Quora Answer: If You Had to Live in a Tax Haven, Where Would You Live?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “If you had to live in tax haven for good chunk of your life, and had to consider other factors like quality of living, good services and healthcare, where would you want to live?”

When we think of tax havens, countries such as Panama, Western Samoa, and the British Virgin Islands come to mind.  If you are wealthy enough that you want a tax haven to minimise your tax exposure, they are places you might consider putting your money.  They are not necessarily places you want to stay, unless you want to disengage from society.  Most of these tax havens are from the main throughfares of civilisation, and away from prying eyes and oversight.  That is why they are tax havens.  You want to hide your wealth, but you still want to enjoy life. 

What you are really thinking about is what is termed low-tax jurisdictions, which is a step up from tax havens.  These are cities or countries which are likely major financial centres.  They tend to have no capital gains tax, and low corporate taxes.  They would be places such as the US state of Delaware, Hong Kong, Singapore, Ireland, and the Baltic states.  Corporations do not base themselves in these place solely because of the low tax environment, although that is a major factor.  They are also easily accessible to hinterland markets.  Hong Kong is a gateway to China.  Ireland is part of the EU.  Singapore is the centre of Southeast Asia. 

In that respect, Singapore would be near the top of the list.  It is a global city.  It is a major travel hub.  And it has a high standard of living.  Life expectancy is among the highest in the world.  Healthcare is among the best.  Crime is low.  And there is enough entertainment in the city and the neighbourhood.