I trust you are all safe and well and enjoying the additional bit of freedom that moving into Phase 1 has afforded us herein Spain. By the time you read this there is every chance we are into Phase 2 allowing even more freedom. It’s been a long haul for Madrid to get there and there are mixed feelings about how long it has taken…
The results are in…
By Chris Webb - Topics: Investment Risk, Moving to Spain, Spain, Tax, Tax Efficient Savings, Tax Relief, UK investments
This article is published on: 10th June 2020


Personally, I´d rather be safe than sorry, so whilst there have been frustrating times over the last few months, it is probably for the best. Recently I sent a survey out to my clients, who are based all over the community of Madrid. The survey was twofold:
Secondly, being in lockdown has given us all the time and opportunity to evaluate our personal situations. To address administrative tasks we had put on the back burner and to look at all aspects of our financial wellbeing, whether that be assessing emergency cash reserves, job security or even making sure an up to date will was in place.
The response to my survey was fantastic with many responses. Some just answered the questions but the majority also wrote additional comments, which gave a greater insight into their situation. It was interesting for me to read the results and compare the answers to how my family have felt and what we had looked at changing or updating.

I´d like to share some of the results from the survey, but I won’t detail all the questions as this Ezine would be never ending.
It might be beneficial for you to compare the data with your own situation or feelings.
1. Only 30% felt that lockdown was a struggle; the vast majority were not concerned by the restrictions.
2. 80% were comfortable with the transition to online communication, whether that be email or video calling.
3. 100% were concerned about their investments – completely natural when you were watching the fall out on the news.
4. 42% were concerned for their jobs.
5. 95% had sufficient emergency cash reserves to see them through – something we always encourage when dealing with our clients.
6. 50% had excess cash reserves sitting idle in the bank.
7. 62% believed that NOW was a great time to get invested and put more money into the markets. Of that number 55% proceeded and bought in at the discounted prices available.
8. 57% had an up to date will in place. Some admitting to doing it recently after my article titled “The Folder”.
9. 80% felt that their insurance policies were sufficient for their situation; however 40% of these people have requested further information and alternative quotes.
The results made for interesting reading and it was great to see that a lot of people had reviewed things and were keen to look at alternative options.

As a company we have a huge network of 3rd party companies that can assist our clients with all the points raised in the survey.
In Madrid I can recommend teams of lawyers who will offer a free initial
consultation and discounted rates, providing they come from me as a direct referral. This is great for anybody that needs to review their will – you can have the initial conversation at no cost and then pay for the will upon completion.I can recommend teams of accountants or gestors to assist with tax returns, inheritance, and other administrative issues.
During lockdown I also set up a collaboration with an expat insurance broker, which allows us to assist with health insurance, life insurance, car insurance, house insurance and more. The great thing about this relationship is that ALL quotations and policy documentation are in English. Whilst most of you will speak and understand Spanish perfectly well, there are times when something is easier “to get” when it’s in English.
If you want to review your insurances, or just obtain alternative quotes to compare with what you already have, get in touch – there is no charge for a quotation.
Do not delay reviewing your will, insurances, or investments.
PS. If you did not receive the survey and want to complete it, send me an email and I´d be happy to share it with you.
There’s only two things you can be certain of in life…
By Katriona Murray-Platon - Topics: France, Tax, tax advice, Tax Efficient Savings, Tax Relief
This article is published on: 2nd June 2020

In France they have an expression “En mai fait ce qui te plait” which translated means that in May you do as you please. Well clearly this year we haven’t been able to do exactly as we please but we have been allowed a bit more freedom since the end of lockdown on 11th May. I haven’t yet felt the need to take advantage of this new found liberty, but as the children returned to school under acceptable conditions at the end of last week our work/home/school routine is set to change.
May is also tax season. Whilst you can get online to do your tax return in April, I personally have always preferred to do it on 1st May and during the month of May I notice an increase in client enquiries. Even though, in my previous role as a tax adviser, I used to do several hundred tax returns for our English speaking clients, I still find myself getting nervous when I do our annual tax return. There are so many bits of information that need to be assembled and I want to make sure that I have all the income, expenses and tax reductions properly entered before I finally press send.

May is a good time to think about not only your tax but also your taxable income. When I worked in the accountancy firm, my colleagues and I didn’t have time to think about whether a client was paying TOO much tax or not. We just took the information provided and entered the figures in the boxes. When I joined Spectrum I realised that, as a financial adviser, I could take the time to sit down and do a full financial review with my clients to look into whether it made sense for them to be paying so much tax. One thing that comes to mind is UK ISAs and investment portfolios.
They are not tax efficient in France and a real headache for anyone or their tax adviser to have to work out. It took hours of entering in each dividend, interest and capital gain. You can still own a well diversified, multi asset portfolio within an assurance vie wrapper and save time and money when it comes to completing your tax return.
If you haven’t done your tax return then there is still time to do so. You can get our free tax guide HERE. In 2020, all households must do their tax returns online if they have internet access at home. If not they can submit a paper return. You have until 4th June if your live in Departments 1-19 or if you are non-resident, 8th June for Departments 20-54 and 11th June for Departments 55 to 974/976.
As regards the markets, global share prices have recovered strongly over recent weeks, with many investors encouraged by central bank interventions, including ongoing financial support and stimulus for individuals and companies. The prospect of successful vaccine development and the easing of lockdown restrictions have also fuelled optimism. Some of this investor enthusiasm, and expectations of a rapid economic recovery, may well be misplaced, but short term stock market direction is of course impossible to forecast.
There is almost certainly more economic difficulty ahead, but there will in time be a recovery (the only question is timing) and, as always, it is important to take the long term view. For now, our priority should be to ensure that our investments and pensions continue to be well managed regardless of the difficult economic circumstances.
In the words of Julian Chillingworth, Chief Investment Officer of Rathbones, one of Spectrum’s approved multi-asset fund managers,
“We think it’s important that investors concentrate on understanding which businesses can survive this current crisis and quickly return to generating meaningful profits and paying dividends. This is where we are concentrating our research efforts, generating ideas for our investment managers to use in portfolios as we work our way through this crisis.”
May has been a busy month with Zoom meetings with colleagues, friends and family and telephone meetings with clients and prospects. However as lockdown has now ended and my children are back at school (for at least two days a week), I will be tentatively making a few face to face meetings in June if my clients so wish whilst taking all the necessary protection measures.
If you want to speak to me about any financial matters or you know of anyone who, having moved to France, would benefit from learning more about managing finances in France, please do get in touch.
Tax Efficient Savings
By Antony Poole - Topics: Costa del Sol, Spain, Spanish Compliant, Tax Efficient Savings
This article is published on: 10th October 2019

You have moved to Spain … and you are now tax resident here.
You do not want the volatility or risk of investments, but want more earnings than you get out of a savings account.
Is there a middle ground solution?
The majority of expats in Spain move over here for the weather, the more relaxed way of life and let’s face it, because they can afford to do it!
The savings, investments and pensions they built up are used to fund their lifestyle in Spain. The problem many are facing now is the changing financial environment; we have seen the pound devalue against the Euro and interest rates drop due to quantative easing, amongst other factors. This is great if you are looking at taking out a loan to start a business or to buy a house, but most expats are past this stage, so not good news.
That sum of money held in savings is absolutely vital, as it is readily accessible and, in the majority of cases, protected from what the markets are doing, i.e. when the markets go down, it doesn’t affect the cash held on deposit! However, the low interest rates mean that, due to inflation (which affects retirees the most), the purchasing power of that cash is going down.
The investment route does give you the possibility of earning more from your cash, but it also takes away all that protection. The markets have been pretty steady for the last few years, however, with quantative easing at the time of writing looking at coming to an end, so will the volatility of investments increase. The problem most expats face is that they do not have the luxury of time on their side to ride out the dips in the markets. Sorry to be so blunt, but it is what it is. When the markets climb it is all good, however, two weeks later when they are down then it can be very stressful, especially if this is when you need to access some of the money held in the investment!
So what do we do? Is there any middle ground?
Yes, there is, but it is not very sexy! It is for people who are willing to sacrifice the spikes in market prices (this is the unsexy part) while limiting exposure to drops in market prices. It is a very prudent scheme that works like this: The investment you make is combined with a pot of around
£500 billion and when this investment makes money they hold some of the gain back, so you do not get it. The flip side is that when there is a dip in the performance, they put the profit back in so you are not overly affected. This is called smoothing and this chart reflects how it works. The expected return is published every three months and is currently running at around 5% (August 2019).
This is a popular product in the UK for those who are either looking at putting a portion of their savings somewhere to earn more than just interest, or for those who are looking at a stable investment fund for their pensions. It can also be set up as last life policy, so can be used to limit IHT. Many expats also use this type of policy, which is now available Spanish tax compliant (your English policy is not, so speak to me about making it Spanish compliant). This is a low risk option for those preparing for market volatility and who want a stress free life!