The lady in question is ready to sell her Spanish house and liquidate everything she has in Spain in order to move back to the UK. The house is jointly owned with her late husband, however, due to an unclear land registry issue, the value of the house allegedly cannot be ascertained in order to calculate the inheritance tax due on all of the Spanish assets, including fairly large amounts in the Spanish bank.
Because the tax has not been ascertained, the Spanish bank has frozen every account that my client has, in full. She has no access to any money other than her small monthly pension that she has had to divert from being paid into her Spanish account to her UK bank account. The bank, and the law, doesn’t care that she is now unable to pay utility bills, communication bills etc. Whatever the minutiae of the breaches of the law, I find the entire position my client finds herself in quite immoral.
Thankfully, I am in the process of releasing the cash that she invested with us all those years ago to her UK bank so that she can get on with her life and breathe easily again. By chance, had she not followed our recommendation, this cash could also have been frozen in its entirety.
When investing, most people are concerned with the return they will get on their money, but the bigger picture for us as advisers is the way the investment is packaged so that problems can be avoided when inevitable life circumstances occur – and the above story is a perfect example. So, if you do have large amounts of cash located in Spain, think about my client’s story, then give me a call to ask what we might suggest based on your circumstances.
This communication is for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute, and should not be construed as, investment advice, investment recommendations or investment research. You should seek advice from a professional adviser before embarking on any financial planning activity. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the information contained in this communication is correct, we are not responsible for any errors or omissions.
The Malta Association of Retirement Scheme Practioners (MARSP) have been attempting to persuade the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) that Switzerland has the relevant regulatory authorisation, supervision and enforcement in line with the EU in order for Swiss Based Advisors to continue to be able to service their EU clients post changes to Malta Pension Legislation – which has seen many clients having to seek an alternative, appropriately licenced, EU based Financial Adviser.
Keith Littlewood is Blacktower Financial Management’s Regional Manager covering Murcia and