Ask HN: What is the best jurisdiction for internationally distributed teams?

Post by ushakov » Sat, Jun 04, 2022, 9:39 PM UTC

jll29 wrote: post #79

thruflo wrote: post #24

I’ve founded companies in the UK, US and EU. I’d recommend the UK. The cost of a limited company is £12. It’s formed in a day. Use https://www.ukpostbox.com if you need an address. The legal system is well known and entrepreneur friendly. Accountancy and company admin are simple and relaxed. HMRC is supportive. You can pay dividends on a flexible schedule. There’s a very large ecosystem of financial support, innovati…

I would have seconded that up to the botched implementation of Brexit, now there are many areas of increased risk because (a) certain things are not yet sorted out (increased uncertainty) and (b) the process is antagonistic and politicized instead of cooperative, so the issues are unlikely to be resolved anytime soon. The UK is still a relative good countries for starting up, just not as good as it used to be.

Post by glenngillen » Sat, Jun 04, 2022, 9:49 PM UTC

SkyAndSand wrote: post #38

gumby wrote: post #18

I recently had to consider this and was quite surprised to discover that the US was the best place. Compared to most countries the US has been a tax haven for a long time, but the 2017 tax change meant that in most cases the US would be a significantly cheaper place to recognize revenue.* Also the mechanics of getting the boring things done is significantly easier, as noted by the Germany post cited in your question.…

> Because of the US FATCA law you may have trouble opening a bank account in some countries (smaller entities simply can’t be bothered with the paperwork the US demands on accounts for “US Persons”, a term which has specific meaning). In practice this just means you have to deal with larger banks. You mean opening a bank account personally or for the company? Because for the company I'd simply use Wise or Mercury and…

Post by moneywoes » Sat, Jun 04, 2022, 9:54 PM UTC

mikeryan wrote: post #86

gardnr wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most US companies will hire remote "inside the USA" but not outside the USA due to potential foreign tax and legal liabilities. While the USA might be good for the reasons you listed, hiring remote full-time employees can be a legal minefield. If every employee is a contractor then that introduces its own legal issues in the USA.

There’s a company called Deel (I’m a customer) that can take a lot of the pain out of this including being the employer of record in many countries. There are others as well. http://letsdeel.com

Post by glenngillen » Sat, Jun 04, 2022, 10:00 PM UTC

SkyAndSand wrote: post #36

FooBarWidget wrote: post #20

One thing to note if, as a Dutch person (and possibly even if you're another European), you incorporate in the US: Many Dutch financial institutions hate people who have the "US person" status. If you own a US-incorporated company then I believe you will gain that status. Banks, lenders, stock brokers, etc will either refuse to do business with you, or will give you a lot of paperwork headache and/or charge you more…

I am indeed another European and I do know about the issues with being a "US person". Many banks and brokers will simply immediately close your existing account or not allow you to open one. However, are you sure that simply by owning a US company you become a US person? Because according to my understanding if you don't live in the US (and don't spend more than 4 months / year there) you wouldn't actually be tax res…

Post by KyeRussell » Sat, Jun 04, 2022, 10:10 PM UTC

kzrdude wrote: post #66

lordnacho wrote: post #13

I don't see Malta mentioned. They speak English, are in the EU, use Euros, and have low tax. Nice weather too.

Malta ranks high on a corruption index like https://www.transparency.org/en/blog/cpi-2020-malta-lost-in-...