Finance Tips

About Spain

The country is renowned for many things; one of them is its flamenco dancers; another is its bullfights. The Moroccan architecture reflects the local lifestyle with cave paintings, Moorish palaces and renaissance cathedrals to showcase the rich diversity of Spain. Summer is enjoyed by all for its sunshine but spring and fall are no less appreciated.

Spanish Culture

The regional and official language of Spain is Spanish although English is commonly used. Today, the locals have adapted to the modern era and are not as conservative as before. However, the traditions, values, customs and manners of the locals remain steadfast. Each local has two surnames; you can greet a local with his first surname and a handshake. When you visit a local, it is the local tradition to offer a small gift to the host.

Flowers are only given on special occasions. The locals have their dinner very late at night. They are very casual in their dressing but men are required to wear jackets at certain restaurants. Swimwear is to be worn only at the beach or pools. Smoking has been banned in public places.

Shopping Opportunities

Spain is a great place for shoppers as the stores open their doors very early and close at late evenings. However, they close for lunch or a short rest, known as siesta, in the afternoon. Spain is famous for its porcelain and leather wares. There are service charges imposed on all purchases while tipping is personal.

Electricity voltage – at 220V with 50 Hz frequency

Means of Arrival

The national airline is IBERIA although there are various low cost airlines available. Spain offers about 30 international airports of which Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona, Malaga and Alicante are the more famous. Madrid airport is about 13km outside the city with a regular 15 minute interval bus service and an efficient underground service. Barcelona airport is only 3km away from the city with regular buses and trains.

The network of roads is excellent in Spain connecting the north to the south. Tolls are also placed along certain stretches that cost a few Euros.

Duty Free Items

Any visitor to and out of Spain is allowed 200 cigarettes/100 cigarillos/50 cigars/250g tobacco or 300 cigarettes/150 cigarillos/70 cigars/400g tobacco for EU citizens.

Visitors are also entitled to 1L spirits of over 22% volume or 2L alcoholic beverage less than 22% volume and 2L wine or 1.5L over 22%/3L of 22%/5L wine for EU residents.

Perfumes of 50g or 250ml eau de toilette are allowed. For coffee lovers, 500g coffee or 200g coffee extract with double the amount for EU residents are to be enjoyed.

Finally, you can enjoy 100g tea or check out 40g tea extract with gifts costing about Euro37.26.

It is truly sad that more people are not aware that it is very possible to settle credit card debt personally without ever having to deal with a legal representative. If the credit companies that you owe money to decide to take legal action against you, they will charge you with their no doubt costly legal fees.

It would be wise to call the credit card companies yourself and try to work out a settlement agreement with them on a personal basis. The credit card companies really don’t want the situation to progress to the point where they have to take legal action, so they will probably be willing to negotiate even if your account has been delinquent for several months.

Start by trying to adjust your interest rate and lower service charges that have been applied to your account. Once you know what the credit company is charging you, you will be more prepared to negotiate effectively with them on a settlement.

In your efforts to reach a debt settlement with the credit card company you should focus your efforts on negotiating over the interest rate and service charges first, not discussing the principal. The credit card companies make their money off the service charges and interest rates on your account, so try to make a deal that benefits you both mutually.

Next Comes the Hard Part

The money that you spent on purchases that has already been paid by the credit card company, called the principal, is the hardest aspect of your debt to negotiate over with credit card companies. They don’t want to have paid for something and not have you pay them back.

Getting your way with negotiations over the principal is not easy, so don’t feel bad if the credit card company refuses to budge. Even getting the company to adjust your interest rate or service charges is difficult. Remember that the credit card company’s goal is to get their money from you, not repossess your things.

Regardless of what agreement you reach with the credit card company, you need to be prepared to follow through with your end of the deal. If you fail to meet the terms of your settlement plan, you can expect the credit card company to take aggressive action to get their money, not a second chance.

Sometimes debt becomes too much for a person to handle. Bill Collectors are
calling and they can barely make their minimum payments. Trying to talk to
credit card companies and collection agencies alone can be a very frustrated
experience. Many institutions will offer to help people with debt get out as
fast as possible. However, many of these companies profit off of others
misfortune. Non Profit debt consolidation companies are just the opposite. It is
their job to help people in financial distress, with no fees or service charges.

What are Non Profit Debt Consolidation Companies?

Non profit debt consolidation companies are organizations that provide free
credit counseling and clean up to individuals in financial trouble. These
companies call credit card companies and other companies that their clients owe
money to and negotiate payment schedules and sometimes even reduction in
payments. The client pays them and they pay the credit companies, therefore
minimizing the relationship between the client and the collectors.

Who Qualifies For Debt Consolidation?

Everyone is available to apply for consolidation, and there are many choices out
there. Most companies will require their clients to have a certain amount of
debt counseling to ensure that they are learning from the experience and that
they are armed with good tools to fight debt.

Where to find Non Profit Consolidation Companies

The best place to find non profit debt consolidation companies is on the
internet. There are many choices, but the key is to find one where you can
actually call or possibly even meet with someone to discuss your financial
history. Companies that just want written statements about a client’s credit are
not looking out for the best interest of that client.

Bonus: Debt Counseling

Another perk of non-profit debt consolidation is that they often give free debt
counseling as a part of their services. In these counseling sessions they will
discuss setting budgets, talking to credit card companies, and rebuilding
credit. This often helps ensure that people will not end up in the same
situation again.

There are a few basic requirements that need to be in place before an individual can start the process of buying, holding and selling shares. This document is a basic guideline to explain these requirements. Please note that this document does not provide any advice on what shares to buy or what investment strategy suits an individual. This is a getting started guide for individuals based on my own experiences.

The 3 basic things needed for getting started are:

* Dmat Account

* Trading Account

* Bank Account

Dmat Account

A Dmat account is like a Bank Account, with the difference being that instead of cash, a Dmat account holds shares. So, if shares are bought, they are deposited into the buyers Dmat account and if shares are sold, they are reduced accordingly from the Dmat account. The shares that are deposited to or reduced from the Dmat account are electronic shares. For an individual wishing to trade in shares, it is compulsory to trade only in Dmat (dematerialized) shares. Physical shares cannot be traded. Dmat shares have many advantages in terms of ease of handling etc.

A Dmat account can be opened through most banks and financial institutions, after filling up the required forms and providing identity and address proofs. The usual charges associated with a Dmat account are:

1. Account opening charges

2. Yearly charges for maintaining the Dmat account

3. Recurring periodic charges for holding shares in the Dmat account

4. Other service charges based on transactions carried out. Usually, there are no transaction / service charges when shares are bought. The charges will be levied when shares are sold.

The above charges may not be the same across different service providers but a big part is likely to be the same as regulatory agencies like Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) specify certain norms.

Trading Account

A Trading account is required if an individual wishes to trade, i.e. buy and sell shares in the stock exchange. The 2 main stock exchanges in India are the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). A Trading account can also be opened with most banks and financial institutions, after filling up the required forms and providing identity and address proofs. The actual trading can be done by phone, internet or using transaction slips that are provided at the time of opening the account. Personally, I have found buying and selling using the internet fairly convenient. There are options to specify the price at which to buy or sell and it is easy to track the status online.

There is a brokerage charge that is incurred for both buying and selling of shares. This charge varies across different trading houses. Also, government levies like the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) will be incurred on such transactions.

Bank account

Needless to say, a Bank account is required for carrying out various financial transactions associated with trading of shares. This is where the money on sale of shares will be credited or money for buying shares will be debited from. A normal Savings Account is enough and nothing additional needs to be done with the Bank account.

Trading process

Once the Dmat account, Trading account and Bank account are in place, an individual is ready to start trading. While it is not necessary to have the Dmat account, Trading account and Bank account with the same organization, I feel that having it with the same organization offers additional convenience, especially for individuals trading using the internet. The following example of buying and selling using a Trading account on the internet illustrates the convenience of having the Dmat account, Trading account and Bank account with the same organization.

Buying shares: When an individual wants to buy a share, he/she logs into the Trading account and specifies the details like the Company name, no. of shares to buy and the price at which to buy. Depending on this information, the required amount from the Bank account is set aside for this trade. When the desired price is reached, this trade is executed and the amount (after adjusting for charges) is debited from the Bank account and the shares are credited into the Dmat account.
If the Bank account had been with a different organization, then for carrying out this trade, it would have been necessary to move the amount into the Trading account.

Selling shares: When an individual wants to sell a share, he/she logs into the Trading account and specifies the details like the Company name, no. of shares to sell and the price at which to sell. Depending on this information, the required no of shares from the Dmat account is set aside for this trade. When the desired price is reached, this trade is executed and the shares are debited from the Dmat account and the amount (after adjusting for charges) is credited to the Bank account.
If the Bank account had been with a different organization, then after this trade, it would have been necessary to move the amount from the Trading account into the Bank account.

Please note that apart from the charges that are levied by the Bank, the Dmat account service provider and the Trading account service provider, there will be additional government taxes like STT and Service Tax. Also, please make sure to read all the terms and fee details of the service providers before opening any account and be aware of the transaction costs involved with each transaction. Happy Trading!