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Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by joonix on Friday June 28, 2013 @10:15AM (#5958063)
But if you're not European you're not going to get health coverage in Europe. To be honest, health coverage isn't a major concern for 20-something hackers who sit in front of computers all day.

I'd also spend a good bit of time studying the tax code of any country I start a business in. Some countries, like Australia, tax capital gains at the same rate as income, which is bad news for anyone who put sweat and tears into a startup for years. You'll get punished when you take a nice exit.

Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by davidjgraph on Friday June 28, 2013 @10:19AM (#5958085)
In England the health system is free to everyone, the private health insurance buys you very little.
Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by _delirium on Friday June 28, 2013 @11:59AM (#5958663)
Same in Denmark. I'm not a Danish citizen, but since I'm legally resident in the country (work/residence visa), I'm in the system. In fact since everyone is in the system, the yellow health-coverage card is de-facto used as your ID card for some purposes (there's no national ID card).

Anyone visiting the country but not resident here is also entitled to emergency care, e.g. if you fall off your bike as a tourist and have to go to the hospital, there is no charge. Same if you have a heart attack while visiting.

Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by jpadkins on Friday June 28, 2013 @10:38AM (#5958203)
If I get a travel visa to England, I can get free cancer treatment?
Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by davidjgraph on Friday June 28, 2013 @10:56AM (#5958316)
If you are entitled to live and work in England, you are entitled to free healthcare. Since the subject is about running a startup in London, you'd have to have those entitlements. This isn't a discussion about visiting England as a tourist.
Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by kintamanimatt on Friday June 28, 2013 @11:02AM (#5958341)
It depends!

Am I entitled to NHS treatment when I visit England? http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/1086.aspx

Am I entitled to NHS treatment when I move to England? http://www.nhs.uk/chq/pages/1087.aspx

Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by falsedan on Friday June 28, 2013 @10:48AM (#5958267)
you need right of residence to register for a National Insurance number, but after that you're good to go
Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by MisterWebz on Friday June 28, 2013 @10:40AM (#5958215)
> health coverage isn't a major concern for 20-something hackers who sit in front of computers all day.

I wouldn't be too sure about that.

Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by greghinch on Friday June 28, 2013 @10:18AM (#5958078)
You can even be looking at having your fat exit taxed twice if you are a citizen of another country
Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by ojbyrne on Friday June 28, 2013 @10:32AM (#5958165)
I'm not a tax expert but I think that would only apply if you're a citizen of the USA, which is the only country in the world that taxes you on your worldwide income.
Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by _delirium on Friday June 28, 2013 @12:14PM (#5958758)
Even for the USA you'd generally not be taxed twice, because foreign taxes paid are deductible from U.S. taxes. For example if I, as an American living in Denmark, sold a startup, I would pay Danish taxes on the sale. Then I would file American taxes by computing my tax liability under the American rates and subtracting the Danish taxes paid. The result in that case would just about always be $0, because Danish taxes are higher than American taxes, so the foreign tax credit wipes out any American tax liability. If the foreign taxes were lower, you'd have to pay the difference in U.S. taxes, but not the sum of the two.
Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by greghinch on Friday June 28, 2013 @12:50PM (#5958960)
As I understand it, the US allowance for this is capped at $90k (in income, not tax paid)
Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by _delirium on Friday June 28, 2013 @12:57PM (#5959004)
There's no cap on the foreign tax credit; you can deduct millions.

What you're thinking of is the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, which allows you to exclude the first $95,100 of foreign earned income from your taxes, if you live outside the U.S. more than 330 days a year. In my case there's no real reason to do that, because the foreign tax credit I get for my Danish taxes zeroes out my US tax liability. The main people who benefit from the $95k exclusion are those working in low-tax jurisdictions, e.g. American expats in Saudi Arabia. In their case it allows them not to avoid double-taxation (which is what the tax credit prevents), but any taxation at all.

Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by greghinch on Friday June 28, 2013 @02:18PM (#5959526)
Appreciate that correction, thank you
Re:Skip Silicon Valley: Why Smart Startups Start In Europe by rdl on Friday June 28, 2013 @10:41AM (#5958217)
A lot of countries tax you if you're a resident still, even if physically non-present (Canada, etc.), and earn the income in a foreign country. You can do stuff to become officially non-resident first. that is the thing you can't do as a US citizen.