets be located in black list territories then those fines are doubled from 6 – 30% of the undisclosed value. Not advisable!
2. They self certify with the bank and as such are submitting a legally signed statement of intent. Should they then fail to report income from profit, when it enters the country, they have actually ‘knowingly’ broken the law.
Of course, all this is based on the assumption that someone is not declaring assets that they have overseas and for most this is not the case. So what about those of you who are doing what you should be doing?
Then, I believe, it becomes no more than another administrative headache. What I mean is that with a self certification letter the bank will not stop the witholding tax and so income can move freely into the country as it had previously done. However, let’s assume that you do want to bring some money in from an investment overseas, which has already been declared through the correct channels. Does this mean that you have to go back to the bank and request that this one transaction is treated differently, just this time and what if this is a regular occurence?
Also, what if you fail to declare that money is coming in from overseas profits on investment but this money is, once again, already declared legally on your tax return? Are you in breach of rules and therefore subject to fines?
Finally, so as not to drag the point out too much, what if the bank mistakenly witholds the tax on pension income, for example, which you need to live on? Can you easily reclaim this back? Doubtful! Or do you have to wait up to 2 years for a tax credit?
As we can see the legislation had some trivial issues which they needed to iron out, but, fundamentally it was an interesting move. The first of its kind that I have seen in Europe, where a direct attack on profit from investment overseas has come under the spotlight. Until now the main focus has been on bank interest payments and rental incomes for homes overseas. On March 24th 2014 the 2nd phase of the EU Savings Tax Directives was submitted for final approval which will now bring monies held in overseas investments funds, OEICS, SICAVs, Unit trusts etc, in the EU and outside, into an automatic exchange of information agreement. Additionally, Luxembourg and Austria will now be subject to full exchange of information agreements as of 1st January 2015 and other dependants states, such as the Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey, Dutch Antilles, San Marino etc will be required to share more information with the EU.
Lastly, and most interestingly, the proposed 20% witholding tax in Italy will likely raise its head again in July this year. But, in what shape or form, I cannot say. The report from Brussels in the aftermath of the first proposals was not as you would expect, a damning of the law. But in fact they openly supported the idea and suggested different ways of looking at implementation. Can we expect to see this Italian model being the model that Europe will use in the future?
So, for those who are not quite ‘in regola’ yet, time is of the essence. The transparency agreements are effectively opening the doors to hidden assets, bank account interest is tracked, rental income on overseas properties is tracked, now investment in foreign investment funds is under scrutiny. It is only a matter of time before income payments from direct investment in shares and bonds are fully disclosed, Capital gains, i.e profit on investment, is now under scrutiny, as detailed above and that only leaves Limited companies and other more obscure and substantially more speculative investments.
It is worth noting that one of the speakers on our Tour de Finance Forum events was Andrew Lawford from SEB Life International. He was explaining how it is perfectly possible to keep assets outside Italy, but be compliant with the laws of Italy, and remove the need to keep abreast of these changes in Italian law by employing the use of an insurance wrapper in which to house your assets. It acts like a tax efficient account whereby SEB Life International, in this case, will act as a witholding agent to ensure you do not pay more tax than you need to and that they become legally responsible for reporting the assets correctly.
It removes the worry of reporting error, keeps monies out of Italy and most importantly, whilst the money is held in the wrapper, it is never subject to Italian income or capital gains tax. Only at the point of withdrawal (partial or full) would any Capital Gains tax liability only, (not income tax) occur, which would be paid automatically on your behalf.
Finishing up on the new legislation, in whatever form it takes, will likely be no more than an administrative headache for most, but for those who, as yet, may have undisclosed assets, then more difficult decisions lie ahead. If you think anyone else might find this article useful, please do feel free to pass the information on and if you would like to speak about this or any other financial matter as an expat living in Italy, then plese get in touch.
A successful start – Le Tour de Finance, Italy
By Gareth Horsfall
This article is published on: 3rd April 2014
The Tour de Finance Forum (Italy) events in 2014 got off to a flying start with 2 events in Umbertide and Bagni di Lucca, respectively. Both events were well attended with approximately 30 attendees.
The events were a change from the norm, using the Forum style rather than powerpoint and structured presentations. Thank fully, the change of format worked incredibly well and both particpants and speakers alike gave credit to the new format.
The speakers on the day were Judith Ruddock (Studio del Gaizo Picchioni), Andrew Lawford (SEB Life International), Rob Walker (Jupiter Asset Management) and Peter Loveday (Currencies Direct) covering topics such as the latest rules on residency in Italy and tax returns, to tax efficient investment structures and will the Euro and Europe survive.
All in all the new format was more engaging and the content delivered in an easy to understand and manageable style.
We will be looking to hold further Tour de Finance Forum events in the autumn of 2014, in the Lucca and surrounding area and Le Marche.
We hope to see you there!
The Spectrum IFA Group Expands in Tuscany, Italy
By Spectrum IFA
This article is published on: 12th March 2014
The Spectrum IFA Group are delighted to announce that Peter Francis has joined the Italian team in the Lucca area.
Peter has worked in Financial Services for 25 years covering all aspects of financial planning and investment advice. Initially working within a large bank brokerage and then moving on to advising expats in Cyprus, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.
Commenting on this recent appointment, The Spectrum IFA Group’s manager in Italy, Gareth Horsfall comments that “ We are delighted to welcome Peter into the Italian team and his appointment high lights The Spectrum IFA Group’s commitment to extend our range of services and advisers in Italy and to provide expatriates with a wide range of specialist financial advice.
You can contact Peter directly here