Rating: 
Summary: Author Is Going to Prison
Review: Anyone who believes this BS is either really stupid or really naive. The author has been charged with defrauding the federal government, has agreed to a plea bargain, and will enter the U.S. District Court in San Francisco next month to plead guilty. As part of the plea bargain Mr. Schneider has turned over his client list to the IRS, complete with addresses, phone numbers and other information. Some tax advice: When something sounds too good to be true - it always is.
Gary W. Carter, author of "JK Lasser's Taxes Made Easy for Your Home-Based Business"
Rating: 
Summary: Authentic and invaluable.
Review: As a reference to inform the uninformed about the topics addressed in Mr. Schneider's book, I would highly recommend this book as authentic and invaluable. Mr. Schneider brings an extremely complex subject to the layman in a language that is not unrealistically simplistic, but covers the essentials necessary when considering when, how and where to best invest monies offshore. His explanations of WHY in regard to his suggestions reveals his personal experiences and research that supports his advice. It is the inclusion of his "whys" that kept me reading.
Rating:
Summary: The author was convicted for giving out this advice...
Review: Don't waste your money.
The author is a sham artist. He was convicted, and in a plea bargain handed over his entire client list to the US Governtment. None of the advice in this book is legal or legitimate.
Rating: 
Summary: Enjoyable, can be a bit fuzzy at times
Review: For the most part I thouroughly enjoyed this book. I have been quite interested in offshore advantages and this book is the first I've come across that explores those advantages with the idea that you will remain a US citizen. Other offshore books are geared towards those who wish to renounce their citizenship and move to another country. schneider's book goes into a great amount of detail on the legalities of offshore havens and even has a nice section that takes a look at each individual haven. You can find out which laws certain havens adhere to, how much it costs to bank there, privacy ratings, and much more. The only problem I had with the book is that a healthy portion of the book was geared towards those who wish to start an actual bank offshore, not just a bank account. However, Schneider clearly knows what he is talking about and anyone would do well to take a look at this book. In the Apeendix is a list of countries, the banks located there, the type of banking each one does, and how to get in contact with them, information we normally would have to pay an arm and a leg for. Warning: some citizens may be offended by Schneider's obvious disgust and anger over the taxes in the US.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable, can be a bit fuzzy at times
Review: For the most part I thouroughly enjoyed this book. I have been quite interested in offshore advantages and this book is the first I've come across that explores those advantages with the idea that you will remain a US citizen. Other offshore books are geared towards those who wish to renounce their citizenship and move to another country. schneider's book goes into a great amount of detail on the legalities of offshore havens and even has a nice section that takes a look at each individual haven. You can find out which laws certain havens adhere to, how much it costs to bank there, privacy ratings, and much more. The only problem I had with the book is that a healthy portion of the book was geared towards those who wish to start an actual bank offshore, not just a bank account. However, Schneider clearly knows what he is talking about and anyone would do well to take a look at this book. In the Apeendix is a list of countries, the banks located there, the type of banking each one does, and how to get in contact with them, information we normally would have to pay an arm and a leg for. Warning: some citizens may be offended by Schneider's obvious disgust and anger over the taxes in the US.
Rating:
Summary: Tried it, book doesn't work.
Review: I followed the book's instructions to the letter and tried to open a current account at three Singapore banks recommended in the book. Only one replied, saying I could only open an account denominated in US dollars or Singapore dollars, and not any other currency, contrary to what the book says. In addition, this bank wanted somebody already known to them to introduce me to them before they'd deal with me. This book is a waste of time and money. I'm now doing internet research to get the informmation I need to do what I want to do. It takes a lot more time, but I feel confident of success.
Rating:
Summary: Offshore Solutions
Review: I picked up the book looking for some "how to" advise. I was overwhelming with reasons to go offshore, backed by mountains of acquaintance success stories. It's fine to introduce a new concept with an illustrated story, but ¾ of the book was story after story with the same theme, "Go Offshore". I was hoping a 464 page book would provide a bit more useful information. I'm already interested in going offshore, hence the search for a good book on the subject.In an early chapter in the book, the author pushes his right wing government fears on the reader pushing us to go offshore. The further rhetoric of "this country is going down the tubes", "Americans today aren't as hardworking", and "your buying power today is minuscule compared to the last generation" are tired. I've heard these same arguments at MLM meetings. His comment about "Americans today aren't as hardworking except a few kids making things happen in Silicon Valley" is especially ludicrous. Living in the valley after the Internet bust, we now know most of these startups were ran by fraudster CEOs and greedy VCs. I think a new edition of this book is due. I agree with an earlier reviewer, if you want to be motivated, skim through this book. If you want to know the HOW, go elsewhere. All the author will tell you is to consult an "offshore" specialist. And guess what, I get about 10 spams in my email account each day from offshore specialists. I typically delete them all with the Viagra, breast enlargement, and the retire in 3 months spams I get.
Rating: 
Summary: Too general. Too much self advertising.
Review: One of the book's first page titles is "how to..." and all I wanted is to better understand mechanics of tax minimization structures and how they actually work. All I could find in the book is "this can be done, but call an expert or better yet call me". I agree experts are needed but I'd like to have a glimpse of their concepts and knowledge first, but obviously they won't share it for $....
Rating:
Summary: A collection of bedtime stories
Review: There is a lot of information jam packed into this book. Mr.Schneider uses many examples, anecdotes, and political reasons for why you should move offshore and how to go about doing it. Some of the ideas are never fully developed. Such as owning your own banks or captive insurance companies. Plus with the new United States scrutinization of offshore havens after Sept. 11th much of the information is outdated and many ideas are now useless. Mr.Schneider's book is easy to read and does a great job of pumping you up. It reminds me of an infomercial in that respect.
The primary detractor of the book is the constant selling of Mr.Schneider's services and other products. Interesting read, I have been a financial advisor for 11 years and I have written several books on my area of expertise, but at the end of the day, when my clients ask me about going offshore I always discourage it.
Rating:
Summary: Offshore Solutions
Review: This book is a good intoroduction to the world of offshore banking and tax havens. However, it focuses on all of the reasons why you should use offshore tax havens and not enough on why you shouldn't. As an owner of a corporation operating out of Antilles, I know how the process works. First of all, it is very easy to find yourself in a legal bind with the IRS for attempting to hide income. Next, finding a trustworthy offshore banker to help you register is hard to do and can be risky since they operate under foreign jurisdiction. Lastly, the benefits of offshore tax havens is not that great due to the high costs associated with the process. The type of people that usually need offshore accounts are people that are either involved in a debacle that requires them to hide their assets or people who need to launder money. In other words, if you do choose to use offshore tax havens, make sure to do your homework and consult a licensed financial consultant.
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