Happy Holidays Corfu Magazine
Articles and Features (published quarterly) about Corfu and its many attractions
News, Events & Blogs
Vol. 2, No. 1; September 15, 2006
Recently I was talking with an acquaintance here on Corfu - an English ex-pat, for the record, who engages in various business activities. As it often does, the subject of doing business with the Greeks (or more specifically the Corfiots) came up, and I heard many of the all-too-common laments voiced by ex-pats (particularly British) living here on Corfu: 1) Everything moves at a snail's pace; if you're told something will be finished next week, hope for a long life; 2) While you could leave your door unlocked (or wide open) forever and never experience direct theft, the Greeks (Corfiots) believe in their hearts that fraud and embezzlement are not only an advanced art form but their God-given right; 3) The various branches of government not only make for a beaurocratic nightmare no matter what lisence you are trying to procure, but they often (almost always) contradict one another leading to a round-robin that is not only frustrating but costly. Everybody living here who has tried to engage in business has his own story.
Of course Corfu was once a British protectorate, and if the truth be told, there are some Greeks who wish the English had never pulled out. "Imagine what this place would be like if the British had never left?" one Greek (who was also obviously frustrated with Federal and local burocracy, said to me. Wonder we might, yet such speculation is academic. The fact is that, whether anyone truly understands it or not, the various branches of authority here are factioned, protective and recalcitrant, not to mention competitive with one another, making it difficult enough for Greeks to understand and comply with procedure, let alone often bewildered (and language impaired) foreigners. Patronage and favors often supersede law and protocol, so who you know tends to be more important even than a good accountant or lawyer, and it is no exaggeration to say that many well-intentioned foreign entrepreneurs (who might well have impacted the island's economy for the good) have given up in frustration (or even bankruptcy).
As we all know, Corfu's major source of revenue is tourism, and many foreigners have entered that business arena -- perhaps to a fault -- creating businesses in everything from soup to nuts. As I've said in previous columns, the money
flowed in freely for a number of years, but now the well shows signs of going dry. Of course there are any number of reasons for the decline, which are not precisely the subject of this column, but an answer to not only Corfu's dwindling tourist economy, but also to its stagnant and regressive business climate may well have been proposed by my conversation partner. Why not make Corfu a tax haven in the Mediterranean?
On first consideration, the idea struck me as being absurd as it was unlikely; however upon further consideration I confess that I became more and more intrigued with the proposition.
Why not make Corfu a tax haven in the Med, much like Antigua, or the Cayman Islands, or Bermuda, or Belize in the Caribbean? I decided to do a bit of research on those infamous islands south of Florida in order to determine just how they operate and what it might mean for Corfu to follow their example. What I found out made the idea seem (if still absurd and unlikely) all the more intrguing. Here are a few examples of the tax-free, or tax-friendly, systems now in place in various Caribbean territories.
BAHAMAS
The Bahamas, 700 islands with most of the inhabitants residing in Nassau and Freeport, are located 50 miles off the east coast of Florida and are an increasingly popular tourist destination.
An independent member of the British Commonwealth and a major financial center in its own right, it has modern and flexible legislation that allows the operation of companies formed under the International Business Act of 1989 in the way most desired by the beneficial owner. Government fees are only $100 capital duty and $100 annual fee for a minimally capitalized company and it is possible to form companies within 48 hours. Bearer and no-par-value share are permitted and one director, who may also be the secretary, may run the corporation from any location.
Happy Holidays Corfu is happy to announce that it has created a directory for the North coast villages of Acharavi, Sidari, Kassiopi and Roda, as well as the nearby environs of those villages.
The new directory pages are open to all businesses and will be formatted in similar fashion to the already published directory for Kontokali, Gouvia, Dassia and Ipsos.
We wish to thank the thousands of people who visit the Happy Holidays Corfu Directory each month, and we know that many will welcome the addition of the North Coast to our coverage.
~Development takes time...
Even though we wish we could develop these new venues more quickly, we must ask your patience and your help.
As we try to spend time with each business we visit, learning about their strengths, and also about their specific needs, and since we are only two people working more or less door-to-door, or e-mail by e-mail, it takes no small effort to visit the business owners in any given area. If you know of an establishment that you would like to see listed in Happy Holidays Corfu Directories, please drop us a line and let us know who we should contact. Often we add businesses to our directory as a result of referrals by customers of that business. And rest assured that we do not hard sell anyone! Truth is that once an establishment sees what we can offer, they are quite often anxious to participate.
If you do know of a business in our areas of coverage that you would like to see listed on Happy Holidays Corfu, please e-mail us with at:
Thank you for your tremendous support. We are truly grateful.
The Telesilla Hotel is a family operated hotel and has been providing guests with comfortable holiday accommodations for more than twenty years. Our guests have become our friends through the years and return to us again and again with their friends and families. If you wish to spend your holiday in a friendly atmosphere, visit the Telesilla Hotel in Kontokali!
Hotel Facilities
- 24-hr. check-in
- Buffet Breakfast
- Internet corner
- Restaurant & Bar
- Swimming pool
- Parking
- 24-hr. Doctor on call
- Car Rental
- Local bus stop
Visit our Web site for Great Summer Deals!!!
© 2005-2006 Happy Holidays Corfu
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A Tax Haven in the Med --
What about it?
Happy Holidays Corfu
Adds North Coast Directory
(and we would welcome your help)
