Robert Harris has over 25 years experience working for some of the major financial institutions in the City of London, including 12 years at Citibank where he was a Senior Banker. During his time at Citibank, Robert was responsible for global relationships with important financial institutions and instigated a number of landmark deals.
Robert is a founding partner of Forth Capital and has helped the company become the leading expat financial advisory company in Switzerland. He has been quoted in the Financial Times and numerous magazine articles.
For the www.knowitall.ch website, Robert invites various members of his team at Forth Capital to contribute blog articles on different financial topics that he thinks will be of interest to our readers.
By Jason King, Forth Capital
I’m often asked what Wealth Management actually is, and as a relatively new profession it’s not surprising that most people are vague about what wealth managers actually do.
Wealth Management addresses a wide range of issues. A wealth manager can help you with such issues as: investing a lump sum, deciding how much you need to save in order to retire comfortably, inheritance tax and estate planning, dividing up pension entitlements on a divorce or separation, getting the right types and amounts of life and health insurance, planning to pay school or university fees, deciding how much to borrow and providing a general financial health check.
These are crucial issues for most people and their families, and it’s very important for a wealth manager, or adviser, to have a thorough understanding of clients’ aims and challenges.
By Stephen Langton, Forth Capital
There has already been much written on falling oil prices, so here is a little more. However, I won’t be looking at the merits or not of this price fall, nor be trying to predict the effect on inflation, global growth and economic policy.
Instead I will take a brief historic look at real oil prices to try and see what may or may not be considered as normal.
So what is the normal price of oil? Or what has the average inflation adjusted price of oil been?
By Stephen Langton, Forth Capital
From the 17th August 2015, an EU national living in France will have the right to choose the law of their nationality to determine the disposal of their estate on death. In other words the estate need no longer be subject to French Succession Law and its inherent forced heirship.
These changes have prompted suggestions that one should immediately rush out and change ones will to ensure that the estate passes to beneficiaries in accordance with ones wishes rather than those of the state.
Rarely mentioned however, is that this new regulation (EU regulation 650/2012) concerns the rights of succession but not the right of taxation. The right of taxation will still remain with the state in which the individual is domiciled. The choice of applicable law is not a choice of applicable taxation.
Countries, like the UK which use Common Law principles define domicile as being where one is from whereas in France, domicile is determined broadly by where one lives. It is therefore quite simple to be considered to be domiciled under both countries' rules. Fortunately double tax treaties exist to allow a determination to be reached.
By Robert Harris, Forth Capital
British expat retirees in the Eurozone and beyond will currently be enjoying an effective increase in their pension income right now due to the strengthening pound, but those in this situation should be warned to be vigilant on future fluctuations.
Sterling remains strong and anyone making an overseas currency transfer stands to benefit, not just pensioners.
Recent movements have seen the pound sterling (GBP) rise to its highest level since October 2012. For expats living in France and Switzerland, they have seen the £/Euro exchange rate move from 1.14 to 1.26 and the £/CHF rate move from 1.42 to over 1.53 over the last 12 months.
By Robert Harris, Forth Capital
If you are a UK expatriate there is every likelihood that you will be subject to UK tax at some point in the future.
You may have assets such as liquid investments in the UK, in which case you may be subject to tax on income generated and tax on capital gains. Most people are aware of this already, but what about other taxes?
In Britain, you are brought up to be believe that your home is your castle and all Brits want to buy property – it is part of our DNA. Over the years, for most people their property has become their main pension plan. The equity in their property will fund the cost of retirement as well as care homes in later life. Whilst second properties have been subject to capital gains tax, it has now been confirmed that capital gains tax will now apply to primary residences.
