Accountants offered tempting expat incentives by the Isle of Man

The Isle of Man may not be the most glamorous, exotic destination for expat accountants, but it’s good for wages and tax breaks.

If you’re either a qualified or even an unqualified accounts expert, the Isle of Man wants you in 2020. For those looking to relocate from a Britain mired in a year of Brexit negotiations, it’s just the place, with its government now trumpeting its quality of life and financial incentives. Would-be expats from the UK and Ireland are welcome to apply, although the weather’s definitely not up to that in many other popular expat haunts.

The IoM’s dedicated website gives all the details of this offer of the year, starting with a refund of the first 12 months of National Insurance payments, totalling up to £4,000 dependent on salary levels. In addition, average full-time salaries are 14 per cent higher on the island than in the UK. According to officials, the shortage of accountants on this financial hub is dire, hence the tempting offers to those eager to quit the UK now Brexit is finally set to happen.

For decades, the Isle of Man has been a centre for offshore insurance companies, several of which have made fortunes by offering unsuitable products through illegally-working expat IFAs in favourite retirement and other expat destinations worldwide. Now apparently committed to cleaning up its act, the need for qualified or even unqualified expat accountants does make sense, especially as Britain’s financial hub in London is due to get an unpleasant post-Brexit shock.

British expat financial wizards already in residence on the island are more than pleased with their decisions, having rated it in a recent survey as the best location in the whole of the UK and the 12th best on the planet. Quality of life, mental wellbeing, work/life balance and a welcoming, friendly community were all appreciated by the expat population, many of whom are now determined to stay longer than they’d first anticipated. For newbies to the expat scene unused to living overseas, it’s far less scary than many other relocation destinations.