Why 2026 Is the Year to Stop Thinking About a Plan B and Start Building One

A new year. Another round of resolutions that mostly do not happen.

Most people reading this have been thinking about an international base for some time. They have read the articles, listened to the podcasts, maybe even attended a webinar. And then they have gone back to their lives and done nothing.

This is understandable. Change is uncomfortable. Moving some or all of your life to a different country — even part of the year — requires effort, money, and a willingness to accept uncertainty.

But 2026 is different. The external pressure has become too consistent to ignore.

In the UK, the non-dom regime is gone. Capital gains tax is at its highest level in decades. Inheritance tax has been tightened. The government is openly discussing a wealth tax. None of this is rumour — it is enacted legislation or live political discussion.

In Australia, superannuation has been raided twice in a decade. The tax take on investment income keeps creeping upward. Cost of living has deteriorated significantly.

In the US, global taxation of citizens — the only country in the world that does this, besides Eritrea — remains the law. No matter where you live, you file for the IRS.

And across the board: banks are debanking clients who do not fit the compliance mould. The OECD's Common Reporting Standard has made every European account visible to home tax authorities. Central bank digital currencies are moving from pilot to implementation.

The window for building a genuinely useful international base is not closing. But the conditions that make it easy — low scrutiny, easy banking, flexible bureaucracies — are tightening in most jurisdictions.

The Philippines, and Davao City specifically, remains an exception. The territorial tax system is intact. CRS non-participation continues. The SRRV is now available from age 40. Banking is accessible. The cost of entry is low.

The decision to act is not about abandoning your life. It is about adding optionality to it. A real address. A real bank account. A real tax position. Documents that hold up.

That is what MyDavaoBase does. If 2026 is the year you stop thinking and start building — we are here to help you do it properly.