Porque vem Aga Khan para Portugal?

Mais do que o número de fiéis locais, são as condições legais e fiscais que trouxeram a sede mundial do Imamat Ismaili para Lisboa

Esta milionária incarnação entre o Céu e a Terra, oriunda de uma antiga seita minoritária que cindiu do islamismo xiita no longínquo século VII da nossa era, vem para Portugal com imunidade diplomática para si, família e colaboradores próximos, gozando ainda de total isenção de impostos diretos. Os deuses estão acima das autoridades tributárias deste mundo, já sabemos, mas os semi-deuses, como Aga Khan, cobram um dízimo e meio aos rendimentos mensais do seus estimados 15 milhões de fiéis.

O Economist tem uma opinião sobre esta emigração de luxo: Portugal é uma democracia fraquinha. Mas o nosso magnífico presidente embelezou a coisa, e as televisões e jornais locais não vêm, não ouvem, e não leem.

A segurança da operação por parte deste milionário ismaelita assenta na convicção de que em Portugal existem dois partidos: o PSD e o PS. O primeiro, sob a batuta de Rui Machete, iniciou as negociações com Aga Khan, o governo PS concluiu-as, e Marcelo oferece um banquete no Palácio de Belém. A Geringonça não passa, como se vê, de um episódio de conveniência do rotativismo do Bloco Central.

Aga Khan tem andado ultimamente a saltitar de democracia em democracia (Suíça, Reino Unido, Canadá, França), mas como a repressão à fraude e evasão fiscal tem apertado nestas mesmas democracias, Portugal pôs-se a jeito.

Why did Aga Khan move to Portugal? 

French paper “Regards” mentioned that Aga Khan is “head of a financial empire that controls worldwide companies with various activities: banking, telephony, hospitality, air transport and energy” and that Aga Khan is known to “celebrity gazettes for his passion for horse racing and expensive divorces” and therefore the tax exemption to such a rich person was unjustified.

[...]

Sarkozy’s fall came sooner than Aga Khan would have predicted, but Aga Khan had already found a safe haven in Portugal where the tax treatment he would receive would be predictable and the ruling authority would treat him consistently whether or not the government would be with the Socialist Party or with the Social Democratic Party. When Aga Khan’s news of his move to Portugal broke out, Portugal’s Foreign Minister Rui Machete of the Social Democratic Party mentioned that this move had materialized after six years of negotiations. 

[...]

Aga Khan purchased the Mendonça Palace, located right in the center of Lisbon for 12 million euros and has promised to invest 10 million euros in the Portuguese economy. 

The move to Portugal is more than anything, a smart business move. While at his French headquarters, Aga Khan did receive a lot of favors from Sarkozy, the deal with Portugal was much sweeter and importantly, not at the risk of reversal by either of the ruling parties. 

The agreement gives Aga Khan the status of a diplomat and gives Aga Khan the freedom to transfer all of his global assets to Portugal (and from Portugal to the outside world) without any restrictions. Under Article 12 “Funds, foreign currency and assets”, it mentions that Aga Khan “may hold funds, securities, gold and other precious metals, or foreign currencies.” It also mentions that Aga Khan “shall be free to receive any such values from within or from outside Portugal and hold and transfer the same within Portugal or from Portugal to any country and to convert any currency held or bought into any other currency.” 

Tax exemptions are obviously there exempting Aga Khan from any kind of national and local tax, including transfer or capital gain tax, income tax, wealth tax and stamp duty. Moreover, all gifts and donations given to Aga Khan will be tax deductible. Aga Khan will also not pay any duties on the purchase, ownership, registration, use or sale of land, air or sea vehicles, including spare parts and consumables. Any value-added tax which the Aga Khan would pay, would be fully refundable to Aga Khan. 

Under the agreement, Aga Khan would also enjoy ceremonial diplomatic treatment which is given to foreign high entities. He would also be immune from any judicial action and legal proceedings. He also negotiated similar treatment for his family members and senior officials working for him. 

The above diplomatic status and tax exemptions would have been impossible to achieve in an open democracy like Canada and would have only been possible in a country like Portugal – which is described as a ‘flawed democracy’ by the Economic Intelligence Unit of the Economist Group.

—in Akbar Khoja, “Why did Aga Khan move to Portugal?”, Inside Ismailism, August 8, 2018

Atualizado em 2/4/2019, 10:44 WET