Full Throttle

You’ll forgive me if I don’t shed a tear over this story. A few laughs maybe, but the tear ducts will remain dry as the Sahara.

The hoi polloi of the F1 Circus have long used Switzerland as a residence of convenience. Convenient because it’s a tax haven, taxes are only paid on money earned within its borders. Chief benefactors are Bernie Ecclestone, Michael Schumacher (Reportedly earned $80 mil for 2006), and two-time and reigning World Champion Fernando Alonso.

As a result of the so-called “direct” tax benefit these three only paid an estimated $60,000 to the Swiss tax man for 2006.

That may soon change. Swiss finance ministers met last Friday and discussed changing the system within six months. It could result in F1’s Swiss-based multi-millionaires having to pay twice as much.

Still not a princely sum for the “kings” of F1, pocket change in reality, but it is a nice chunk of change.

Others in the sport that call Switzerland “home” are David Coulthard, Kimi Raikkonen, Nick Heidfeld, Jarno Trulli, Jacques Villeneuve and Alain Prost.

The odds are small this change would create a mass exodus from the land of chocolate and neutrality but as a service to those affected I have compiled a short list of other tax havens.

Andorra. (has the added benefit of location. It’s in the Pyrenees between France and Catalonia, a short U-Haul drive for the Do-it-Your-Selfers of F1)

Costa Rica. (the perfect get-away spot)

Liberia. ([in]famous for being a flag of convenience for the world’s shipping industry. Surely that could be corrupted to include private yachts. NOTE: pay no attention to the violent and bloody civil wars)

And finally the Seychelles. (Located in the middle of the Indian Ocean this may be the ideal spot for Jacques Villeneuve. As far away from civilization, microphones and recording studios as possible)

F1, Formula One, Sports, Switzerland, Auto Racing, Motorsports, Full Throttle