marelli

Hi Tim
Thanks for that info. I am unfortunately still considering the Ltda route and wondered would it be possible to use a resident accountant as administrator, or cant they be trusted either? Certainly my UK book-cooker is a little bit inclined to massage the facts occaisionaly where he sees fit.
My new cunning plan for a tax -free sunshine paradise is to open a small farm and slowly-slowly take on staff in a co-operativo styleee in such they are employed as shareholders in the proceeds but not the asset value of the farm and their efforts pay their own wages..
That way they sell what they can pick, by weight, through my on-site farm shop, earning their own pay, less taxes, with only a modest percentage deducted for providing the facility such that the farm stays a viable business from a renewal of visa standpoint. Works for me. But would it work for the immigration office?
All I aim to do is live there permanently, but subject in theory to UK income tax through joint taxation law via a dormant UK company; so can choose where to be taxed; thereby I strangely wont pay Uk tax anyway, no tax payable in Brazil either, coincidentaly, as the farm is effectively not run for profit. Its just a trojan horse but please can I make one point clear I dont aim to exploit the workers, thats not my intention.
I am liking all that I hear of the Paraiba/JP area and looking forward to a recce later this year, who knows I may escape from this straightjacket and doggy paddle my way to brazil for more Q and A in return for plying you with the local beer when you least expect it?
Thank you for the valuable insight again.

Mark

timatthebeach

Hi Mark,

Anyone with residency can be your administrator BUT need to trust them as essentially they can do anything in the name of your company as you cant do anything (even access your company bank account) until you have residency. This could be too much tempatation for some people, the accountant you have in mind - I have no idea how they would react if given that opportunity. Is a real problem, all I can suggest is to go check your chosen spot out and try to suss out the people you are considering. Its always a punt in the end and you just have to limit the risks as best you can.

I imagine your accountant would be able to be creative with many things especially the business plan you have to show to immigration/federal. But I wouldnt know anything about that .......... I think all over the world they are expert at playing their system. As I understand it if the business pays a little tax and makes a bit of an effort to create work for nationals you will be ok. But it may vary state to state in how the rules are interpreted.

If you are thinking of owning a brazillian company with a U.K. company it is possible but have been told it is really hard to do and expensive - but an alternative route you might want to ask an accountant about is opening a branch of your U.K. business in Brazil as you could then apply for a busines visa as an essential employee/director .... not sure of all the ins and outs of that deal as me and my mate went down the new company route. worth thinking about though.

would be a real surprise if you plyed me with beer (but always a welcome one) as I am right down south near Uruguay, although do tend to find myself up in southern part of Bahia at my mates surfing (badly) from time to time. Still a fair way from JP. If you looking for something in JP have a friend who spent some time there and knows a woman who is an estate agent there. they still chat on orkut (Brazillian facebook), she seems reasonably honest - for an estate agent anyway will pass on her details if you want them sometime.

marelli

Ahoy there,
Uruguay only looks about four inches south on my map, so put the kettle on, I should be there by teatime. With a tailwind?
Your reply makes more sense than my rambling drivel, so I will follow your advice and weigh up my options carefully, before drunkenly tossing a coin.
I found a Uruguay property website - looks nice down there.
Happy surfing

Mark

timatthebeach

Hi Mark,

think its about 4,000 km down to rio grande do sul from JP, takes me a day to get to friends in bahia and theyre south of salvador.......... huge country. i keep meaning to go to uruguay but havent quite managed it yet hopefully next time.......
actually know a french guy lives near my friend (who knows him pretty well) in bahia. he runs a cocoa farm and has set up a co-operative with other local farmers and does a kind of profit share thing so he could be worth talking to to get some info and ideas. I will try get you his email address but wont be able to do it until my friend is back in itacare and he just got back to u.k. to work for the summer, so he wont be back until october.
but another good source of info would be CEPLAC kind of govt body who have something to do with farming and forestry ..... that kind of thing. I know a couple of people with farms and they have been very helpful to both of them.
ill make sure i have some teabags in then ....... just in case

janeinbrazil

Hello barryo, I've been looking for information about Brazil Property Services as I am considering investing in this country. Their website however seems out of date and further research led me to this expat site - i note there seems to be problems with Cancun Villas but the last thread ended in may 09. Do you know what's happening there or who i can con tact for more information?

ach_henriques

For anyone that wants to invest in the great country that is Brazil: do a proper research on the company that you want to invest in. Look for big companies that have a good name in the market. As in any country, there are companies in Brazil that are specialized in scamming foreigners. I don't know anything about this Brazil Property Services, though.
So, do a proper research, check websites, if you speak a little bit of portuguese, check websites such as www.oglobo.com.br or www.globo.com or even www.presidencia.gov.br
Anyway, do a good research and only invest in companies that have a good name and are trustworthy.
Brazil is a great country to be invested in. There are many, many areas that need investment. But, as with any investment, be cautious when choosing what you invest in.
Hope I could be of service.

ach_henriques

Just another thing:
Brazillian bureaucracy is really a pain. So, if you want to do anything there, you'll need to go there at least once. Or you can hire a lawyer over there and let him do all the work. Lawyers in Brazil, for dealing with paperwork, are not very expensive and is much better to have someone to check on things for you than to not have.

I don't think there are any restrictions for foreigners buying land close to the border. Recently there have been such a case, of an american buying a large piece of land close to the border in Mato Grosso do Sul. I did not follow it so I do not know the result. But I happen to know that many paraguayians have land close to Paraguay. Where things stand as of right now, I do not know.

If you want to start a company here in Brazil, hire a lawyer. Really, hire one. It'll be cheaper than you having to fill in all the paperwork. Because there is a huge amount of paperwork. And think really hard if you want to open a company here. You need at least 40% of certainty that you'll succeed. Because if you don't, it'll be a pain to close down your company.

So think really hard before doing anything.

SteveV

Can I just say that the number highlighted above is NOT a number for Brazil Property Services. I have just started a new business and was allocated this number, and am now being inundated with calls from people wanting to speak to them.

I would appreciate it if the moderators of this forum could please remove this post, as it seems to be where people are getting the incorrect details from.

Many thanks in advance.