Lawyers spoke about the risks of relocation of entrepreneurs to Muslim countries with their families

The requests of entrepreneurs moving after their business to Muslim countries friendly to Russia most often relate to the transfer of business to another jurisdiction, taxation and obtaining residency, she said during conferences “Kommersant” “Women’s view of business in an era of turbulence” head of private clients practice, partner of K&P.Group Daria Shushkevich. According to her, significant problems for entrepreneurs can also arise in the settlement of civil legal relations, for example, in a divorce.

The lawyer listed the legal risks associated with relocation to such countries, and also told how it is better for businessmen to register property in case of a new wave of mobilization in Russia.

Situation exampleswhere risks for relocators may arise:

• Inheritance of property. So, in the UAE, half of the property of a person who died and did not leave a will goes to the state, Ms. Shushkevich said. For those who have property in different countries, the lawyer advised to write a will in each of them.
• Inheritance tax. There is no tax in our country, the fee is up to 100 thousand rubles, in Muslim countries the tax can be 10-30% of inherited property.
• Divorce. In Russia, the fee that must be paid upon divorce is 600 rubles, in the UAE it can cost up to 1 million rubles. no division of property. In Turkey and other countries, spouses will be asked to explain the reasons for the divorce. It is unlikely that Russian citizens will be denied a divorce, as it could be with the locals, but the divorce procedure will be the same as for them, the lawyer noted. The process itself can take up to a year.
• Transfer of children to spouses during divorce. Until the age of 9, according to Muslim law, children can stay with their mother, then they can be transferred to their father.

“We made a decision to relocate – we sat down, figured out where we were going, what risks, concluded all the contracts as much as possible, here, what not – in the host country,” the expert advised.

Anastasia Simonova, head of the international legal practice of K&P.Group, during the conference also spoke about the new law adopted by the UEA on February 1 this year and regulating issues of family and inheritance law for non-Muslim residents. The law abolishes the rules according to which sons received a larger share in inheritance than daughters. In addition, the law implies the emergence in each emirate of specialized courts for foreigners, where they will apply a simplified divorce procedure. However, there is a nuance: while such a specialized court exists only in Abu Dhabi, in order to file a case in it, you need to have a connection with this emirate: you cannot buy an apartment in Dubai and live there, but go to get divorced in Abu Dhabi.

Daria Shushkevich also spoke about the risks that business owners may face if a new wave of mobilization is announced against the backdrop of a new law on electronic subpoenas. According to him, if a man is not in the draft board on the agenda, after 20 days he is limited in some rights to dispose of property. In this regard, the lawyer recommended re-registration of property to women in her family. To ensure the rights of a man in this case, she advised to draw up a marriage contract.

Read more about the legal intricacies of relocation to Muslim countries in material applications “b”.