Client story
Client Story
Where they started
Fahad is an investor from Riyadh who has built a portfolio of commercial real estate across Europe over the years: stakes in operating shopping centers in Germany and Spain. The properties generated stable rental income, but Fahad did not receive the full amount—a significant portion was withheld as source withholding tax before payment.
Why the standard route did not work
The root of the problem lay in the recipient's status. When income from European real estate goes to a resident of a third country without a developed network of treaties with the EU, withholding occurs at the maximum rate. Tax treaty benefits and internal EU directives that reduce the tax burden are designed for residents of EU member states—and Saudi Arabia is not such a member.
What BRIDGES had to solve
Fahad did not want to sell his assets or relocate his family's country of residence. He needed a more sophisticated tool: tax residency in a respected European jurisdiction that would allow him to present the correct certificate to German and Spanish authorities and apply reduced rates on a lawful basis.
Why a standard answer would not do
Malta was almost ideal. As an EU member state, it provides access to the Union's internal mechanisms, and the GRP program allows obtaining full tax status there without the need to relocate the family and spend the entire year on the island.
I invested in Europe to receive income, not to give away half to withholding tax simply because my passport is not European. I needed lawful European status. BRIDGES proposed Malta and handled the entire procedure from start to finish.
