That's how many hours I spend each month searching for significant and useful intelligence about asset protection, offshore events and international taxation for my subscribers.

In fact there  is such an abundance, it is nearly over-whelming.

I know -- because I consume an average of about 20 hours twice a month gathering, reviewing, rejecting and editing news about these topics from dozens of sources on (and off) the Internet. Some of my sources are free and some are a lot more expensive than my newsletter.

Hi!  I'm Vern Jacobs and I happen to have an interest in international financial and tax developments. I write books and speak at seminars about international taxation, asset protection and the offshore industry. I'm also a CPA and spend part of my time doing tax work for offshore investors and entrepreneurs.

I few years ago, I wrote and published three newsletters. One was about asset protection. The second was about offshore tax planning and the third was called the Offshore Journal. The last one was a hodge podge of news and gossip about people and events in the offshore industry.

But eventually it occurred to me that it would make more sense to combine them into a single newsletter. Looking for a title that would fit all three of the previous newsletters, I came up the International Wealth Protection Monitor.

First and foremost, it's about protecting your wealth from a variety of financial and legal predators, including the government. The up to date and plain English explanation of developments in international tax law alone is worth many times the subscription price. And to lighten things a bit, the offshore news is often entertaining.

The International Wealth Protection Monitor (IWPM) is a twice monthly email newsletter that monitors current news about risk management, asset protection, taxation and the offshore industry from dozens of print, email and web based publications. 

Did I mention that I also write and publish some books about asset protection and taxes?

The IWPM Newsletter provides news about
the various books that we publish.

Because most of our books deal with international tax law, the IWPM provides extensive news about changes in the U.S. tax laws as they apply to offshore investments and businesses. The international tax updates alone are worth many times the modest cost of a subscription.

Venturing offshore may be a good thing for some folks, but on the other hand, it may be bad for others. And for those who get deceived by some of the crooks in the offshore game, it could turn out to be downright ugly. For nearly any argument or point of view, there is a contrary point of view.  Promoters and sales people rarely present the other side of any point they are making. They believe it is up to the buyer to beware and to be diligent in evaluating claims of high returns, safety from creditors or sizable tax savings.

There are a number of organizations, publications and web sites that are strong advocates of investing offshore, of adopting asset protection arrangements or of adopting various income and estate tax arrangements.

• I don't happen to agree that going offshore is the best solution for everyone any more than I agree with those who argue that there are no good reasons to go offshore.
  
• I don't believe that any particular investment, asset protection or tax avoidance strategy is best for everyone. Nearly every investment, business or financial choice involves some potential advantages and some potential disadvantages.
  
• I certainly don't agree with the politicians who argue loudly that individual or corporate expatriation is immoral or treasonous, but I also don't suggest that giving up U.S. citizenship (or domicile) is without some significant problems.

Although I have an unabashed suspicion of government at every level, that doesn't mean I believe that every non-government individual or business is necessarily pure in motive and action. 

Although I'm a registered Republican,  there are quite a few aspects of the conservative position and movement that I can't support.

I'm neither a die hard conservative nor a torch carrying liberal.

And while I am registered to vote as a Republican, I sometimes vote for Democrats.

When I don't like  either choice, I often default to the Libertarian ticket.

Does that mean I never make up my mind and come to a decision? Hardly. I just prefer to look at the alternatives before making a decision and I hate to make financial decisions on the basis of some political measuring tool or the claims of a sales person. I don't care about being politically correct whether I'm being measured by the left or by the right. That's what I try to bring to the reports and books I write, to the advice I provide to clients and to the content of this newsletter.

Most of my long time subscribers have told me they appreciate the way I look at the good, the bad and the ugly side of various issues. I hope that's what you seek because that's what I will deliver to you this year and future years.

Subscriptions are $120 per year. (That works out to $5 per issue.) Orders can be placed through our secure Yahoo e-Store with your Visa or Master Card. (We regret that Yahoo does not accept American Express.)

New subscribers can deduct the full cost of the subscription from the $360 fee for a phone consultation with me during the first month of a subscription. 

To subscribe online with a secure credit card processing service go to http://offshorepress.stores.yahoo.net/globasprot2.html

Vernon K. Jacobs
Editor & Publisher
Offshore Press, Inc.

P.S. If your time has no value, you can get about half of the information in our newsletter by scouring the Internet. But if your time is worth more than 25 cents an hour, it will be a lot more economical to subscribe to the International Wealth Protection Monitor.

Second P.S.  If you have any interest in international tax law, we monitor a LOT of different sources to track down the significant news. And when there is a new tax law, we are often one of the first publishers with an analysis of any international tax developments.

Editorial Advisors & Correspondents

J. Richard Duke, JD, LLM,
Gideon Rothschild, JD, CPA, CFP,
J. Ben Vernazza, CPA, PFS

May 31, 2005

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