In light of the announcement of new contract proposals for NHS staff by the UK Health secretary – Jeremy Hunt, 3,468 UK doctors applied for permission from the General Medical Council (GMC) for certificates to practice abroad. Australia has always been a popular destination for UK doctors, mainly because of higher pay and better working conditions, e.g. the salary rates can be up to 50 per cent higher and working hours are more reasonable. As a result, an increasing number of UK doctors and nurses are emigrating to Australia under the skilled immigration visas.

(Sources:
http://www.workpermit.com/news/2015-11-25/australian-skilled-immigration-uk-doctors-leaving-for-australia)

On 23 November 2015, SW partners Mr Eric Lui and Ms Heidi Chui, attended the Annual Cocktail organised by the Hong Kong Law Society held at the Hong Kong Club.

Members of the legal community attended the Annual Cocktail to network and socialise with fellow practitioners and distinguished guests, including the Honorary Chief Executive, Mr C Y Leung and the Honorary Secretary for Justice, Mr Rimsky Yuen SC.

Photograph of Mr Lui (on the right), Ms Chui (in the middle) and Mr Rimsky Yuen SC (on the left), Secretary for Justice HKSAR

Contact person: Mr Eric Lui, Ms Heidi Chui

In the wake of the terrorists’ attacks in Paris, the Hong Kong Immigration Department announced on 16 November 2015 that French visitors in Hong Kong affected by this incident can apply for an extension of stay if they wish to remain in Hong Kong. The Department also stated that special attention will be given to these applications and most would be approved on the same day. The department has also informed the Consulate General of France in Hong Kong of this arrangement.

On 16 November 2015, our associate Ms. Vivian Ji and Head of Business Development (China) Ms. Connie Yeung attended the 29th anniversary ceremony of Manivest Group which was held at the Renaissance Shanghai Yu Garden Hotel. A number of professionals, including lawyers and bankers from Hong Kong and Shanghai, attended this event.

Manivest Group was established in 1987, with offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Macau. Its group companies include Manivest Asia Limited, Manivest Trustee Limited and Manivest Advisory Limited. Stevenson, Wong & Co. already has an established business relationship with Manivest Group in many areas.

Please contact our Ms. Vivian Ji for any enquiries or further information about this event.

SW partner Ms Heidi Chui was invited by the Institute of Securities Dealers Ltd to be a guest lecturer for its members at the Continuing Professional Development Certificate Course. The course took place at the Hong Kong Chinese Importers’ & Exporters’ Association Clubhouse on 14 November 2015.

The theme of the presentation was “Insider Dealing: Lessons Learnt from Recent Cases”. Participants included personnel in the securities trading sector and senior management in various businesses. Ms Chui explained the legal requirements of the insider dealing offence, discussed some recent insider dealing cases and shared some insight that were drawn from those cases. The audience responded very well and commented that they found the session particularly informative and useful.

Mr. Jojo S.C. Choy, Permanent Honorable President of The Institute of Securities Dealers Ltd.

Please contact our Ms Heidi Chui for any queries or further information about this event.

(中文) 美国系列- 放弃美国国籍或喜或忧

愈来愈多的美国人告别“山姆大叔”，主要原因是因为美国的报税法规愈来愈复杂，尤其受到《海外账户纳税法案》(FATCA)的影响。

针对这一话题，本期我们以《海外账户纳税法案》，台湾称为“肥咖条款”展开讨论。美国国会在2010年通过此方案，要求全球金融机构向美国通报美国税务居民在海外的金融资产资料，供美国税务局查税及政府作其他用途。中国金融机构都在陆续完善操作细节。

由于FATCA法案在全球的开展执行，美国税务居民名下的全部金融资产，都会面临暴露给美国税务局的风险。随着法案出台到逐步完善，美国国税局正加强对富人查帐，资料显示，对高收入人群查帐的比率两年来已上升两倍约50%。

据了解，很多名人已选择放弃美国国籍：其中包括全球投资先锋约翰•邓普顿(John Templeton)上世纪六十年代初移居巴哈马；中国著名影星李连杰在2011年加入了新加坡国籍；面书(Facebook)联合创始人爱德华多•萨维林在2011年放弃美国国籍。

爱德华多•萨维林声称放弃美国国籍的主因是许多海外金融机构包括银行与基金公司都不愿意接受美国客户，美国税务居民在海外高收益投资产品选择受限，税收不是主要考虑因素。现在，中外银行都纷纷重新核实客户是否美国税务居民，并选择与确认的美国税务居民客户解约。

但对于中国高资产净值人士来说，要是真的放弃美国国籍也不容易；根据美国税法规定，美国公民即使放弃美国国籍，美国政府也可要求补交弃籍前5年隐匿海外资产的税收和罚金。由于中国移民的报税记录一般不会无懈可击，造成他们办理退籍时半途而废。

对总资产规模达1亿人民币以上的高资产净值人士来说，家庭成员的居住地与国籍安排非常重要， 当中如果又想当美国人的话，登陆前的合理避税规划更是刚需。如想了解海外信托对美籍受益人的好处，请联系你的法律顾问/理财顾问/家族办公室。史蒂文生黄律师事务所成立了香港及新西兰信托公司，可为客户提供信托咨询或受托人服务。

分享资讯助人自助，谢谢关注微信公众号或浏览官方网站www.sw-hk.com。如需节录或转载，请注明资料来源为微信公众号swc_hk。

免责声明： 于此提供的资料只供参考，须以有关国家/地区法律顾问的法律意见和有关政府行政与司法机关对于适用的法例的解释和应用为准；上述资料亦受制于适用法例的任何不时的更新与修改，如因上述资料而引至任何人士或单位蒙受任何损失，该人士或单位须自行承担一切责任