Flat purchase in Germany by UK Ltd

[O la la]

Can my UK Ltd company buy a property in Germany as an investment? The plan is for me to live there while I am in a contract and then start renting it out?

The objectives I am trying to achieve:
1. Avoid renting a place to stay in Germany (where I have to say for business purposes) – the prices are high and the process is a nightmare
2. Move some of my company’s cash into property – ring fence against inflation
3. Diversify into euros just in case if something happens to the pound.
4. By buying on my company name I would not need to take the money out of the company and therefore would not need to pay personal tax? I understand that when I sell the flat I would have to pay all necessary taxes then.

My main residence is in the UK and I am flying to see my family every two weeks but hope to start doing it more often as I get settled.

What are UK/German tax and legal consequences of making a such purchase to use myself first (for business purposes only, I have a house in England where my family and I live) and renting it out afterwards? Has anyone done a similar thing?

All thoughts are welcome!

[eek]

Can my UK Ltd company buy a property in Germany as an investment? The plan is for me to live there while I am in a contract and then start renting it out?

The objectives I am trying to achieve:
1. Avoid renting a place to stay in Germany (where I have to say for business purposes) – the prices are high and the process is a nightmare
2. Move some of my company’s cash into property – ring fence against inflation
3. Diversify into euros just in case if something happens to the pound.
4. By buying on my company name I would not need to take the money out of the company and therefore would not need to pay personal tax? I understand that when I sell the flat I would have to pay all necessary taxes then.

My main residence is in the UK and I am flying to see my family every two weeks but hope to start doing it more often as I get settled.

What are UK/German tax and legal consequences of making a such purchase to use myself first (for business purposes only, I have a house in England where my family and I live) and renting it out afterwards? Has anyone done a similar thing?

All thoughts are welcome!

Ooh I don't know where to be begin.

But if you rent somewhere in Germany you will have to deal with the Finanzamt (their tax people) and follow their rules.

Read http://forums.contractoruk.com/accou...an-cometh.html for some details.

[Scruff]

Just don't do it...

Too many reasons and not enough time.

[borderreiver]

I'm sure you can do it if you really want, but you will definitely need to register with the Finanzamt and the complexity of what you're doing will need some good (read: expensive) tax advice from a German accountant (Steuerberater).

For example, since you are buying real estate, your Ltd will need to go on the deeds of the property and so you will probably also have to have your Ltd's Articles of Association etc. translated into German by a qualified translator ("Beglaubigter Übersetzer" they call them in Austria, so presumably the same name in Germany), which is not cheap either.

All in all, it'll be very expensive (certainly a couple of thousand) and probably not worth it.

[northernladuk]

Buying a property though the company is a poor idea at best, doing abroad is just adds another heap of reasons not to do it.

Have search around the board for buying properties for company money and you will see all the reasons not to.

[eek]

Buying a property though the company is a poor idea at best, doing abroad is just adds another heap of reasons not to do it.

Have search around the board for buying properties for company money and you will see all the reasons not to.

That may not actually be the case. Its not sensible to buy a property in the UK through your company abroad may be a different matter. I'm sure someone has said on here before that in France its actually a decent way of buying a property cheaply.

But in all cases you need appropriate professional advice before doing it. And we definitely can't offer that professional advice.

[d000hg]

Buying a property though the company is a poor idea at best, doing abroad is just adds another heap of reasons not to do it.

Have search around the board for buying properties for company money and you will see all the reasons not to.

But it's not only about the cheapest solution, potentially anyway?

[Jessica@WhiteFieldTax]

That may not actually be the case. Its not sensible to buy a property in the UK through your company abroad may be a different matter. I'm sure someone has said on here before that in France its actually a decent way of buying a property cheaply.

But in all cases you need appropriate professional advice before doing it. And we definitely can't offer that professional advice.

Buying through **a ** company abroad often makes sense, eg France, due to their succession and estate rules.

However as a presumed starting point, never through your uk **trading** company due to presumotion against contaminating investment assets with trading risks.

So really it's the same as buying in the UK. Generally your own company is a bad idea. If a company is needed, then a SPV is more appropriate.