Tax is the single largest cost most successful people carry, and the one they think about last. It is also the one that responds most directly to where you live and how your affairs are structured.
We advise internationally mobile clients on lowering their tax burden legally, by restructuring how income and assets are held, and where appropriate by changing tax residency altogether.
We operate from our own office in Dubai, through Mevlana Investments LLC, and work with established partners in Cyprus, Monaco, the Bahamas, Hong Kong and Singapore. That network means we compare jurisdictions on their merits for your situation, rather than selling the one destination we happen to know.
Restructure how your income, company and assets are held, across jurisdictions.
Relocate properly, with the permits, the substance and the timing handled for you.
The first lever is structure: where your company is incorporated, how profits are distributed, how investments are held, and which treaty network applies to you. This can be worked on without moving anywhere.
The second is residency: the country that has the right to tax you is, in most cases, the one where you genuinely live. Changing that changes everything else. It is the more powerful lever by a wide margin, and also the more demanding, because it has to be real.
Most of our engagements use both, in a sequence built around your circumstances.
Each jurisdiction below answers a different need. The right one depends on your nationality, your sources of income, your family and how mobile you genuinely are, not on which has the lowest headline rate.
Our own base, through Mevlana Investments LLC. The Emirates levy no personal income tax, and corporate tax applies at a low rate with exemptions for smaller businesses and certain free-zone activities. Residency is obtained through company formation, employment or qualifying property investment, and the permit is renewable. Banking is solid, the country holds an extensive treaty network, and the practical quality of life is high. It is the most straightforward route for entrepreneurs and mobile professionals, and the one where we act directly rather than through a partner.
Residents pay no personal income tax, with one long-standing exception tied to certain nationalities. Residency requires proof of accommodation in the Principality, a substantial deposit with a Monegasque bank and a clean record. It suits established wealth rather than businesses in their early stages, and it keeps you in Europe, an hour from most European capitals.
The option for those who want to stay inside the European Union. The non-domiciled regime exempts qualifying residents from tax on dividends and interest for a defined period, corporate tax is among the lowest in the Union, and residency can be established with a comparatively light physical presence under the sixty-day rule, provided the other conditions are met. Full access to the single market and to EU banking makes it well suited to people who still do business in Europe.
Taxation is broadly territorial: foreign-sourced income is, in many cases, not taxed when it is not remitted. There is no capital gains tax, the banking system is among the strongest in the world, and the rule of law is a genuine asset for holding structures. It suits clients with Asian business interests and those who want a stable, highly regarded base rather than the lowest possible rate.
Also territorial, with low headline rates and no tax on capital gains or dividends. It remains a practical gateway to mainland China and a long-established financial centre with deep professional infrastructure. It suits trading businesses and clients whose activity is genuinely oriented towards Asia.
No income tax, no capital gains tax and no inheritance tax. Residency is available through qualifying property investment, with an accelerated route above a higher threshold. The attraction is simplicity: there is very little tax system to navigate. It suits investors and retired clients whose income is passive and who value proximity to the Americas.
| Jurisdiction | Personal income tax | Route to residency | Best suited to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai (UAE) | None | Company, employment or property | Entrepreneurs, mobile professionals |
| Monaco | None (one nationality excepted) | Accommodation and bank deposit | Established wealth, staying in Europe |
| Cyprus | Exemptions under the non-dom regime | 60-day rule, conditions apply | Those needing EU access |
| Singapore | Territorial; no capital gains tax | Employment or investor schemes | Asian business interests |
| Hong Kong | Territorial, low rates | Employment or investment | Trading, access to China |
| Bahamas | None; no capital gains or inheritance tax | Qualifying property investment | Passive income, retirement |
Rates, thresholds and conditions change. The table is a starting point for discussion, not a statement of the law in force; each situation is verified against current legislation before anything is recommended.
Residency is not a box you tick on a form. Authorities look at the facts: where you actually spend your days, where your permanent home is, where your family lives, and where your economic interests are centred. Where two countries both claim you, double taxation treaties apply a sequence of tie-breaker tests in roughly that order.
A relocation that holds up therefore has to be real. In practice that means five things.
We handle the sequence: company formation where it is required, the residence permit, the banking relationships, the local advisers, and the documentary trail that supports the position if it is ever examined.
Not every client can, or wants to, relocate. A great deal can still be done from where you are.
A holding company in a jurisdiction with a strong treaty network can significantly reduce withholding tax on dividends and interest flowing between entities. Where intellectual property, trading activity or investment portfolios are held determines how the returns are taxed. The choice between drawing salary, dividends or a mixture is worth several points of effective rate on its own. And how assets are titled, personally, through a company, through a foundation or trust, shapes both the annual tax and what happens when wealth passes to the next generation.
These decisions compound. A structure that is right at the outset is worth far more than one corrected five years later, because unwinding an arrangement is usually a taxable event in itself.
This distinction matters more in this field than in any other, so we state it plainly.
What we do: use the rules as they are written. Residency regimes, territorial taxation, treaty networks, holding structures and incentive schemes all exist because governments created them deliberately to attract people and capital. Using them is legitimate, and it is what we are paid for.
What we will not do: conceal anything. Bank accounts are exchanged automatically between more than a hundred jurisdictions under the Common Reporting Standard, beneficial ownership registers are expanding, and structures without genuine substance are routinely disregarded by tax authorities. Anything we build is designed to be declared, documented and defensible. A client who wants to hide assets is not a client for this firm, the exposure is criminal, and it is not a service we offer at any price.
In practice this is also the commercially sound position: an arrangement that collapses under examination costs far more than the tax it was meant to save.
We begin with a full review: your nationality and any nationality-based tax obligations, your sources of income, your assets and how they are held, your family situation and how mobile you genuinely are. That last point decides more than anything else which options are real for you.
We then present costed scenarios, two or three jurisdictions compared side by side, with the expected saving, the cost of getting there, the constraints you would be accepting and the realistic timetable, set out in a written report.
Finally we execute: company formation, residence permits, banking, coordination with local counsel and accountants in the destination, and the exit formalities where you are leaving. We stay involved afterwards, with a quarterly review, because residency has ongoing conditions that must continue to be met.
Constellation Patrimoine manages more than €10 million in assets and draws on 7 years of experience. The first discovery meeting is free and without obligation.
Written by Mevlana Yildirim, founder of Constellation Patrimoine and of Mevlana Investments LLC, Dubai. Registered adviser, ORIAS no. 26006339. First discovery meeting free of charge, in Dubai or by video call. General information for guidance only; it does not constitute personalised tax or legal advice. Tax rules and residency requirements change, and every situation must be verified against the law in force in each jurisdiction concerned.
Yes, and it is entirely legal, provided the move is genuine. Most countries tax you on the basis of where you are actually resident, so relocating your residence changes which rules apply to you. What does not work is declaring a residence you do not really occupy: tax authorities look at where you spend your time, where your home and family are, and where your economic interests sit. We build arrangements that stand up to that examination.
There is no single best answer, because it depends on your nationality, your sources of income, your family situation and how mobile you genuinely are. The United Arab Emirates suit entrepreneurs and mobile professionals; Monaco suits established wealth; Cyprus keeps you inside the European Union; Singapore and Hong Kong suit those with Asian business interests; the Bahamas suit investors seeking simplicity. We compare the options against your actual position rather than starting from a preferred destination.
Typically between three and twelve months, depending on the destination and your circumstances. Setting up a company and obtaining a residence permit in the Emirates is among the quickest routes. Monaco requires proof of accommodation and a banking relationship, which takes longer. The tax effect usually begins in the tax year following the move, which is why the timing of the departure matters as much as the destination.
No. Tax residency and nationality are two different things. Changing where you are tax resident does not require you to renounce your passport. Only a small number of countries tax their citizens wherever they live, and if you hold one of those nationalities we will tell you so at the first meeting, because it changes the entire approach.
Yes, and it must be. Bank accounts are reported automatically between more than a hundred jurisdictions under the Common Reporting Standard. Everything we put in place is designed to be declared, not hidden. Concealment is not tax optimisation; it is a criminal offence, and we do not act for clients who want it.
The first discovery meeting is free and without obligation. It establishes what is realistic in your situation and what it would involve. Costs depend on the destination and the structure chosen, company formation, residence permit, local advisers, and are set out in full before anything begins, alongside the tax saving you can expect.
An exploratory meeting to assess your financial situation and see how we can help, at no cost and with no obligation.
01Together we set out the terms of our partnership and put forward tailored solutions suited to your circumstances.
02Access carefully selected investment opportunities and grow your wealth towards your objectives, with support at every step.
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