Blevins Franks offers tailored financial and cross-border tax advice to affluent individuals and families, particularly those from the UK. I’ve come to the company’s modern Santa Ponsa office to meet their Partner in the Balearics, Cathal Rochford. “We started out as an accountancy practice in London. We saw clients move to Southern Europe, desiring a change of lifestyle,” the Irishman explains. “Clients needed regulated advice on local rules, and they needed it from a trusted advisor in their language.”
Blevins Franks now has 24 offices across various regions. Rochford, a graduate of Ireland’s top university, Trinity College Dublin, came to Mallorca after working for the Valencia office. “We’ve been in the Balearics for 25 years. All that time we’ve been growing, but recently things have picked up pace.”
Both lockdown and Brexit have been factors. “We’ve had clients who got stuck here for 4 or 5 months during lockdown, but then didn’t want to leave. We have others serious about leaving the UK, who need advice to do it properly.”
Improve tax efficiency
Rule changes have complicated immigration for UK citizens. Yet, according to Rochford, the right advice will not only ease the process, but may also bring surprising benefits. “Spain gets a bad rep for its tax system but, with the right planning, it can actually be more tax efficient than the UK.” What helps is an advisor who can see “from both angles”, as Rochford puts it, and understands your goals. “Local UK advisors can no longer give regulated advice on matters within the EU.” What’s more, the rules can vary from one Spanish region to another. “That’s why it’s important to have an advisor who knows the system locally, as well as in the UK.”
Power to choose
Those with significant estates needn’t move to a light-touch jurisdiction like the Caymans for the sake of tax. “Don’t let the tax-tail wag the dog,” recommends Rochford. “What matters is that you live where you feel happiest.”
Rochford, who himself enjoys the Mallorcan lifestyle and is raising his family here, is only too happy to help. “We have families and individuals that come to us because they want to immigrate. They think it’s a pipedream, but we help make
it happen. Then they discover our range of services, and how we can help with tax structuring, estate planning and wealth management. They appreciate the personal touch, that we can even visit them at home.”
It’s an attractive package, especially when succession is an issue. “We protect wealth for the children of our clients. Really, we’re a family office. Our advice is for life.” With dedicated advisors like Rochford on board, it’s not hard to see how a Blevins Franks client can become, indeed, a client for life.
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