Client story
Client's Story
Where they started
Roman obtained GRP status three years earlier—a classic scenario for an entrepreneur who spends substantial time in transit and does not wish to be considered a tax resident of his country of origin. Malta offered him a clear 15% rate on foreign-sourced income channeled to the island and the reputation of a full-fledged European jurisdiction. For the first two years, status renewal was automatic: taxes paid, qualified rental accommodation in place, insurance current.
Why the standard route did not work
In the third year, a letter arrived from IRD. The tax authority initiated an in-depth review and demanded documentary proof that during the reporting year Roman had not spent more than 183 days in any other country. The logic is straightforward: if a person spent more than six months in Russia, the UAE, or Singapore, that country may claim him as its tax resident—and then Malta's status becomes questionable.
What BRIDGES had to solve
The problem lay in Roman's own schedule. Over the year he made more than forty flights: negotiations with funds in Dubai, portfolio company visits in Singapore and Almaty, family trips throughout Europe. Passport stamps created a chaotic picture; some flights were within the Schengen area with no markings whatsoever, and a couple of stamps were illegible. When Roman attempted to reconcile the days in a spreadsheet himself, he arrived at three different totals depending on how he interpreted arrival and departure days.
Why a standard answer would not do
He approached BRIDGES when he realized that the cost of error was not a fine but status annulment and tax reassessment for the entire period. Losing his well-structured arrangement due to careless day counting was unacceptable.
I was confident I simply lived on airplanes and never stayed anywhere long. But when the tax authority asked me to prove it, I realized I had no proper documentation—only stamps, half of which are illegible. The team compiled my entire year down to the hour.
