The Real Story about Americans Going Offshore by Bowman Offshore Bank Transfers
Reader Question today… An Internet Entrepreneur from the US is concerned about getting sued and wants an incorporation that protects against lawsuit liability, aka asset protection.
I am interested in asset protection I am also just starting out my business and want to do asset protection and plan for tax liability before it becomes an issue. Here is a little breakout of what I have and what I’m planning on doing.
I have some Adsense sites that bring in a small income – I would like to move those off shore (hosting, domain register, Adsense account, etc.) I had some issues with branded sites that cost me a ton in legal bills because they were registered to me personally (stupid I know I bought some domains in bulk and was assured there were no TradeMark or Copywrite issues).
I am in the process of creating some information products and would like to launch them on Click Bank or a network like that, again I want to avoid personal liability I know you can do this with a US LLC or
Corporation but it seems like people are less likely to file a frivolous suit if you are off shore. Are there any issues with CB and say a BVI company?
I am also planning on launching a few eCommerce site selling digital products for now, then drop ship down the road. So I’ll need to do/support payment processing
My concern is the IRS is there any red flag for offshore how do you handle them without getting in trouble or raising any flags?
Going offshore for asset protection purposes is a very intelligent and prudent move. Unfortunately most people only consider this after they are ‘burned’ so to speak. Usually it takes a lawsuit or legal proceeding to wake people up to the reality of doing business. Business is risky, in and of itself. If you are doing business in the US, you are doing business in a developed society with millions of lawyers willing to work on contingency fees.
Going offshore is a great way to protect you from a liability standpoint for several reasons:
Out of State, Out of Mind… I’m Just Plain Harder to find…
Your assets will be harder to find, and will most likely not appear in a preliminary domestic asset search. The way they will be able to find you is by examine your tax returns during a discovery phase of a lawsuit. Ideally you never reach this point because your creditor sees you are offshore and you don’t appear an attractive target because…
Foreign Courts and Laws… You understand? Tu comprendes? Est-ce que tu me comprends?
If someone decides to move forward with a lawsuit, they need to sue you in the jurisdiction in which your legal entity registered. Let’s say you have a company in a Spanish or French speaking country – now they will have to lodge a lawsuit in a different language.
Want to sue me? I’ll see you in Nevis.
Courts in Nevis, for instance, won’t recognize foreign proceedings, and the parasite trying to take your money has to journey to Nevis. When they do, they will be far, far away from home dealing with a lawsuit dealing only with your business assets (and those held in the LLC), and not your personal assets.
Want to Sue Me? Pay For My Lawyer.
For illustrative purposes, let us play devil’s advocate and drag out the lawsuit vignette to its full conclusion. Say for instance a parasite finds your assets held offshore, and the evil person who is suing is so infuriated he follows you all the way to Nevis. Not only does he has to pay for his lawyer, he is also forced to pay for your lawyer, and needs post a bond to file the lawsuit.
A far cry from the US system where lawyers often will take a case on contingency, where there is no money exchanged up front, but they are likely to take 50% or more if successful with the lawsuit.
Fact: You are much less likely to receive a frivolous lawsuit if you set up your business offshore.
No matter what your business, you are far less likely to be sued if you set up in a different jurisdiction. This is because as previously mentioned; your creditors will need to journey to the distant and faraway land to sue you. It effectively places your business outside of the millions of American lawyers and courts.
Make Sure You Properly Transfer Your Assets Offshore
You will want to transfer the intellectual property to the offshore company. The company must legally own the assets – and if you transfer them they must be sold to the company at fair market value. This is complicated tax stuff so I won’t get bogged down on it for the moment, but you want to keep records, and hold paper on these interactions.
Let’s say that you own a series of websites that you want to transfer to an offshore company in Nevis, because you have heard that Belize is the best place for Internet Entrepreneurs to set up offshore.
This means that you need to create a bill of sale to the company, properly conveying the web properties. You’ll also want to have the billing flow to an offshore bank account (so that all parts of the business are offshore) and You should also host offshore, and if you want to take the last step, transfer the domains to an offshore registrar (ie. get them out of Godaddy’s control).
These are the 5 points of doing business offshore:
- Websites (property, the business etc)
- Bank Account
- Merchant Account
- Hosting
- Domain Registration
Get all 5 points offshore (outside the high liability country) and you have properly structured your business outside your jurisdiction.
A Word on Merchant Accounts
Everyone I talk to about moving offshore has concerns with 2 payment processors: Paypal and Clickbank. While there are some set ups that afford these companies – these are US companies (primarily) that somewhat defeat the purpose of going offshore in the first place. There are literally thousands of different merchant accounts, payment processors, payment gateways etc for all countries, legal entities and so forth.
You’ll oftentimes even get a better deal on rates and keep a bigger percentage of your profits by using an offshore merchant account if you are an internet entrepreneur.
How to avoid red flags and stay on good terms with the taxman:
Since move your assets offshore is completely legal if it’s done for asset protection purposes – the main thing you will need to do is properly report the offshore legal entity, and the offshore bank accounts with the proper forms.
You will have to keep proper records and report all of your earnings and financial information to the IRS each year.
In addition to the company forms (which vary, and you should discuss with an accountant) You should be very careful to file your FBAR forms as well – which is a yearly form filed to the treasury if the cumulative holdings across all foreign accounts exceeds $10,000. This is form TDF 90-22.1
In layman’s terms: if you have more than 10k in foreign bank accounts, you need to file an form called an “FBAR” to Uncle Sam to let him know about your bank accounts.
As long as you file the correct forms (which are relatively easy) and you properly report your income, then you are well within your rights to journey offshore for asset protection purposes. Once you journey offshore you can enjoy doing business in an environment where you can take risks to generate profit, rather than wait in anticipation of the next frivolous lawsuit…
Three of the best places to incorporate offshore:
- Form a BVI company
- Form a Belize Company
- Form a Nevis Company
Bowman Offshore Bank Transfers: Start an Offshore Company
How an offshore company can lower your taxes
Is the price tag on this year’s tax return still stinging? Are you tired of a high tax rate eating away at your hard-earned business and investment income?
Bankrupt governments are waging war on success. The “lands of opportunity” have rolled up the welcome mats for business.
So, what are you paying? Is 35%? 40%? 50% of your income going to taxes? That’s an awful lot of your money going to greedy politicians who clearly don’t value your success. But do they have a point? After all, they’re letting you create jobs and build wealth in their country. Right…
If you’re tired of paying so much for the “privilege” of running a business in the west, and you want to reduce taxes and protect your assets, then it’s time you explore your options with offshore companies.
Lucky for you, you’re in the right place.
The story behind offshore companies
Setting up an offshore company is a legal, effective way to protect your income from any greedy mouths (like that of whatever western government you call home).
Apple, Google, Microsoft, Starbucks–These businesses use offshore corporations to save a lot of money and grow their businesses on their own terms. Saving money with low tax rates means more money to reinvest in their companies
And your company doesn’t have to make billions of dollars in order for you to apply the same principles to your business and get the same low tax rates. There are legitimate strategies that international business owners and investors can use to reduce taxes and grow their business.
The most important part of these strategies is they’re 100% legal. You just need the right advice (and a little bit of money).
The right advice for your offshore business
If you’ve found your way here, then you’ve probably already tried Googling “offshore company.” And you’ve probably encountered blogs and articles with conflicting information.
“You need an X offshore corporation in Y part of the world.” “No, you need a Y offshore company in X part of the world!”
This information is likely written by people still living in the USA, still paying high taxes (you know, the same high taxes you’re trying to get out from under).
This bad advice will not show you the legal path to low tax rates.
And there’s another red flag to watch out for from these “experts in theory”–there isn’t a single approach that will work for every business. You need to get advice from someone who understands the global tax market, who understands your business, and who understands your goals behind starting an offshore company.
Each type of business has specific needs, and these needs are best served by personalized solutions. Many of the offshore company “service providers” out there are either ill-informed or outright frauds. And if you don’t know what to look for, it’s easy to get caught in their appealing, misleading pitch.
What makes my advice different from the endless stream of “armchair expat” blogs out there?
I’ve personally taken my tax rate from 43% to single-digit numbers with the help of the global tax market. And I’ve helped many others reduce taxes for their business (and continue to do so through my exclusive coaching program).
Years ago, I felt trapped underneath a hefty tax bill while trying to run my first successful company. Unlike most business owners, I decided to do something about it. Now I travel the world, paying single-digit taxes and helping others build this lifestyle for themselves.
Think about it–every day that goes by where you sit in the US, or Canada, or Australia, reading a blog about starting an offshore company, is another day you lose money to high tax rates.
How does starting an offshore business really work?
The “why” behind offshore companies
A prevailing image of the offshore company industry is one of money laundering, gangsters, drug money, and villains wearing white linen suits (that are–somehow–never stained by the cognac they always seem to be drinking).
In reality, it’s not that sexy (although your particular cognac consumption and linen suit-count may vary). Offshore companies are entities that people create in order to legally take advantage of the global tax market.
The benefits of an offshore corporation can include protecting assets from impending litigation, shifting the tax burden imposed upon the company, and protecting the company from political unrest and economic instability within the country of the owners.
Protecting assets from impending litigation
Frivolous lawsuits, ex-spouses, crazy family members, ex-business partners–money leeches are everywhere and you never know when they’ll come gunning for your assets. Setting up an offshore company can provide increased protection for your assets against the crazy people who want to sue you for them.
Shifting the tax burden imposed upon the company
Think of profit taxation as an expense that can be reduced. The global tax market is the legal, lawful system you can use to reduce taxes. Every nation has different policies and budget requirements. That means you can find much lower tax rates offshore than what you currently pay in the western country you call home.
Let’s be clear here: legally reducing your taxes through an offshore corporation is not the same as trying to evade taxes altogether. The former is legal, the latter is not. If you’re trying to evade taxes, you’re in the wrong place (and also, you’re an idiot).
What could you do for your business with the money you’d save if your tax rate legally went from a steep 40% to a low tax rate like 5%? If you could greatly reduce taxes on your business this year–what would that mean for the future growth of your business?
Protecting the company from political unrest
Political unrest, inflation, and hyperinflation–you can’t control any of these occurrences. But you can insulate yourself against them. Forming an offshore corporation can act as a safeguard against any potential turmoil in your home country.
Good businesses for starting an offshore company
Intelligent business owners create offshore corporations to protect their hard work, protect their shareholders and maximize the potential profits of their business.
I say “intelligent” because tax law is a complicated beast. The truth is, offshore companies won’t work for every person and every business.
There are plenty of businesses that would be well-served to go offshore, including e-commerce or web based businesses, international businesses, consultants and coaches, stock and forex traders, international investors, and those holding intellectual property rights. If you have a location independent business, going offshore could be the biggest no-brainer out there.
Online businesses are an excellent fit for an offshore corporation because they can operate anywhere. With an offshore company, you can process payments in one country, host your website in another, keep accounting records in a third, and pay low tax in a fourth.
If you’re a digital nomad or location-independent entrepreneur who earns money while traveling or living overseas, forming an offshore company could make things much easier for you. Onshore incorporation usually means a litany of paperwork and high taxes–but starting an offshore corporation could mean fewer hoops to jump through.
As I mentioned earlier, inflation or hyperinflation in your home country could drastically reduce the value of your wealth. Having an offshore company with an offshore bank account can keep your business assets insulated against this threat.
If you own a patent or trademark, registering it in the name of an offshore company can allow you to buy and sell these rights. Having these registered under an offshore company also makes it easier to grant these rights to third parties.
What type of offshore company should you set up?
Low taxes, secure business assets, and insulation against unrest at home–starting an offshore corporation is probably sounding pretty good right about now.
But starting an offshore corporation isn’t as easy as going online and signing up. Speaking with an expert will help you figure out which type of offshore corporation strategy will work best for you.
Maybe a Limited Company in Hong Kong is the right move for your offshore corporation–foreign profits aren’t taxed and local Hong Kong profits are only taxed at 16.5%.
A private limited company in the UK or Australia might make sense for you, or even an offshore PLC in Singapore (it won’t get you to 0%, but it will reduce taxes). Each type of offshore company and each jurisdiction have their own unique strengths and appropriate uses.
And certain offshore company types are only available in specific jurisdictions. For example, if a SARL makes sense for your business, you’ll be setting up in a French-speaking country. (It rarely does make sense, though.)
Low tax or no tax?
As tiny tax havens become impossible to deal with, people are actually moving into strategies in places like the US. There are ways for non-residents with LLCs to legally pay no or low tax. Same result, different structure–and another reason why a little expert advice is the right way to go.
What are the best countries for an offshore company?
Your goals will determine the best place for setting up an offshore company.
One business might do well forming an offshore corporation in a country with no accounting or audit requirements and zero tax.
A slightly larger, more diverse company might be better off going to Hong Kong or Singapore and paying a small amount of tax to get the benefits of a great international reputation.
A company seeking to raise venture capital funds might go somewhere else entirely.
While it is often possible to pay zero tax, sometimes it makes sense to pay a little tax. You won’t see me whining that I was able to legally reduce my taxes from 43% to 1%. The savings have put a rather substantial sum back into my pocket.
For some companies, paying a low tax is better than paying no tax. First, low tax locations often grant you more access to world-class banking, financial opportunities, and merchant services.
And paying small tax amounts can make the difference between your home country leaving you alone and giving you a hard time. As the global war on tax havens heats up, setting up your offshore corporation in a respected jurisdiction might be the best strategy for you. And in some cases, it might not even cost you anymore.
Common countries for offshore corporations
Common traditional offshore jurisdictions include Nevis, Seychelles, Mauritius, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Antigua, Anguilla, and even the Gambia in Africa.
Other low-tax jurisdictions popular for offshore companies include territories like Gibraltar, as well as low-tax European countries like Ireland, Malta, and even “zero tax” Estonia.
In Asia, places like Hong Kong and Singapore offer the potential for zero or single-digit tax rates for foreign business, as well as a network of global tax treaties.
Meanwhile, the Middle East is growing as an offshore hub, with Dubai and Bahrain offering their services to those interested in that region.
Tax implications of offshore corporations
We’ve talked a lot about how a big part of forming an offshore company is trying to reduce taxes or eliminate your tax burden entirely. In order to get the best legal results, you need to have the right team in place to manage your business.
Having the right team in place to manage your business once it is set up does two important things–It makes sure you are 1) in compliance and 2) making the most of all tax benefits.
Some higher-level offshore jurisdictions will require you to file annual accounts showing your transaction history. These include places like Hong Kong, Singapore, Cyprus, Gibraltar, etc.
Many traditional offshore jurisdictions may require you to keep books on your own, but they don’t require you to file them. Even if you don’t have to file reports or pay tax offshore, you might be required to declare your interest in any offshore company to the country where you’re a citizen or resident.
Forming an offshore corporation is about saving money and protecting assets legally, not hiding away or evading taxes. You want to make sure you’re not only aware of all the rules and regulations surrounding your home country and the jurisdiction of your offshore company, but that you’re complying with these rules, too.
Offshore company requirements for US citizens
The US government has some tight restrictions on offshore companies.
As a US citizen, you’ll need to disclose any interest in an offshore corporation on your taxes each year. The same goes for any offshore bank accounts you are an owner of or signer on, in most cases.
Failure to comply with these rules in the US (or any other western country that requires them) can lead to steep penalties. You can reduce taxes with an offshore corporation, but you won’t benefit from a low tax if you get whacked with penalties and fees.
Tax deferment is one way for offshore companies to reduce taxes. The system in place lets you defer the taxes that will be imposed upon your company indefinitely.
You can take the money you’re no longer putting towards taxes and reinvest it in your company. You won’t have to pay these taxes off until you sell the company.
If you’ve been deferring taxes for a number of years, and using those funds to either continue to build your business or invest otherwise, you will be coming out far ahead of those who never start an offshore company. Try as those homebodies might to reduce taxes, tax-free compound interest from your offshore company will blow their onshore earnings out of the water.
How to get started setting up an offshore company
Remember those bad blogs and articles from earlier? Well, offshore corporation misinformation isn’t the only thing you need to be wary of…
There are plenty of cheap “start an offshore company” service providers advertising on the internet. They offer the lowest price and the best results. Oxymorons.
Unless you’re an African warlord, you’ll want to steer clear of these service providers. Flouting the law, avoiding and ignoring sound legal and tax advice–If that’s your M.O, the lowest-priced provider will get you set up in no time (I mean, maybe…there are plenty of scams out there).
And while the process of forming an offshore corporation is straightforward (and can be done in a matter of minutes, in some countries), laying the proper groundwork before and after the official process is important.
You need to consult with a provider who understands the rules and regulations in your home country, which most so-called “lawyers” on some deserted island have no idea how to handle (since most of them are just deflated volleyballs with painted-on faces).
The best thing you can do is choose the right representative. Overpaying a little up front is a no-brainer when it comes to your peace of mind down the line. The next step after “reduce taxes” shouldn’t be “reduce jail time.” You’re asking for trouble if you don’t vet these cheap offshore corporation services before buying in.
What to do after forming your offshore corporation
Once your offshore company is approved and set up, the next step is to open a bank account (and possibly an offshore merchant account).
Whether or not you’ll have to physically travel to the bank depends on a few things, including where your company is incorporated, your nationality, and where you intend to bank.
But don’t let that turn you off. The most important first step towards an offshore corporation is to simply take action. The sooner you get your business set up, the sooner you can enjoy the benefits. And it can be a life-changing process–What other process lets you reduce taxes, insulate your assets from turmoil, and keep greedy hands away from your hard-earned assets?
Do you want to reduce your taxes?
Look, if you’re serious about starting an offshore company, I might be able to help.
Every month I personally help five people build their own Nomad Capitalist life–starting an offshore company, getting a second passport, opening an offshore bank account–whatever they need to build more wealth and live a life with more freedom and success.
If you’re ready to stop spending your time (and money) reading article after article on offshore companies, you might be ready for my help. Be honest with yourself, here.
If you’re committed to pursuing the Nomad Capitalist lifestyle, then you should fill out this application. If my team and I decide you’re a good fit, the next step is a phone call with me.
This isn’t a free consultation, and this isn’t a “sales call” where I try and convince you to do something you don’t want to do.
I don’t work with you unless you’re already convinced this lifestyle is for you, and you’re 150% committed to making it happen.
Your phone call will confirm that you’re qualified for my services and that I can help you achieve your goals. When the call checks out, we get to work.
By the way, at five people a month, I’m not cheap to work with (I don’t need to be, and you shouldn’t need me to be, either). If you’re looking for the best spot to bury your gold, or a soapbox to spout your anarchist rhetoric, or “a week to think it over” then you’re probably in the wrong place, and I can’t help you.
Bowman Offshore Bank Transfers: How to Send an International Wire Transfer
Everything You Need To Know About Wiring Money Overseas
I’m getting a lot of feedback from people trying to send international wire transfers.
A reader wrote this week to say:
“I went to my bank branch to initiate a wire transfer on Monday. The teller had to call over the branch manager to help with the paperwork. Once the manager saw I was transferring money to Panama, she told me they wouldn’t be able to do the wire transfer. When I asked why not, she said because investing in Panama is too risky.”
A similar tale from another reader:
“I tried to wire money to Panama for a property purchase, and the teller told me they couldn’t do the wire because they didn’t have a branch in Germany. The Panama bank uses a German bank as their intermediary, but isn’t that what they (an intermediary bank) are there for—to accept international transfers?”
I share the frustration these and the other readers I’ve been hearing from are feeling. Recently, two Los Islotes investors tried to wire money for their lot purchases. The first client’s funds never made it because they were rejected by the Panama bank’s intermediary bank and returned to the client almost two weeks after the wire had been initiated.
The second client’s funds arrived the next day, after having passed through the same intermediary bank.
The difference? Who knows?
Every Bank Is Different and So Are Their Processes
Every bank has its own way of handling wires, but wiring money from one money-center bank to another money-center bank should be straightforward regardless of the banks involved as minimal information is required. However, sending money from a non-money-center bank, as the first reader I quote above was trying to do, to another non-money-center bank in a foreign country is a different story.
This is why banks work with intermediary or correspondent banks, to facilitate international transfers of funds. Unfortunately, this means another layer of information, including the recipient bank’s account number with the intermediary bank. If any of the information is missing or not included in the instructions in the expected format, the wire can be rejected, as it was for my Los Islotes buyer.
Most folks don’t send international wires on a regular basis, and, even if you do, it’s hard to keep up with all the particulars.
The easiest strategy these days is to initiate a wire online. The trouble is that online systems don’t work when trying to send a wire using a bank that requires several layers of intermediate and final beneficiary details. In a situation like that, you have to go into a bank branch to initiate the transaction in person.
When you do, don’t stand in line and wait your turn to speak with a teller. The typical bank teller in the typical neighborhood bank has never sent an international wire and probably wouldn’t be able to find the transfer’s destination on a map. You want to speak instead with a personal banker or a manager.
Engage the conversation confident in the fact that your bank can, indeed, wire your funds where you want them to go. Don’t let the banker you speak with try to tell you otherwise. Also, don’t let the banker try to talk you out of the transaction altogether. It’s your money, not his. What you do with it is none of his business (unless he’s also your money manager). You don’t have to justify your plans to him or anyone else (well, maybe to your spouse).
Wire Transfer Terminology and Fundamentals
Here are some fundamentals and some terminology for reference.
U.S. banks use what is called an ABA number, which identifies banks within the U.S. banking system. If you’re transferring money from one U.S. bank to another, all you should need is the recipient bank’s ABA number and the beneficiary’s name and account number (maybe their address, too).
International banks are identified by what’s referred to as a SWIFT code. A SWIFT code is all letters, no numbers, and it should be all you need for most international wire transfers. Sometimes the sending bank will require the intermediary bank’s details, as well, including that bank’s SWIFT code.
In Europe, the system is much simpler in my view and is based on the IBAN number. This is an aggregated number that includes the bank identification and the recipient’s account identification along with some other numbers to guide the transfer through to the recipient. With an IBAN number, nothing else is required for the money to arrive where it’s supposed to arrive, though most banks still request account names for confirmation.
Sending a wire from one currency to another creates further complications. Again, from a reader last week:
“The bank says they can’t send a wire to Singapore for me because they don’t have any Singapore dollars.”
Another case where the teller had no idea what he was talking about. The teller was correct when he told your fellow reader that his bank didn’t have any Singapore dollars to send, but that’s irrelevant. That’s what currency exchanges are for. In the case of a small local or regional bank, it may be necessary for your banker to contact his correspondent bank first, before initiating the wire, to get the exact U.S. dollar amount required to send the specific foreign currency amount, but don’t let your banker tell you he can’t send the wire at all. That’s just not so.
When sending a wire online, you typically can elect to transfer the funds in your currency or in the currency of the recipient. Again, online is always easier when it’s an option.
Back to the reader who wrote in to say that his banker insisted he couldn’t wire money to Singapore. Finally, thanks to the guy’s persistence, the banker came around and sent the wire. However, he wired the U.S. dollar amount rather than the Singapore dollar amount. Now the poor guy is due a refund in the amount of the extra Singapore dollars.
And now his banker is now telling him the bank can’t accept a wire from Singapore.
So it goes.
Devin Fitzpatrick Art Consultants Review: Basic tips on choosing a good art consulting service
To begin, here’s a quote that has been familiar to a lot of people for quite some time, and it goes like this: “The ‘earth’ without ‘art’ is just ‘eh.’” Though it gives a little bit of humor, it signifies the truth. Art gives us a lot of meaning and it doesn’t have to be beautiful to be appreciated. But being involved in the business of art requires careful actions and thought.
Engaging with art often needs the expertise of a professional art consulting service to ensure more beneficial and positive results. Seek the service that is similar with Devin Fitzpatrick Art Consultants to greatly help you in your art venture. You would not have much problem in buying or selling an artwork for example if you have an art consultant besides you.
Each of us has different needs, so it might be hard to find someone who could provide all your individual demands. But with a careful research and selection, you could find the art consultant you need. The following are some basic tips to help you find and choose the best art consulting service for your interests.
Conduct a thorough research
You can search by foot or simply use the internet. And to make things easier, you can discuss this with your friends, relatives or neighbors who have acquired the service of an art consultant. With such, you could gain honest recommendations and could even list the ones that you should avoid.
Select the one who understands
The business that involves art is still a business but always remember that to get the results you’re seeking for, you need to work with someone who really understands you. This way, you can discuss with the consultant all your concerns and preferences with nothing holding you back. Similar to the service of Devin Fitzpatrick Art Consultants, you should choose the one that has a wide understanding and could be flexible in dealing with the differences of each client. Keep in mind that a qualified art consultant service could do such thing with their many years of experience handling a lot of people in the past.
Take into account your budget
Getting the service of an art consultant might be a bit costly, so you need to make sure that you could afford the service of one with your set budget. Choose the one that you can afford and has agreed to your terms including your budget.
Devin Fitzpatrick Art Consultants puts a huge importance on the relationship between the client and the consultant. Both sides should have a mutual understanding to end up with a valuable outcome. It might take you a lot of effort in the beginning, but if you carefully choose the one you’ll be working with, everything will go on smoothly in the end.
Galveston Capital Tourism and Marketing at 5 Great Restaurants for Gluten-Free Diets
It wasn’t too very long ago that asking to see the gluten free menu in a restaurant would have elicited a response along the lines of “What’s a gluten?” from your baffled server.
But in this era of expanding culinary enlightenment, most restaurants now take pride in catering to their gluten free customers with the same delicious, flavorful options that non-gluten threatened diners enjoy. Let’s take a look at some of Galveston’s top restaurants for diners who have tosteer clear of gluten in all its many forms.
While this cool spot on Post Office Street just opened in 2016, it’s already made quite a name for itself thanks to its combination of traditional Tex Mex favorites and an insistence on using only the freshest ingredients. Gluten free options abound, with favorites like the grilled tilapia served with chimichurri slaw; grouper tacos; tacos de Camarones, featuring fresh gulf shrimp, and the beef, chicken, shrimp or veggie fajitas.
It’s hard to get any more Gulf Coast traditional than this Seawall institution, but Gaido’s has kept up with the times by quite nicely by offering numerous GF items, including the combination grilled seafood platter with shrimp, scallops and your choice of fish, and the grilled deep sea scallops. The chicken Ponzini also comes highly recommended, thanks to its melding of charcoal-grilled chicken, wild mushrooms and Swiss cheese sauce.
This Seawall favorite makes a habit of presenting its signature dishes in creative, versatile ways that make them accessible to virtually any customer, no matter their dietary restrictions. Whether it’s the Mediterranean chicken, shrimp Dejonge, cedar plank salmon or the blackberry pork chops, going gluten free never tasted so good.
Olympia Grill
With two locations (at Pier 21 and at 4908 Seawall Blvd.) Olympia Grill is quite possibly destination dining for gluten free diners who love Greek food thanks to one of the most extensive GF menus on the island. Olympia’s falafel is practically world famous, while the grilled salmon steak, with the uniquely different Greco sauce, is absolutely mouthwatering, and the charcoal grilled lamb chops may actually have their own fan club.
Online Security Review, Identity Theft vs. Credit Card Theft: What's the Difference?
Living in an increasingly digital world is great for comfort and convenience, but there's a downside to greater reach in the digital realm: It creates new avenues for theft and fraud.
"Data theft, for both companies and individuals, is one of the top security concerns for 2017," said Garit Boothe, a technology specialist at Frontier Communications. "There's a growing threat to personal information security, but a lot of consumers are left in the dark as to how to deal with the effects."
Yet, despite this growing threat, many people are unfamiliar with the details of credit card fraud and identity theft; let alone how to handle the aftermath of a breach.
In the face of rising risk, knowing what you're up against can help you better prepare for and manage a potential loss. The average person is likely to encounter either credit card theft and identity theft, or both, in his or her lifetime. Let's take a closer look at how those two types of information fraud differ, and what you can do to handle the effects of each.
What is credit card theft?
Credit card theft is a type of identity theft that occurs when someone accesses your credit card account and uses it to make unauthorized purchases. Credit card theft has, unfortunately, become a common crime. According to a 2015 report from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), part of the U.S. Department of Justice, 8.6 million Americans ages 16 or older were victims of credit card fraud in 2014.
What is identity theft?
Though the terms "credit card theft" and "identity theft" are often used interchangeably, identity theft refers to a wider — and often much more serious — set of crimes. The Justice Department splits identity theft into three categories.
- Fraud or misuse of an existing account is the category into which credit card theft falls. This crime occurs when someone obtains your credit card number or bank-account information, and uses that information to go on a spending spree. Passing bad checks on someone else's account also qualifies. This is by far the most common type of identity theft, accounting for 16.4 million of the 17.6 million total victims in 2014.
- Fraud or misuse of a new account occurs when someone uses your personal information to open a new account. This new account could be relatively small, such as a checking account or a new credit card; it can also be much larger, such as a fraudulent mortgage to buy a house. Roughly 1.1 million victims reported this type of identity theft in 2014.
- Fraud or misuse of personal information covers all other events involving improper use of your personal data, including the use of stolen information to get a job, receive medical care, rent an apartment or provide a false identity to law enforcement. This category accounted for 713,000 of the victims in 2014.
While dealing with credit card theft isn't anyone's idea of fun, the recovery process is pretty simple. A few solid federal laws protect consumers from bearing the responsibility of fraudulent charges. No matter how much was stolen, you can be held liable for a maximum of only $50 when you report fraud on a credit card account. If you report the fraud within 60 days of learning of it, even that cost may be waived.
Debit cards are a bit different. In order to limit your liability if your card was physically lost or stolen, you need to report the loss quickly. Your liability stands at $50 for the first two days after the discovery of fraud, and then jumps to $500 between the two-day and 60-day mark. Beyond that, you might be accountable for all charges. If your physical card wasn't taken, however, there's more leniency; as long as you report the fraudulent use within 60 days, you won't be liable for a cent.
In some cases, thieves aren't even able to use the card in the first place. Many card issuers automatically detect suspicious activity and put a block on the card to prevent any future charges. Some companies will even call cardholders to alert them to the attempted use.
Recovering from identity theft
Recovering from full-blown identity theft, in which fraudulent accounts are opened or fraudulent documents are issued in your name, can take years. This type of fraud can be complex and far-reaching, involving multiple avenues of misuse — some of which may go undiscovered until a collection agency attempts to collect a debt that you weren't even aware existed. It wreaks havoc on credit scores and sometimes places extraordinary stress on victims and their families.
Not all of the effects of identity theft are as easy to quantify or resolve, however. For instance, identity-theft victims often suffer serious emotional consequences, though that element of recovery is rarely discussed. But imagine losing your dream home because you couldn't get a mortgage, due to years'-old identity theft of which you weren't aware.
A full 36 percent of victims report suffering moderate to severe emotional distress as a result of identity theft. A recent Equifax report detailed the psychological toll identity theft can take on its victims, noting that many of these individuals experience emotional effects similar to those experienced by victims of assault or home invasion.
If you've been the victim of identity theft, immediately consult the federal government's online resources for ID-theft management. With just a few clicks, you can report fraud and build a custom recovery plan to handle your situation. Once that's in place, consider consulting with a therapist or psychologist to help manage the emotional fallout.
Avoiding identity theft
If you've never been a victim of identity theft, count your blessings. The good news is that minimizing your risk of identity theft is easier that it may seem. Here are a few tips:
- Shred sensitive documents before throwing them away. Anything that has personal or financial information — canceled checks, credit-card statements, even junk mail from a bank or credit-card company — is a potential gold mine to an identity thief. When shopping for a good shredder, look for a model that crosscuts the paper into tiny pieces, rather than just into strips that can be pasted back together.
- Erase computer and smartphone hard drives. Clean out your personal information before getting rid of old PCs, tablets and smartphones. It is surprisingly easy for someone to get access to personal data if the hard drive hasn't been totally reformatted and cleaned.
- Use antivirus software on your computer. Antivirus software will stop most attacks, as long as you let it update every day. Also, don't download anything that you don't trust completely.
- Check your credit reports regularly for discrepancies. You can get up to three credit reports free every year. Reading them can help you head off any potential issues before they become too big.
- Don't give out personal information over email. You don’t trust everyone you meet on the street, so why would you trust people who email you out of the blue? A reputable company won't email you to solicit personal information, so if you're seeing messages asking for your Social Security number, it's likely a ploy.
- Make your passwords strong and unique. Passwords often act as both your first and last lines of defense against information theft. A strong password should be fairly long and use both numbers and symbols in addition to letters. If you have trouble remembering all of those complex passwords, use a password manager.
- Enable two-factor authentication. Two-factor authentication, or 2FA, creates a secondary wall that's harder to bypass than a password alone. Enable it on your online accounts whenever possible.
Identity theft is serious business, and it often goes much further than just losing a credit card and making a few phone calls. But there is hope. Use the knowledge in this article to keep your private information private and your identity secure.
Online Fraud Detection on Combating Credit Union Check Fraud with Technology
FLEX, a credit union core processor, integrates with Advanced Fraud Solution for check fraud prevention.
(Newswire.net -- October 27, 2016) Sandy, Utah -- FLEX CREDIT UNION TECHNOLOGY SELECTS ADVANCED FRAUD SOLUTIONS TO INTEGRATE INDUSTRY-LEADING CHECK FRAUD DETECTION SOLUTION WITHIN ITS TELLER CAPTURE PLATFORM.
Industry-leading solution providers for the financial services sector join forces to combat check deposit fraud
FLEX announces a partnership to integrate its credit union core processing platform with Advanced Fraud Solutions’ (AFS) fraud detection tools. The partnership unites two industry leaders in the perennial fight against check fraud that continues to generate significant losses at credit unions across the nation.
A recent report produced by AFS found that while check volumes continue to decline, the exponential growth in online and mobile banking coupled with the adoption of EMV technology to combat plastic card fraud has helped breathe new life into fraud schemes involving paper checks.
FLEX customers will now be able to automatically screen checks presented at the teller line for fraud. In addition to detecting counterfeit checks, accounts with insufficient funds, and closed accounts, AFS’ solution helps financial institutions detect duplicate deposits previously made through remote deposit or mobile banking, which is a growing problem for the financial services industry as a whole.
“Check fraud continues to plague every financial institution, especially smaller institutions that may not understand the severity of the threat they face until they experience a loss,” says Lawrence Reaves, CEO of North Carolina-based AFS. “Our partnership with FLEX seamlessly embeds our award-winning fraud solution within the teller platform and provides credit union employees with the real-time information they need to make a fully-informed decision as to whether they should accept or reject a deposit. With less time spent processing routine deposits, tellers can refocus their efforts on improving the customer service experience,” adds Reaves.
To learn more about Advanced Fraud Solutions and their approach to fraud mitigation, click here. Visit FLEX Credit Union Technology to learn more about integrated credit union core system management.
About FLEX Credit Union Technology
In recent years, credit union industry personnel ranked FLEX Credit Union Technology first among competing vendors for customer satisfaction. FLEX now serves over 250 credit unions in locations across the country, including Alaska, Hawaii, and the Eastern Caribbean. The company enjoys established relationships with all regulatory agencies, corporate credit unions, and major industry partners.
About Advanced Fraud Solutions
Advanced Fraud Solutions has been a trusted leader in providing fraud mitigation tools to the financial institution market for nearly a decade. AFS products address a wide range of needs that the financial institution has, including check fraud, card fraud, and online banking fraud. Over 500 financial institutions nationwide utilize a wide variety of AFS fraud prevention tools, yet still subscribe to the idea that sharing high-risk information is the best approach to fighting fraud.
Contact Information:
FLEX:
Preston Packer
Director- Sales & Marketing
preston@flexcutech.com
800-262-3539
AFS:
Ted Kirk
Director, Industry Partnerships
tkirk@advancedfraudsolutions.com
336-703-5348 x510
