For families weighing options for living overseas, children’s education or a second residency. It covers how residency, permanent residency and citizenship differ, living, education and tax residency, and how we can help.
Apart from agreed fees, we do not handle, hold or manage client funds.
01 Residency, permanent residency and citizenship: how they differ
Long-term visas, residence permits, permanent residency and citizenship are separate systems, with different eligibility, residence requirements and rights. A residence permit usually grants a specific right to stay or live in a country; permanent residency is a different legal status; citizenship concerns a person’s legal membership of a state. Each country also has different requirements on investment, work, family and days of residence.
02 Living, education and tax residency
When assessing options for living overseas, you can start with education, cost of living, healthcare, language and family arrangements. At the same time, note that obtaining a residence permit does not necessarily change your tax residency; check each country’s criteria individually.
Before and after a move, also check whether the tax residency declarations on your overseas accounts, your insurance beneficiaries and your will still work in your new country of residence.
03 How we can help
We help you assess, from a wealth and family perspective, how residency options affect your assets, tax and family; immigration applications and agency services must be handled by legally qualified organisations.
Frequently asked questions
Can my family apply for residency with me?
Many residency or immigration programmes allow the main applicant’s spouse and dependent children to apply at the same time, but the age limit for children, whether parents can be included and the conditions each family member must meet differ from place to place. When family members apply together, each person’s tax residency, education and living arrangements also need to be considered. Actual eligibility should be confirmed by a legally qualified organisation under the latest rules.
Once I have residency, what do I need to do to keep it?
Most residency and permanent residency statuses come with conditions for keeping them, such as regular renewal, a minimum number of days of residence, or continued employment or investment; in some places, permanent residency may also be affected by long absences. If the conditions are not met, renewal or the status itself may be affected, so after obtaining it, you should also check regularly whether the rules have changed.
Does overseas residency help with my children’s education?
It may, but it depends on the local system. In some places, admission priority at public schools, tuition fees or routes into further study differ depending on whether the student is a citizen, a permanent resident, a residence permit holder or an international student; many schools and programmes, however, do not depend on status. When assessing this, also consider whether the family will actually live there, the conditions for keeping the residency and the possible effect on tax residency.
How can a professional adviser help?
Nextrate starts from the needs of each case: we help clarify your goals, list the documents required, set out feasible options and the main risks, and work with qualified legal, tax and other professionals where needed. Any bank application, tax outcome or legal effect is determined independently by the relevant institution, case by case.