This Belgian Entrepreneur Tried Every Tax Haven

Summary

Ilia, a Belgian internet entrepreneur and indie hacker, describes how he built and sold a company, ran online businesses while traveling, and tested tax and company setups in multiple jurisdictions. His main operational lesson is that a low-tax jurisdiction on paper may be difficult to use in practice. Banking access, management location, licensing, residency requirements, and day-to-day fit can matter as much as the advertised tax benefits.

Business background and outcomes

• Ilia builds internet startups and software, and also runs an SEO agency and advises on organic growth.
• While living in Belgium, he and his co-founders paid themselves relatively low salaries and later sold their first company in a single transaction. He says the exit was worth a few million and, under the rules he describes, incurred no capital-gains tax.
• He later became a digital nomad, traveling with little beyond a laptop and internet access while continuing to operate online businesses.

Setup lessons and jurisdiction examples

• St. Kitts and Nevis: Company formation was easy, but Ilia could not obtain a bank account, so the setup became unusable.
• Estonia: He was among the early e-residents and formed an Estonian company while still living in Belgium. He later realized that managing the business from Belgium could mean it was treated as effectively managed there. He says advisers did not resolve the issue, and one suggested keeping quiet about it. Ilia considered that too risky and liquidated the company.
• Georgia: He tried the setup for several years and described it as an interesting, workable experience, without giving further details.
• UAE / Ras Al Khaimah free zone: Company formation was possible, but banking was harder. He cites recurring license fees of thousands of dollars per year, potentially multiple licenses, and visa-renewal costs of several thousand dollars. Residency also involved medical checks and required time in the country. He found the climate and business culture a poor personal fit.
• Switzerland / Zug: He registered a company there and stayed for three to four years, then chose to return to a nomadic lifestyle.
• Paraguay: He said he was able to set things up easily, but described the choice as still unproven.

Practical playbook

• Prioritize operability over headline tax rates: Check whether the business can obtain banking, meet licensing rules, and maintain residency.
• Match management location to the company structure: An overseas incorporation does not necessarily determine where a business is taxed if it is effectively managed elsewhere.
• Budget for ongoing costs: Include annual licenses, visa renewals, travel, and compliance—not just incorporation costs.
• Treat personal fit as an operating factor: Climate, time spent in-country, and the local business environment affected Ilia’s decisions.
• Keep arrangements clean and simple: The interviewer’s broader recommendation is to avoid unnecessarily complicated structures and seek clarity before setting them up.

Metrics and timelines

• First company exit: a few million (currency not specified).
• Switzerland company: held for three to four years.
• Georgia setup: used for a few years.
• UAE costs: licenses reportedly thousands of dollars annually; visa renewals several thousand dollars.
• No revenue, margin, customer-acquisition, or growth KPIs are provided.

These are the speakers’ personal experiences, not general tax or legal advice.

Presenters and sources: Ilia (entrepreneur); the interviewer, identified in the video metadata as Ricardo Gorski, representing Tax One. The interviewer also mentions his personal channel, Ariko Go.