Some of the topics that I will be covering include the following as they affect North Americans investing offshore:

• Offshore Structures - IBCs, trusts of all types (looking at recent changes in US and Canadian trust and asset disclosure law), offshore bank accounts in various jurisdictions (credit-debit cards and their uses), private offshore banks and other structures.

   

• Strategies to mitigate tax and protect assets including use of tax treaties in conjunction with tax haven countries with the above structures.

   

• Who will benefit from going offshore ? - Offshore executive employees and contractors, import-exporters, manufacturers (use of tax free zones), artists and authors(royalties), aircraft and ship leasing and registration, reinvoicing, captive insurance companies etc.

   

• Offshore options- Which jurisdiction is best for you? Looks at advantages of various OS countries. Strengths and weaknesses. Civil versus common law countries.

   

• Scam alert - Looks at OS scams (eg. BCCI, internet & stock scams etc.) Anatomy of an investment scam.

   

• Investment options - OS mutual funds, trading domestic accounts offshore, mortgages, real estate, reinvestment in high tax countries via OS company-benefits.

   

• Review of offshore books, articles, newsletters, web sites. Where to get more information on the readers particular area of interest. I feel that the challenge facing offshore investors is the amount of information available and associated cost. Many OS books and newsletters are priced in the $200-$400US range. Which ones should the OS investor buy? It is hard to justify paying $350 for a book or newsletter that one has not even seen a review on or only seen a few sample articles.

   

• Internet developments. Interested in investing or doing business offshore using the Internet? Covers developments on Internet access, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and electronic commerce for offshore low-tax and no-tax jurisdictions.

Publications reviewed to date.

This is a list I now send to all those inquiring on recommendations for offshore information.

1. Tax Havens by Hoyt L. Barber - A good resource published 1993.

    

2. Tax Havens by Anthony Ginsberg - A good resource written in 1993.( his bibliography is a great source of more information on the subject.)

    

3. The Complete Guide to Offshore Money Havens by Jerome Schneider - An infomercial for his services, published 1996 - not recommended.

    

4. Global Investing for Maximum Profit and Safety by Jerome Schneider - Another infomercial. Not recommended.

    

5. Tax Haven Roadmap by Richard Czerlau - He makes a number of recommendations of who to contact but has given names without checking them out in my opinion.

    

6. Take Your Money and Run by Alex Doulis A Canadian - Heavy on anecdote, light on actual usable info. Some interesting offshore information. He's been accused of giving some advice that borders on tax evasion but is still giving seminars in Canada so Revenue Canada must think it's acceptable.

    

7. My Blue Haven also by Alex Doulis. Along the same lines as Take Your Money and Run. An inexpensive and interesting read for Canadian taxpayers.

    

8. The Micropal Guide to Offshore Investment Funds 1997/98 by Robert B. Milroy - Excellent for examining mutual and other OS funds.

    

9. Books by Adam Starchild, Marshall Langer and W.G. Hill thru Scope International on the internet.

    

10. Tax Havens of the World by Walter and Dorothy Diamond - THE definitive offshore 3 volume reference.

     

11. International Trust Laws and Analysis also by Walter and Dorothy Diamond and Barry Kaplan. Pending review. A two volume 4,400 page work on trust laws around the world.

     

12. The Offshore Money Book by Arnold Cornez - An excellent book available thru Amazon.com books. (He also writes a newsletter entitled Offshore).

     

13. There is some excellent information on the subject available through the Financial Times in the UK. (Offshore Advisor Newsletter) (Financial Times at Infoseek search engine).

     

14. Offshore Outlook Magazine. An Internet and hardcopy offshore magazine.

     

15. Offshore Finance Canada Magazine. Web site not operational.

     

16. Grundy's Tax Havens Pub. 1993 (A little dated (1993) but some good info on strengths of different OFCs.)

     

17. Publications by Price Waterhouse on different countries of the world. Many booklets on various OFCs available.

     

18. OFC Directory by Ernst and Young accountants.

     

19. Tax Havens of the World by Thomas Azzara 1996/97 Edition - Good book especially for Americans or investors investing in the US.

     

20. Offshore Alert by David Marchant - Exposes scams, scandals and problems that concern the offshore investor in the Caribbean.

     

21. Money Laundering Alert and The Money Laundering Bulletin. Two newsletters that examine the money laundering problem. The first is an American publication and the second, British.

     

22. International Trust Laws and Analysis by Walter and Dorothy Diamond. Examines trust laws in all the well-known offshore jurisdictions as well as industrialized nations around the world.