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International
Privacy and Security
for 21st Century Global Citizens
by the Investors Offshore Editorial
Team, July 2007
IMPORTANT
WARNING: The contents of this article have been compiled
in good faith by Investorsoffshore.com to provide assistance
to investors, but do not constitute investment advice
or recommendations. Investors should not rely upon the
information given in order to choose types or routes
of investment but should make their own independent
enquiries before making choices. Investorsoffshore.com
has taken reasonable care in researching and presenting
the information herein but makes no representations
as to its accuracy and accepts no liability for actions
taken or not taken as a result.
Privacy And Security For Expats
In a world
in which privacy and security, whether personal or financial,
are under ever greater threat, expatriates and globetrotters
face major challenges in the 21st century. Although
international mobility brings unique opportunities,
it can also sometimes bring unique problems, and in
this month's special feature we will be looking at services
which can help you to protect your privacy both online
and off, and measures that you can take to protect yourself
against the multiplicity of threats to your security.
No more
than fifteen years ago, it was still possible to have
a numbered bank account, a clam-tight offshore trust,
and multiple passports, making yourself and your financial
dealings effectively invisible to tax authorities, creditors
and vengeful ex-spouses. Although many people used such
techniques to maintain their privacy in all innocence,
it has to be admitted that many others were attempting
- often successfully - to escape legitimate claims on
their wealth.
How times
have changed! First of all, in response to what they
saw as a mountain of tax evasion, the world's larger
high-tax countries, grouped together in the OECD and
its counterpart the Financial Action Task Force (FATF),
have attacked the free-wheeling world of offshore for
its lack of transparency and low tax rates. In parallel,
the emergent threats of drug-dealing and terrorism were
met with a battery of regulatory controls directed against
'money-laundering' and 'terrorist financing', both from
individual countries (eg the Patriot Act in the USA)
and from the multilaterals: the UN, the IMF, the EU,
the OECD and the FATF among others. International associations
of countries such as the Egmont Group have sprung up
to police the cleaned-up world that is resulting.
Although
the privacy of individuals was not the overt target
of all this activity, the reality is, at least at a
financial level, that privacy has gone and will never
come back, unless you are an out-and-out criminal prepared
to conduct your whole existence outside the law. Numbered
bank accounts have gone; banks everywhere now work under
very strict rules requiring them to 'know their customers'
and to monitor movement of any significant amount of
money; similar rules apply to other types of business
which handle cash such as estate agents and jewellers;
Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEAs) which allow
for swapping of previously secret financial information
in a wide range of circumstances are becoming the norm
between countries (especially between high-tax and low-tax
countries); courts in the USA and the UK have forced
the banks and credit card companies to divulge the names
of their offshore customers; and the EU's Savings Tax
Directive has introduced a continent-wide system of
income reporting.
It
used to be that people could carry large amounts of
cash when travelling, but that loophole is rapidly being
plugged as well. A new European Union law obliging travellers
to declare cash came into force last month. It is being
introduced to help combat money laundering, says the
UK's HMRC. As from 15 June 2007, people who are either
entering the EU from a non-EU country, or are travelling
from an EU to a non-EU country and are carrying 10,000
Euros or more (or the equivalent in other currencies)
will be required to declare the cash to at the place
of their departure from, or arrival in, the EU. In the
case of the UK, the rules will be enforced by HMRC.
Forms
on which to make the declaration will be available at
ports or airports and will also be downloadable from
the HMRC internet site. Travellers could face a penalty
of up to GBP5,000 if they fail to comply with the obligation
to declare, or provide incorrect or incomplete information.
Dave Humphries, Head of Criminal and Enforcement Policy
(HMRC) said: "The declaration system is one means of
providing information to assist HMRC in targeting movements
of criminal cash more effectively."
The
EU cash declaration scheme derives from European Parliament
and Council Regulation No. 1889/2005 and comes into
effect in all EU Member States on 15 June 2007. "Cash"
not only means currency notes and coins but also bankers'
drafts and cheques of any kind (including travellers'
cheques).
The declaration form will be produced with a carbon
backed top copy so as to allow travellers to have a
duplicate, which officers of HMRC may ask them to produce
as evidence of having made a declaration. HMRC officers
will not detain properly declared cash if they have
no reason to doubt its legitimacy. However, cash may
be seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 if an
officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that it is
either the proceeds of, or is intended for use in, unlawful
conduct.
So
what is left for an honest traveller who just doesn't
like being snooped on and doesn't trust the police,
the customs officials or the bank manager not to give
or sell their personal details to a criminal? It doesn't
even require evil intent on the part of a bent official
or a jealous mistress: the newspapers are full of stories
of bank computer records being found in dustbins or
on the backseats of taxis or nuclear button codes left
on restaurant tables. How can you protect yourself?
Although it is getting more and more difficult, in this
feature we will look at some options that are still
on the table.
Banking Secrecy And Asset Protection
Although,
as we have seen above, banking privacy has been severely
dented, and the situation is getting worse all the time,
there are still jurisdictions which are holding out
against the massed tax inspectors of the Western World.
Banking secrecy and asset protection remain worthwhile
both to domestic and internationally mobile citizens
for a number of reasons, which could include:
- Protection
of your assets against frivolous litigation, particularly
if you work in a high-risk occupation such as consultancy,
the legal or medical profession, or if you are a landlord
or company director.
- Protection
of assets against punitive taxation levels in your
country of residence or domicile.
- Estate
tax planning purposes. Banks and professional international
organisations in offshore jurisdictions (see the Services
Directories in our jurisdiction sites on www.lowtax.net)
can help you tailor an asset protection plan to your
personal needs.
For those
expatriates merely looking to protect their assets and
preserve their financial privacy as far as is legally
possible, the new kyc and reporting regimes are an annoyance,
and can be seen as an infringement of privacy, but in
actual fact, are not as much of an obstacle as has been
previously suggested. It is important here to draw a
distinction between 'tax evasion' and 'tax avoidance'
in order to explain this. For the vast majority of the
world's population, the action of moving assets offshore,
or of setting up an offshore bank account, is not illegal.
It becomes illegal, however, when assets which clearly
belong to, or originate from, a resident in a high tax
country are not declared for taxation purposes in their
country of residence. Any assets over which you have
control, whether domestically, or in an offshore jurisdiction,
are usually liable for taxation.
However,
utilising the different structures available in various
offshore jurisdictions, it is often possible to establish
a structure whereby at least a portion of your international
assets and earnings are not taxable at the same punitive
rate. However, proceed with caution…There are a
great many structures on offer, both in high tax countries
and offshore which have proven ineffective in sheltering
income and assets against tax and other threats. It
is therefore essential that before you establish any
kind of offshore banking or asset protection arrangement,
you take advice from a qualified and independent financial
advisor with experience in international financial affairs.
Although
as previously stated, some offshore jurisdictions have
been obliged to amend their banking secrecy legislation
in order to avoid recriminations from international
agencies (mainly composed of Western industrialised
high tax nations, unsurprisingly enough), changes (such
as the widespread introduction of 'Know Your Customer'
rules) have principally been made in the area of information
exchange in the case of clearly proven money laundering
or tax evasion activities, while the basic tenet of
privacy and protection for legitimate clients has been
maintained in the vast majority of cases.
Second
Passports - Why You Need One…
There are
a multitude of reasons why obtaining a second passport
may be the best move that you ever make. When talking
about passports, what you are essentially discussing
is citizenship and this something which should ideally
be discussed with internationally qualified consultants,
such as Henley
& Partners for example. Many people live quite happily
their whole lives as citizens of the country in which
they were born. Others build up 'passport portfolios'
which allow them to travel, invest, and minimise taxes
to their best advantage. Which lifestyle you choose
is up to you. However, if any or all (you poor thing!)
of the following apply, you might want to consider obtaining
a second citizenship as a very real possibility:
- Political
instability in your country makes obtaining visas
for travel difficult or impossible
- Your
assets are at risk of litigation
- The
tax burden in your 'home' country is unnecessarily
high
- Your
present passport may put you at risk from hijackers
and terrorists while travelling
- You
are subjected to punitive currency controls
- Your
freedom to work, invest, and purchase property where
you choose is restricted by your current citizenship
As you
can see from the above list, not only could a second
passport prove useful in terms of making your life easier
and protecting your assets, but if you come from a high-risk
country, it could even save your life. But how do you
go about getting one?
There are
several legitimate ways of obtaining a second passport
(and some not quite so legitimate, about which more
later). Front door programmes, sometimes also known
as 'white glove' programmes, offer immigration and second
citizenship through recognised and established channels
and legislation which can be checked and verified. The
advantages of obtaining a passport in this way are that
you can be sure you will receive the genuine article
(and with it all the benefits of citizenship in the
country). However, the process can be long-winded, bureaucratic
and expensive, and some of the 'white glove' countries
may not permit you to retain dual citizenship.
The second
possibility for those interested in a slightly more
flexible way of obtaining a second passport is the discretionary
route. Several countries have recognised and established
programmes whereby those who invest a set amount in
the local economy become eligible for economic citizenship,
other factors notwithstanding. However, this is an area
in which you must proceed with extreme caution, as although
some of the programmes to be found on the internet and
via other mediums are 100% genuine, the legitimacy of
others is not assured.
If you
are caught travelling, trying to open a bank account,
or something similarly naughty, with a fake, stolen,
or 'under the table' passport, you are likely to find
yourself in a great deal of trouble, whether you were
aware of the fact or not.
As previously
stated there are a great many fraudulent 'instant citizenship'
schemes available, which are neither legal, nor official,
and are worth less than the paper that they are printed
on.
Surprisingly
few countries (the Commonwealth of Dominica and St Kitts
and Nevis, Belize until 2003, and Ireland until 1996)
actually have a clearly defined statutory economic citizenship
programme currently in operation that issues second
passports to qualifying investors. Austria also issues
passports in return for substantial investment, but
this is not a statutory programme as such. This is not
to say that it is not possible to obtain a second passport
countries other than those mentioned, but except in
exceptional circumstances, you will be forced to go
down the longer-winded, front door route.
So before
you part with any money, or become otherwise involved
in a second passport scheme, you need to make sure that
the government of the country to which you are applying
to become a citizen knows and approves of it, and is
prepared to offer all the benefits of citizenship to
participants in the scheme. Otherwise, it may just end
up as a costly and possibly legally damaging waste of
time.
Electronic Money
There
are two problems about having money: you have to keep
it somewhere, and you have to move it in order to spend
or invest it. Once upon a time, you could keep it securely
and privately in a bank; and you could move it by putting
it in a suitcase and getting on a plane. As we have
seen, the physical transport of cash is rapidly becoming
a no-go area, in addition to the security risk; and
the banks can no longer be trusted to keep your affairs
private. In addition, banks are extremely bad and horrendously
slow and expensive at making international money transfers.
Why this should be in an electronic age is one of nature's
mysteries (surely it can't be that the lovely, cuddly
banks are just trying to hang onto your money for as
long as possible?)
At
least in theory, and at least for a while (until 'they'
catch up with technology), electronic movement of money
can bypass the current regulatory apparatus, and if
combined with storage of cash in fungible form (dollar
bills, bearer shares, bonds or certificates, precious
metals, diamonds etc) can maintain your privacy. Of
course, you have to trust the organization that is holding
your assets, not only to remain solvent and not to steal
your money, but to avoid being swept up by the authorities
into the surveillance net. The problem is that any organization
big enough to be publicly trustworthy is big enough
to be noticed, or even bought by a bigger organization
which is already in the network. This is what happened
to PayPal, previously under the radar, when it was bought
by E-Bay. An additional problem is that your incoming
money probably comes from a known-about source (unless
you are a drug dealer, and this article is not for you)
so that there is little point in taking elaborate precautions
to veil your future use of money that is already somehow
'in the system'.
Sadly,
therefore, the best advice by now is to give in, pay
your taxes and resign yourself to being known about.
Still, for those who get some grim satisfaction out
of hoodwinking the authorities (strictly legally, and
just for fun, of course), electronic money transfer
holds out some remaining hope of being able to make
transactions that are not within the network operated
by banks and other financial organizations that are
subject to the existing regulatory and reporting network.
The unofficial 'hawala' international money transferring
network fell within this definition for a time, but
has now been 'noticed' and hawala operators are rapidly
being caught up in the regulatory embrace.
E-money
comes in two flavours, identified e-money and anonymous
e-money. Identified e-money carries information about
its source, while anonymous e-money is just that. Whether
identified or not, e-money is known either as 'on-line'
or 'off-line'. Online e-money involves using a bank
or other intermediary in order to conduct a transaction
with a third party. Offline e-money can be used without
an intermediary, eg through the use of a card with an
embedded chip (although someone has to put the money
in the chip in the first place).
The
Holy Grail of e-money would be a secure system in which
financial transactions took place between parties who
were known to each other, with no chance of deception
or of interception by an outside party. (See below for
a discussion of secure identity on the Internet.) Thus,
I would take money electronically from my store of it,
wherever that was, and forward it to you. Despite the
seeming simplicity of such a system, the security difficulties
(and no doubt the vested interests of the banks) have
prevented it from happening so far. Digicash
is reputed to be developing a system in this general
direction, but while we wait for a secure solution,
electronic gold offers an interesting alternative.
Electronic
gold is essentially an electronic currency backed by
gold bullion, and because payments are backed by a physical
commodity, the degree of financial risk involved in
holding it is greatly decreased. The payment system
allows account holders to send specified weights of
gold to other account holders, although in actual fact
only the ownership changes - the gold in the treasury
vault stays put. (As a matter of interest, there are
other metals issued electronically; silver, platinum,
and palladium. However, according to brokers, the original
product, gold, remains by far and away the most popular
choice). E-gold
is the longest established provider of electronic gold
accounts, and remains one of the largest at this time.
In order
to acquire e-gold with which to open your account, you
will need to engage the services of a 'cambio' or exchange,
such as Gold
Now, or Ice
Gold. These provide the service of exchanging national
currencies for electronic gold, silver or platinum.
The range of national currencies accepted by the exchange
varies according to its location, so it is worth shopping
around if your requirements extend beyond the normally
accepted hard currencies. Each cambio sets its own fee
structure, so research also needs to be done here.
Although
the online gold market is small at the moment, the increase
of globalisation has led to the need for an effectively
borderless currency, and the number of expatriates and
international businesses using the electronic currency
is steadily increasing, with a growing number of businesses
accepting it as a valid payment form. Here are just
some of the reasons why:
- Electronic
gold is one of the only truly international currencies.
As previously mentioned, the need for a borderless
currency has become more pressing with the rise of
globalisation, a more mobile world population, and
the advent of e-commerce. Electronic gold is accounted
by the weight of the gold as opposed to by any international
currency unit, and weight has an internationally recognised
definition. However, spends can usually be expressed
in up to eight major currencies, so you know how much
you are paying. Another advantage is that online gold
as payment can be transferred to any other account
anywhere in the world.
- Payments
are instantaneous. Although the internet has the communications
capability to allow for real time settlements online,
this is rarely, if ever, the case, as noted above.
- There
is no limitation (upper or lower) on the size of the
payments that can be made, although the charge per
spend does usually vary according to size.
As you
can see, then, all of these factors combined make e-gold
an attractive proposition for expats. However, a factor
which is often overlooked in the discussion of the risk
free nature of e-gold is that although it is always
backed by a physical commodity, and is therefore free
from the financial risk factors inherent in national
currencies since the abandonment of the 'gold standard',
it is not free from exchange rate risk. As with any
currency, electronic or otherwise, the value of e-gold
relative to other currencies can (and does) rise and
fall. The overwhelming majority of websites dealing
with the issue of e-gold (for example service providers,
exchanges, brokers, and directories) provide up to date
exchange rate information so that you can monitor this.
One of
the major pluses with online gold is that payment is
secure and private. Electronic gold account providers,
brokers and exchanges have mostly chosen to locate themselves
in offshore jurisdictions in order to afford their customers
greater financial privacy. This factor, combined with
the newness of the technology, has led to concerns that
e-gold could be used for purposes such as money laundering
and tax evasion. However, at both ends of the process,
e-gold brokers and the custodians of the bullion have
tried to ensure that this is not possible. Gold money
is simply a payment system for bullion already within
the system, which comes from banks and bullion houses
already regulated in terms of 'Know Your Customer' and
anti-money laundering requirements, which ensures that
any gold which comes into the system is by definition
'clean'.
At the
other end of the process, the vast majority of e-gold
brokers will require basic information such as name,
address, telephone number, e-mail address, etc. Given
the inherent nature of the internet, strong security
and privacy, and sometimes 'pseudonymity' are possible,
but total anonymity is not, as transactions will almost
always be recorded, keeping an audit trail which could
be retrieved if evidence of criminal activity was presented.
Considered
simply as a store of value, and a means of making payments,
an e-gold provider is not different from a bank. The
difference however stems from the fact that this is
a relatively new, and so far fairly small financial
sector, so that it has not attracted the regulators'
attention in the way that mainstream financial institutions
have.
The relative
smallness of the e-gold sector also means that any given
counter-party is not likely to be on the e-gold network.
The industry therefore has a critical mass problem,
and has not so far been able to solve it. If you want
to have transactions with a limited number of counter-parties,
and you can persuade them to open e-gold accounts, then
it could be a worthwhile solution for you.
Online Security - Sensible Measures…
The whole
subject of safe electronic communication is one of course
one of particular interest and importance for expats
and other frequent international travellers, who are
by definition separated from their families, colleagues
and friends for long periods at a time.
As virus
attacks and the resultant panic when computer users
realised that personal documents were being attached
to infected e-mails demonstrated, security and privacy
are issues of growing concern in the 21st century, with
a particular focus on online security. Many people assume
that their online activities and personal information
will be safe while they are surfing the web or sending
e-mail. However, sadly, this is not the case.
Sending
e-mails, for example, is a hotbed of risks and unwanted
intrusions for the privacy minded surfer. All electronic
messages are sent through a system of routers and servers,
are logged at various points along this path, and may
even be stored on back-up systems. It is these storage
points that are the weak links in the chain, as it is
here that personal messages, business transactions,
and credit card details can potentially be retrieved
by someone other than the intended recipient.
One possible
way around this is encryption, using a service such
as Hushmail,
which is a method of scrambling an e-mail message so
that it is incomprehensible to anyone without the key
to unlock the code. It uses mathematical formulae and
the computing power available on your computer desktop
to scramble or code information. At present, the state
of the art is 128-bit encryption, which has been judged
by experts as likely to remain unbreakable for the foreseeable
future.
Having
said that, however, 64 bit encryption, which was used
until just a few years ago for important international
transactions is now judged as vulnerable to the focussed
efforts of organised crime and unscrupulous hackers.
So these things move on. (As does the US government,
which has recently moved on to even higher levels of
encryption for high security traffic). However, for
individuals- assuming here that you are not a secret
agent - various encryption programmes which are strong
by today's standards are available on the internet,
and there are several designated providers of encrypted
e-mail services.
However,
because encryption services prevent unauthorised access
to e-mail correspondence law enforcement agencies, particularly
in the United States have expressed concerns about their
use, and have asked that legislation be enacted to force
programmers to create a 'back door', whereby encrypted
e-mail can be deciphered. The legal status of this technology
is still unsettled.
Other online
concerns include the widespread use of 'cookies' which
are deposited by many websites on your hard drive, and
store information about your visit so that when you
return to the site, the cookie data will reveal that
you've been there before. These can also collect records
of your browsing patterns, indicating your interests,
which may create the potential for junk e-mail, or other
unwanted marketing intrusions. Alarmingly, some web
browsers are also programmed to transmit the user's
e-mail address to each site visited. So what can you
do to protect your privacy online?
Although
there are obviously no guarantees, it may well be worth
investigating in encryption software such as Pretty
Good Privacy (PGP), or encrypted e-mail services
if you are concerned about the security of your e-mail
communications. There is also software available for
download or purchase on the internet that can reduce
your vulnerability to prying eyes. However, here are
a few tips that could help you protect your privacy
online in the interim:
- Sounds
obvious, but never keep your password (whether for
your online bank account or your e-mail account) near
your computer or stored on your hard drive. And don't
make it easy to guess…
- Before
using any online service, check its privacy policy.
In response to pressure from consumers and government
agencies, the vast majority of commercial websites
now post their information collecting policies on
site.
- Assume
that your communications are not private unless you
are using powerful encryption software.
Longer
term, the solution to maintaining privacy on the Internet
and the integrity of your identity is, perversely, to
be more open, but only to a selected group of your friends,
family or colleagues. The early signs of this trend
can be seen in 'white lists' and 'private' social networking
sites on which the technology used in virtual internet
communities is applied to only a small, protected group
of like-minded individuals. Communication therefore
becomes deeper and safer at the same time.
Online Security - Just Plain Loopy…
There are
a number of sensible precautionary measures, such as
those mentioned in the last section, which are justified
and justifiable in the name of protecting your personal
and financial privacy online.
However,
a level of paranoia unseen outside of the secret services
sometimes pervades online security websites, and there
are a number of tools on offer which are just plain
scary. These include software programmes which encrypt
your history files, and browser 'washers', which delete
history files, cookies, and cached temporary internet
files, and overwrite deleted files until they are unrecoverable,
as well as a multitude of other unsavoury tools. Probably
best left alone unless you are a) conducting industrial
or international espionage, b) terminally paranoid!
Offshore Credit Cards
Offshore
credit cards can be obtained either as an additional
service when you open an offshore bank account, as part
of an offshore incorporation package, or as a standalone
service, depending on your needs and circumstances.
There are traditionally three different types of offshore
card:
- Offshore
Debit Card. With an offshore debit card, as with its
onshore equivalent, you may spend only the money which
is in your account.
- Secured
Offshore Credit Card. With a secured card, there are
actually two separate accounts established- one which
holds the security deposit which guarantees the card,
and the actual credit card account. The amount of
the required security deposit will vary from institution
to institution, and will also of course, depend on
your required credit line. This is by far and away
the most common type of offshore credit card.
- Unsecured
Offshore Credit Card. This type of card (in theory
at least) works in a similar way to its onshore counterpart.
You spend the money on credit, the credit card company
trusts you to pay it back. There are countless websites
and unscrupulous providers on the internet, purporting
to offshore unsecured offshore credit cards for a
relatively small amount. However, in reality, you
are unlikely to be offered an unsecured card by a
legitimate offshore institution unless you are an
old, valued, and wealthy customer. Although there
may be some legitimate opportunities for expats
to obtain unsecured cards legitimately and cheaply,
it is certainly true that the majority of such offers
are scams, designed to part you from between $150-$500
for a card which never arrives.
Offshore
credit and debit cards can offer added financial privacy
and security for an expat or international traveller,
and can be obtained from numerous organisations, such
as The
Sovereign Group. In some cases the identification
requirements to open an account are less stringent (although
this varies between providers, and even between products,
so shop around). It is also as in some cases the identification
requirements to open an account are less stringent (although
this varies between providers, and even between products,
so shop around). It is sometimes possible to obtain
a numbered card (which will leave your financial actions
less open to prying eyes), or to open an account via
an offshore company, or even as part of the offshore
incorporation procedure.
Offshore
credit cards, in common with their onshore counterparts,
offer convenience of use, as they are widely accepted,
and you can often access any funds kept offshore via
an international network of ATM machines. Although you
will rarely (if ever) obtain vastly inflated returns
on money held in an offshore credit card account, you
can sometimes find providers who offer interest rates
slightly above the onshore level.
However,
obtaining an offshore bank account and/or credit card
does not mean that you can get away with evading taxes,
as a number of US citizens found to their cost in 2002
when the IRS obtained permission to request American
Express and MasterCard transaction details from the
offshore bank accounts of US citizens whom they suspected
of practising tax evasion. Funds held or controlled
by a resident in a high tax country will usually be
liable for taxation there.
Are There Any Disadvantages?
Not disadvantages,
more factors to bear in mind if you decide that an offshore
credit card is for you. Offshore credit cards, like
so many offshore services, can be slightly more expensive
to obtain and use than their onshore equivalents, due
to the more labour intensive (on the part of the issuing
institution) and protective nature of the service. Therefore,
if you are in one location for any length of time, for
example for work purposes, it may be worthwhile opening
a domestic bank account or obtaining an onshore credit
card for day to day expenses and remittances.
Another
important point to remember is that although in the
interests of financial privacy it is desirable to give
as few personal details as possible, this lays you open
to the danger that if lost, someone else could use your
card. This is especially the case with numbered offshore
credit cards, so if you decide that this is the way
to go, keep a tight hold on your wallet if you don't
want someone else to go on a spending spree at your
expense!
Virtual Offices And Mail-drops
If you
are self-employed, travel a lot for work purposes, and/or
are concerned about your personal and financial privacy,
then a virtual office or maildrop service, such as those
listed at http://www.buildfreedom.com/portal/category.php/34
may prove very useful to you. Some clients prefer to
deal with an organisation or company with a professional
presence, and although virtual offices and maildrop
services do not often provide you with a physical presence,
they can sometimes act as reassurance.
There are
many service providers in this area, and they usually
offer one or a combination of the services detailed
below:
- Mail
reception. If you are unsure of your movements
at a given time, or would rather that your correspondence
address was in a prestige location, many companies
will either receive mail on your behalf and forward
it on to you, or will hold it in safekeeping until
you collect it personally.
- Remailing.
Useful if, for whatever reason, you would rather that
your actual location not be revealed. You address
and send your correspondence in a large envelope to
the operator of your mail-drop, who then stamps it
locally and mails it on individually to the intended
recipients.
- Telephone
and fax answering services.
There are plenty of mail-drop providers who offer
a telephone answering service and fax number as part
of their packages, and there are also services known
as 'unified messaging services' whereby incoming telephone
messages are forwarded to you via e-mail, although
this is a relatively new service, and therefore less
common. Whether you choose the high tech or low tech
route, the advantages remain the same- a reassuringly
professional image presented to clients and colleagues,
privacy protection, and a reliable way to receive
your messages, wherever you happen to be.
- E-mail
services. Nowadays, many maildrop providers will
also provide you with an e-mail address in order to
receive secure electronic correspondence.
Prices
for these services vary according to the provider and
location of the mail-drop service, so as with the majority
of privacy protection services mentioned in this article,
it is best to shop around. Although details of the basic
service are usually available on the website of the
provider, the majority of companies pride themselves
on being very client-orientated, so if you have any
special circumstances or needs, it is always worth asking
if these can be taken into account.
Disadvantages and Inappropriate Uses For Mail-drops
Maildrop
and virtual offices services are an invaluable tool
for protecting your financial and personal privacy,
presenting a professional and efficient face to clients,
and ensuring that your mail and messages are passed
on to you regularly, no matter where you happen to be
in the world. .
However,
due to the nature of the services offered, there are
those who have tried to use maildrops for inappropriate
purposes such as tax evasion, fraudulent business schemes,
and defrauding legitimate creditors. Reputable providers
never allow the service to be abused in this way, and
although it is possible to use a name other than your
own for the maildrop, they will obviously need a contact
address or telephone number in order to pass on your
messages, which could constitute a paper trail in the
event of proven criminal activity or wrong-doing.
Protecting Yourself
As you
can see by now, there are a wide variety of privacy
protection services available for expatriates, globe
trotters, international professionals and privacy minded
domestic citizens, and the rise of the internet has
greatly facilitated the provision of these kinds of
services.
However,
in the area of online and financial security, as with
everything else, there are plenty of scams and disreputable
schemes lying in wait to trap the unwary privacy seeking
expat. Although it is desirable and necessary to protect
yourself and your financial transactions from unwanted
intrusions, don't allow this desire to cloud your judgement,
leading you into doing business with unsatisfactory
or fraudulent enterprises, or establishing offshore
vehicles without first checking their legal status in
your country of residence. You should always perform
due diligence on any organisation which will be handling
your affairs, or to which you intend to hand over money,
and if at all possible, obtain professional advice before
making a decision.
Other Interesting Privacy Related Links:
www.sovereignsociety.com
- Extensive and useful privacy related links section
www.ptclub.com
- Links of interest to expats and PTs, and some non-privacy
related but still interesting ideas.
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