OPW INTERVIEW – Apr 4 – Brian
Donegan is the Business Development Manager for IT with the Isle of
Man. He works for the IOM government. The Isle of Man is taking an
interest in the internet dating industry. – Mark Brooks
What do you do?
6-7
years ago the Isle of Man became involved in igaming and very quickly
turned that into a successful sub-sector of our IT industry. It’s
currently responsible for 10% of our GDP and employs 700 people with an
average income of £55,000. There are a number of things that made the
Isle of Man attractive for the igaming industry to locate here – no
corporate tax and a very strong IT infrastructure. We have a strong
interest in finding other verticals that can complement what we’ve been
doing . Internet dating is transactional based, there is no product to
ship, and it doesn’t seem to have a great deal of regulation. As a
government, we offer 40% grant assistance to companies that relocate to
the Isle of Man across a basket of headings like hardware, software and
setup costs.
Tell me about the infrastructure regarding the Internet.
We do very well. We only use 10% of our total Internet capacity.
To
enjoy the benefits of having a corporation in the Isle of Man you need
to have a couple of executives based in The Isle of Man. Is that
correct?
If
you’re going to have a business established in the Isle of Man, the
idea of having a brass plate is unacceptable. You need to have some real
substance, and so those two people should actually be middle management
caliber.
In general, what can you tell us about the Isle of Man?
The
Isle of Man sits in the Irish Sea, just off the northwest coast of
England. There are 85K people in the island. The island is a Crown
Dependency of the UK, but we are independent in terms of our economy.
How about VAT?
VAT
is at the standard rate of the UK, so it’s at 20%. VAT is not an issue,
largely because the lower cost associated with doing business in The
Isle of Man offsets the cost of VAT.
What are the personal taxes?
They start
at 10% rising into 20% at the highest for all employees. For high net
worth individuals we have a tax cap. If it exceeds £600,000 they pay no
more than £120,000 tax per annum. Whether you earn £600,000 or
£600,000,000, once you hit that benchmark you pay no more than £120,000.
How much does it cost for business-oriented property and personal, roughly?
You
can buy a very attractive four-bedroom detached executive home in and
around the capital Douglas for £500,000- £600,000. It equates very well
with the UK market.
There
is a selection of modern steell and smoked glass buildings in our
business parks, and they reflect very well in relation to
competitiveness compared to the UK, probably 30-40% lower than mainland
UK prices.
How
would that work for an American born company that relocated to the Isle
of Man that continue to do a majority of its business in the USA?
The VAT issue is really only an issue for European area, so out with the European it’ not an issue.
What should people do if they want to find out more?
Contact
me in the first instance, and I would be more than happy to help them
and give them additional information and advice. My e-mail is
Brian.Donegan@gov.im.
I
would also encourage readers to ask questions, and Brian if you’d like
to keep an eye on the posts when we run it for 2 or 3 days and that is
another way people can contact you I’m sure.
Great interview Brian! We’re HQ’d in Douglas and find the IOM a very stable and pro-business jurisdiction. It’s nice to operate in a place where making money is not a dirty word. We have one of the leading white label platforms for internet dating (http://www.hubpeople.com).
Great interview Brian! We’re HQ’d in Douglas and find the IOM a very stable and pro-business jurisdiction. It’s nice to operate in a place where making money is not a dirty word. We have one of the leading white label platforms for internet dating (http://www.hubpeople.com).
Hi Michael,
What’s it like living in IOM?
How’s the weather?
How’s the lifestyle and community?
Do you have a motorcycle?
Hi Michael,
What’s it like living in IOM?
How’s the weather?
How’s the lifestyle and community?
Do you have a motorcycle?
Isle of Man sounds goo to me. maybe the UK should take a leaf out of their book. I like the way the tax is capped for the higher earner. That makes a lot of sense.
Isle of Man sounds goo to me. maybe the UK should take a leaf out of their book. I like the way the tax is capped for the higher earner. That makes a lot of sense.
I’m in Scotland but am over every few weeks. It’s a nice spot, weather is pretty typical for the Uk/Ireland so don’t get too excited. Douglas is like a small UK provincial city, some decent restaurants, but the crime rate, education and general manners of the local population is great by comparison. I guess you can’t get away with it on a small island.
Don’t have a motorbike but you would be in heaven if you did, the TT race really is something. My only petrol head knowledge is that Jeremy Clarkson lives in a lighthouse on the island.
Michael.
I’m in Scotland but am over every few weeks. It’s a nice spot, weather is pretty typical for the Uk/Ireland so don’t get too excited. Douglas is like a small UK provincial city, some decent restaurants, but the crime rate, education and general manners of the local population is great by comparison. I guess you can’t get away with it on a small island.
Don’t have a motorbike but you would be in heaven if you did, the TT race really is something. My only petrol head knowledge is that Jeremy Clarkson lives in a lighthouse on the island.
Michael.