Dreaming of living the expat lifestyle? A nice big house with a garden and a back yard, country club membership and nice cars for every member of the household. Now imagine you could do all that with the added benefit of paying low or in some cases, no income tax at all! If you are looking for a job abroad or plan on retiring, we suggest you look at the following countries that offer tax benefits for your hard earned money.

1) United Arab Emirates

The UAE is a zero income tax country. The country’s 2 biggest cities or emirates, Dubai and Abu Dhabi are home to hundreds of thousands of expats from all over the world, all of whom pay no personal income tax. The UAE has one of the fastest growing economies in the region. The “Doing Business Report 2012” ranked the country second in the list of easiest countries to do business in the Middle East. Major employers in the country include sectors like oil and petroleum, services, retail, tourism, real estate and manufacturing.  

2) Bermuda

This British Overseas territory is one of  the leading offshore financial centers in the world. Bermuda enjoys one of the highest per-capita incomes in the world, making it a wealthy country. Bermuda has no personal income tax system, making it attractive for expats from the United States, UK and Europe to gain employment in this island nation. A third of the Bermudian workforce is made up by expats, many of them employed in the re-insurance sector, of which Bermuda is a world leader. Tourism and financial service are the other major sources of employment in Bermuda.

3) Hong Kong

This Asian financial giant was ranked No.1 in the “Index of Economic Freedom 2012” study. Hong Kong is one of the world’s most open and liberal economies in the world. It is considered by most experts to be the top place for corporations to raise capital and therefore has come to be known as the IPO capital of the world. Hong Kong is categorized as a low income tax country, with a peak direct income tax rate of 15 percent. The country is also the world’s largest re-exporter of goods.  Hong Kong’s biggest employer is the service sector, with 90% of the workforce engage in the service industry, which in turn is dominated by banking and international financial institutions. 

4) Switzerland

Switzerland is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of per capita GDP. The country falls in the low personal income tax category, with a peak rate of 13.2 percent. Switzerland was ranked No.5 overall in the world and No.1 in Europe by the Index of Economic Freedom 2012 study. 20 percent of its workforce consists of expats, a high number for a western European country. The high technology manufacturing sector is one of the largest employers in the country, followed by the service industry, which consists of banking, insurance, financial services, tourism and international organizations. 

5) Brunei

Though small, Brunei is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of GDP per capita purchasing power parity. The country is classified as a newly industrialized nation and a developed country. It ranks only behind Singapore in the Human Development Index. Petroleum and natural gas production contributes nearly 90 percent of the country’s GDP. The sizeable expat community has for long contributed to the growth and development of this sovereign state. Brunei has a no income tax policy that has made it an attractive destination for expats, most of whom are employed by the oil and natural gas industry. 

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