Are you actually on track,
or does it just feel that way?
I write about financial planning for people who are earning well, living abroad, and haven't had the time to properly think through what comes next. Plain language. No product pitches.
Everything on this site is education and commentary only, not advice. Joe Shaw is a Financial Analyst licensed by the UAE's Capital Market Authority (CMA).
The things most people
haven't properly sorted
A lot of financial content is generic. This site focuses on the decisions that actually matter for internationally mobile professionals.
Pensions and retirement
UK State Pension gaps, voluntary NI contributions, pension transfers, and building a retirement plan when you've lived across multiple countries.
Investing
Active vs passive, the real cost of trying to time the market, portfolio construction, and what the long-term data actually shows.
Expat financial planning
Tax residency, offshore accounts, cross-border estate planning, and the financial questions that change the moment you move abroad.
Wealth protection
Insurance gaps most people discover too late, currency risk, and protecting what you've built from risks you haven't thought about yet.
Property and assets
Whether to buy or rent as an expat, property as part of a broader plan, and the tax implications most people miss.
Financial planning basics
Budgeting, net worth, goal-setting, and the foundational habits that compound quietly over decades.
Latest articles
Better decisions tend to follow better information. That's the whole point of writing these.
If you're a British expat, your UK State Pension probably isn't sorted
You need 35 qualifying years for the full new State Pension. Years spent abroad without contributions leave gaps, and the rules for filling them from overseas changed in April 2026.
Miss the 10 best days in the market and you've missed most of the gains
Between 2003 and 2022, the S&P 500 returned 9.8% a year. Miss just the 10 best trading days and that drops to 5.6%. The data makes a strong case for staying invested, even when it's uncomfortable.
Active vs passive funds: the answer isn't as simple as the fees
The SPIVA data is uncomfortable reading for active managers. But passive isn't always the obvious choice either. The market you're investing in matters more than most people think.
The financial questions you should answer before you move abroad
Most people focus on the exciting parts of relocating. The questions about tax residency, pensions, and life cover tend to come later, which is exactly when they're harder to fix.
I got into this because the industry confused me too
I'm a Financial Analyst at Skybound Wealth Management in Dubai, licensed by the UAE's Capital Market Authority (CMA).
The view that drives me: international investing should not be complex. A financial plan should be clear, client-first and work for you.
I started this site because I kept seeing smart, well-paid expats make avoidable financial mistakes, usually because nobody had explained things clearly to them. Everything here is education and commentary only, not advice.
Are you an expat looking for clarity? Let's connect.
Book a free 30-minute callOr follow my writing on LinkedIn. More about me.
Got a question about your situation?
A 30-minute call is a good place to start. Tell me a bit about where you are and what you're trying to figure out.