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Until his retirement in May 2008, Australian rugby union legend Matt Burke was a client of Herald.  Matt had this to say about the service he received from Herald:

"I just wanted to pass on my thank-yous for the work you have done for me over the past four years.  You have been a great source of comfort for me, knowing exactly where every penny went."

If you are an international sportsperson, resident but non-domiciled in the United Kingdom, working for one of the major league sports clubs, and wish to explore the tax planning options open to you, then please do contact us. 

Herald offers the following primary tax mitigation solutions:

Image Rights Solution

Herald is one of the leading providers of image right solutions in Europe. 

Unlike jurisdictions such as the US and various continental countries, image rights are not precisely defined in English law but are generally held to be a collection of rights relating to an individual’s attributes and celebrity, including his or her photographic and moving image, voice recording, signature and name.

Herald’s image rights solution is currently aimed at those who are not UK domiciled but are resident in the UK  and is used mainly by individuals coming to the UK to play in team-based sports such as rugby (both codes) and football. 

Herald’s management of image rights offers two key benefits.  Herald is able to act as a single collection vehicle for the use of an individual’s image rights so providing an administrative benefit. Further, as Herald is based offshore there are certain tax benefits to using this arrangement. Image rights fees are collected in an offshore location where they can accumulate in a tax free environment.

For more information please download our information sheet.

Offshore Pensions

For many professional sportspersons and celebrities, offshore pension schemes in the Channel Islands are very effective and appealing.  Such schemes (which are not approved) are taxed in a similar way to Employee Benefit Trusts.  Such a scheme is known as an Employer Funded Retirement Benefits scheme for UK tax purposes.

Alternatively, UK resident clients who intend to leave the UK can establish a UK approved pension scheme. Usually these are Self Invested Pension Plans known as SSIPs.

Herald works with experienced providers of offshore pension schemes. 

For more information please download our factsheet.