Expat Wealth - Cross-Border Financial Advice for Expats in America and Americans Abroad

A lot can change in a month. Since Richard last caught up with Brian’s colleague Kam, half the companies in the S&P 500 have slipped into bear market territory, the IPO market has started to wobble, and the bond market has delivered one of its sharpest moves in years. Richard and Brian Dunhill unpack what’s behind the recent spike in US Treasury yields, and why it has them looking at fixed income very differently. With US government debt at $40 trillion and around $2 trillion a year going on interest alone, is this the US’s Liz Truss moment, or a once-in-a-cycle opportunity? They also dig into where the real strength in markets is coming from. Earnings growth is on track for close to 30% this year, well ahead of the 19% expected in January, but with so much of it driven by AI companies taking on debt, both agree the risks are building beneath the surface. Brian explains how he is repositioning bond allocations, why he is staying away from AI-heavy corporate debt, and why he is looking at emerging market bonds and preferred instead. He also explains why he isn’t hedging back to the dollar, which he believes is overvalued and due a correction. Along the way, the conversation turns to tax and politics, including capital gains and indexing cost basis, the Dutch wealth tax system, whether the UK will ever rejoin the EU, the US midterms, and the elections and unrest shaping markets abroad. There are also detours to a Jamie Carragher shrine in a New York pub and the great James Bond debate. Richard remains cautiously optimistic, Brian is simply optimistic, and on one thing they both agree.. it’s time to take a close look at your bonds! -- Expat Wealth is supported by Plan First Wealth. Plan First Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor serving fellow expatriates and immigrants living across the US on matters such as retirement planning, investment management, tax planning and non-US asset management. https://planfirstwealth.com/ -- Expat Wealth is affiliated with Plan First Wealth LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Plan First Wealth. Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein. Plan First Wealth does not provide any tax and/or legal advice and strongly recommends that listeners seek their own advice in these areas. ABOUT RICHARD: Richard Taylor is a British expat, dual citizen (UK & US). Originally from Bolton, he now lives in Greenwich, CT, where Plan First Wealth has its head office. As the firm’s leader, Richard launched Taylor & Taylor, now Plan First Wealth, and continues to fuel the firm’s growth. Richard is a Chartered Financial Planner (UK – CII) in addition to holding the IMC (CFA UK) and Series 65 (US – FINRA). Connect with Richard on LinkedIn

Moving to America is a big leap for any British expat. Moving to America and then towing your home across it in an RV is another thing entirely. One month and more than 1,000 miles into his cross-country adventure, Plan First Wealth's JB is back with his first report from the road. In this Cross Border, Cross Country episode of Expat Wealth, Richard Taylor, Chartered Financial Planner and founder of Plan First Wealth, catches up with JB as he travels from New Hampshire through Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina to Greenville, South Carolina. JB hands out his state report card: New Hampshire's surprisingly British charm, the history packed into Washington DC (including the newly opened Lincoln undercroft), and Baltimore's easy-going NFL Sundays. Richard explains how Sir Christopher Wren's rejected plan to rebuild London after the Great Fire may have gone on to shape the layout of DC. Then come the realities of RV life. There's interstate undertaking, a near-miss on wet grass at a Harvest Hosts stop outside Philadelphia, American driving tests that are over in about three minutes, and a tight-knit RV community gathered around outdoor projectors for the football. For anyone weighing up the cost of moving to the US, JB shares the real numbers: $50 to $80 a night for campgrounds and around $870 a month on diesel. The conversation then turns to money and meaning. Richard and JB explore why expats are so hungry for experiences, why travel shows up in nearly every expat retirement plan, and how one client's family trip to the Maldives became a memory his family will treasure forever. JB also shares what has surprised him most in his first month of cross-border financial planning: how smoothly US custodians handle moving and consolidating assets, and how simple IRAs and 401(k)s are compared with the UK pension system. Whether you're moving to America, already living the British expat life in the US, or looking for financial advice on retiring into a life of experiences, this episode is a candid, funny look at building a life and building wealth across borders. -- Expat Wealth is supported by Plan First Wealth. Plan First Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor serving fellow expatriates and immigrants living across the US on matters such as retirement planning, investment management, tax planning and non-US asset management. https://planfirstwealth.com/ -- Expat Wealth is affiliated with Plan First Wealth LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Plan First Wealth. Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein. Plan First Wealth does not provide any tax and/or legal advice and strongly recommends that listeners seek their own advice in these areas. ABOUT RICHARD: Richard Taylor is a British expat, dual citizen (UK & US). Originally from Bolton, he now lives in Greenwich, CT, where Plan First Wealth has its head office. As the firm’s leader, Richard launched Taylor & Taylor, now Plan First Wealth, and continues to fuel the firm’s growth. Richard is a Chartered Financial Planner (UK – CII) in addition to holding the IMC (CFA UK) and Series 65 (US – FINRA). Connect with Richard on LinkedIn

For British expats in America drawing income from a UK pension, the NT tax code has long been a straightforward, if slow, way to avoid being taxed at source in the UK on income that should only be taxable in the US. But something appears to be changing at HMRC, and what was once a simple administrative process is becoming unpredictable, inconsistent, and in some cases, actively obstructed. In this From the Trenches episode of Expat Wealth, Richard Taylor, Chartered Financial Planner and founder of Plan First Wealth, and business partner James Boyle share three real client cases that have taken them by surprise. The first involves a client who applied for an NT tax code over two years ago and has since had it granted on two of his three UK pensions, with no explanation as to why the third was excluded. The second is a case where HMRC outright rejected an application, claiming the pension in question was not a registered pension scheme, despite it clearly being one, an apparent administrative error that now requires a drawn-out correction process. The third case, and perhaps the most concerning, involves a client who followed expert advice to the letter. Working with a US-UK cross-border tax advisory team, he took small, regular UFPLS withdrawals from his SIPP, a strategy designed to have pension income treated as ongoing payments rather than a lump sum. Despite the amounts falling well below HMRC's own published thresholds, the claim was rejected on the basis that the payments constituted a lump sum, a position that surprised even the specialist tax advisers involved. Richard and James discuss what these cases might signal about a broader shift in HMRC's stance, particularly in light of recent guidance clarifying how lump sums from UK pensions are defined and taxed. They stress that while the US-UK tax treaty should ultimately protect expats from double taxation, the mechanics of resolving these disputes can be time-consuming, expensive, and deeply frustrating. Whether you hold a UK SIPP, are considering applying for an NT tax code, or have already hit a roadblock with HMRC, this episode offers a candid look at a process that is no longer as routine as it once was, and why having the right cross-border tax advice matters more than ever. -- Expat Wealth is supported by Plan First Wealth. Plan First Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor serving fellow expatriates and immigrants living across the US on matters such as retirement planning, investment management, tax planning and non-US asset management. https://planfirstwealth.com/ -- Expat Wealth is affiliated with Plan First Wealth LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Plan First Wealth. Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein. Plan First Wealth does not provide any tax and/or legal advice and strongly recommends that listeners seek their own advice in these areas. ABOUT RICHARD: Richard Taylor is a British expat, dual citizen (UK & US). Originally from Bolton, he now lives in Greenwich, CT, where Plan First Wealth has its head office. As the firm’s leader, Richard launched Taylor & Taylor, now Plan First Wealth, and continues to fuel the firm’s growth. Richard is a Chartered Financial Planner (UK – CII) in addition to holding the IMC (CFA UK) and Series 65 (US – FINRA). Connect with Richard on LinkedIn

Every week, without exception, Richard and his team at Plan First Wealth review British expat's US tax returns and find something missing. Not occasionally, but every single time. In this week’s episode of Ask an Expert, Richard lays out the three mistakes he sees most often after 11 years working with British expatriates across America, and why even people who actively follow this content still fall into them. Richard, Chartered Financial Planner and founder of Plan First Wealth, breaks down the three mistakes he sees over and over again. The first is missing informational returns, forms like FBAR, 8938, 8621, and 3520. Skip these and the penalties don't just sit there, they stack up, compound, and in some cases stay on the table indefinitely. The second is PFICs (Passive Foreign Investment Company). This is the tax hit that comes from holding non-US investments like ISAs, unit trusts, or offshore bonds. The IRS looks straight through these accounts, and what was once a tax-efficient wrapper can end up taxed at the highest possible rate, with interest added for every year it goes unresolved. The third is simply waiting too long. Many expats leave UK pensions, ISAs, and other legacy assets untouched for 10, 15, even 20 years. By the time retirement forces the issue, what could have been a manageable problem has grown into something far more expensive. Richard also flags two emerging risks worth watching. First, expats turning to generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Facebook groups for tax guidance, and getting advice that's confidently wrong, and second, the currency exposure that comes from holding too much retirement wealth in pounds when you're planning to retire in dollars. This episode is for anyone with a connection to the UK, whether that's pensions, investments, or family who might one day pass on assets, who wants to know if they're one of the many people currently carrying risk they don't know about. As Richard puts it, the goal isn't to fear-monger, it's to get ahead of it, deal with it, and move on. -- Expat Wealth is supported by Plan First Wealth. Plan First Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor serving fellow expatriates and immigrants living across the US on matters such as retirement planning, investment management, tax planning and non-US asset management. https://planfirstwealth.com/ -- Expat Wealth is affiliated with Plan First Wealth LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Plan First Wealth. Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein. Plan First Wealth does not provide any tax and/or legal advice and strongly recommends that listeners seek their own advice in these areas.

Brian Dunhill has stepped out for this episode, so Richard Taylor is joined by Dunhill analyst Kamaljit Somal for an unscripted breakdown of the forces moving global markets. First up, the US bond market. Kam explains why rising long-term yields are making policymakers nervous, how higher borrowing costs feed through to mortgages, car loans and government finances, and why the bond market may finally be sounding the alarm over US debt. With federal debt approaching $40 trillion, Richard and Kam dig into the bigger issue: the growing cost of servicing it, which Kam says is now a larger expense for the US government than military spending. Then, Japan. The yen has strengthened sharply, raising questions around one of the most important sources of cheap funding in global markets: the carry trade. Kam breaks down how leverage has built up around the yen, why a disorderly unwind could put pressure on the Magnificent Seven and other high-growth stocks, and what a stronger Japanese currency could mean for investors around the world. They also look at what this means for cross-border portfolios. Kam explains why Dunhill has been reducing some US dollar exposure, particularly in fixed income, and why matching the safer part of a portfolio to the currency you actually spend can help remove an unnecessary layer of risk. Finally, Richard and Kam turn to the US stock market and the constant talk of an AI bubble. Despite investor anxiety, they argue that today’s market looks very different from the dot-com era: the companies driving growth are generating enormous amounts of cash, earnings are broadening beyond the Magnificent Seven, and even some of the software names written off during the so-called “SaaS apocalypse” are beginning to benefit from AI. As always: real talk, zero scripts, and a cross-border look at what actually matters beneath another chaotic month in markets. -- Expat Wealth is supported by Plan First Wealth. Plan First Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor serving fellow expatriates and immigrants living across the US on matters such as retirement planning, investment management, tax planning and non-US asset management. https://planfirstwealth.com/ -- Expat Wealth is affiliated with Plan First Wealth LLC, an SEC registered investment advisor. The views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Plan First Wealth. Information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. Be sure to first consult with a qualified financial adviser and/or tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein. Plan First Wealth does not provide any tax and/or legal advice and strongly recommends that listeners seek their own advice in these areas.