Nomad Capitalist: Final Thoughts on Going Where You Are Treated Best

Twenty-one posts. Sixteen chapters. One very long subtitle. We made it to the end of Andrew Henderson’s Nomad Capitalist.

I started this retelling series because the book made me think. Not because I agreed with everything in it. Not because I wanted to sell offshore company services. But because it challenged ideas I had been carrying around for decades without questioning them. And any book that does that deserves a proper read-through.

So here are my honest closing thoughts. What Henderson got right. What he got wrong. And who should actually spend time reading this book.

What Henderson Actually Did Right

Let us give credit where credit is due.

The core idea of this book is simple. You are not a tree. You can move. And different countries offer wildly different deals on taxes, banking, healthcare, residency, and quality of life. Most people never even consider this because they assume the country they were born in is the only option. Henderson shatters that assumption completely.

Here is what I think he nailed:

The “go where you are treated best” framework is genuinely useful. Even if you never leave your country, the idea of evaluating your situation the way you would evaluate a business deal is powerful. Are you getting good value for the taxes you pay? Is the healthcare worth it? Is the infrastructure improving or declining? These are fair questions that most people never ask.

The practical details are real. Henderson does not just philosophize. He explains how offshore bank accounts actually work. How citizenship by investment programs function. How to structure companies across borders. How asset storage in foreign vaults operates. Whether you use this information or not, knowing it exists changes how you see the world.

The mindset chapter is the best part of the book. Chapter 15 about the eight mindset shifts is worth reading even if you have zero interest in offshore anything. Growth mindset over fixed. Abundance over scarcity. Decisiveness over endless research. Pain as a motivator. These apply to every area of life, not just international tax planning.

He is honest about the costs. Henderson does not pretend this lifestyle is free. Good lawyers cost money. Citizenship by investment programs cost six figures. Quality offshore company setup is not cheap. He repeatedly warns against bargain providers. That honesty is refreshing in a space full of people selling dreams for $97.

What I Disagree With

Now the other side.

The tone can feel like a sales pitch. Henderson runs a consulting business that helps people do everything this book describes. Every chapter naturally leads to “you should hire someone like me.” He is upfront about it, which is better than hiding it. But after sixteen chapters, the commercial undercurrent gets noticeable. Not every reader has a $250,000 tax bill to optimize. Some people are just curious.

The US-centric perspective limits the book. Henderson writes primarily for Americans. The chapter about renouncing citizenship, the emphasis on IRS reporting, the specific pain points about US taxation. If you are from Sweden or Japan or Brazil, the details shift significantly. He mentions other nationalities occasionally, but the core audience is clearly American entrepreneurs with six or seven figure incomes.

Some advice ages fast. Cryptocurrency regulations change every year. Citizenship by investment programs open and close. Countries change their tax laws. The specific countries and programs Henderson mentions were accurate when he wrote the book, but some have already changed. This is not really his fault. It is the nature of writing about a moving target. But readers should know they need to verify everything with current professionals.

The privilege is enormous and underacknowledged. To do what Henderson describes, you need significant income, the ability to work remotely, fluency in English, access to professional advisors, and the psychological freedom to leave your entire social network behind. That is not most people. Henderson occasionally acknowledges this, but the book overall reads as if anyone can do it if they just fix their mindset. Mindset matters, yes. But so does starting from a position where you have options in the first place.

The “everyone else is a sheep” undertone gets old. Henderson is better about this than most people in the sovereign individual space. But there are moments throughout the book where the implication is clear. People who stay in one country and pay their taxes are somehow less enlightened. Some people stay because they want to be near aging parents. Some stay because they love their community. Some stay because they have kids in school and stability matters. These are not signs of weakness. They are valid life choices.

A View From the Other Side

Here is where my background gives me a different perspective than most readers of this book.

I grew up in the former Soviet Union. I know what it looks like when a government actually does not treat its citizens well. Not “my taxes are too high” does not treat well. I mean bread lines, censorship, no freedom to leave, and a system that collapsed overnight taking everyone’s savings with it.

So when Henderson says “go where you are treated best,” I understand the principle more deeply than someone who has always lived in a stable democracy. I have seen what happens when you cannot leave. The freedom to move is genuinely precious.

But I also know something Henderson does not emphasize enough. When that system collapsed, the people who survived best were not the ones with offshore bank accounts. They were the ones with skills, relationships, and adaptability. The engineer who could fix things. The doctor who could treat people. The teacher who could educate children. Human capital traveled better than financial capital.

After twenty-plus years in IT, working remotely, serving clients across multiple countries, I can confirm that Henderson’s core insight is correct. The world is more open than most people realize. You can bank in one country, work in another, live in a third, and pay taxes in a fourth. Legally. This is not a secret. It is just not something schools teach.

But I would add something Henderson does not say enough. The logistics of international living are the easy part. The hard part is the loneliness. The holidays away from family. The friendships that fade because you are never in one place long enough. The feeling of not fully belonging anywhere. Henderson mentions finding community along the way, but he glosses over how long and difficult that process can be.

Who Should Read This Book

Let me be specific.

Read it if: You earn a good income, work remotely, and have never seriously considered that you could legally reduce your tax burden by changing where you live and where your company is registered. The book will open your eyes to options you did not know existed.

Read it if: You are already thinking about living abroad and want a practical framework for evaluating countries, residency programs, and financial structures. Henderson provides a checklist approach that is more useful than random blog posts and YouTube videos.

Read it if: You feel stuck in a place that no longer serves you and need someone to tell you that leaving is a legitimate option. Sometimes permission is all people need.

Skip it if: You are looking for specific legal or tax advice. This book is a framework, not a legal manual. Henderson repeatedly says to hire professionals. He is right.

Skip it if: You earn a normal salary and do not have a location-independent business. The strategies in this book are designed for entrepreneurs and high earners. Applying them to a $50,000 salary creates more complexity than savings.

Skip it if: You are already deeply familiar with the offshore world. Experienced expats and international business owners will not find much new here. The book is an introduction, not an advanced guide.

Final Takeaway

After retelling this entire book chapter by chapter, here is what I am left with.

Henderson wrote a useful introduction to a world most people ignore. The core message, that you should actively choose where to live, bank, invest, and do business rather than defaulting to where you were born, is sound. The practical chapters on offshore banking, second passports, and company structures provide genuine value as starting points for further research.

But the book works best as a door opener, not a final destination. It shows you that the door exists. Walking through it requires professionals, research, and a realistic assessment of whether the lifestyle actually fits your life, not just your tax bill.

The best thing I took away from Henderson is a question. Not an answer. The question is: “Am I here because I chose to be, or because I never considered the alternatives?”

That question is worth asking regardless of whether you ever open an offshore bank account or buy a second passport. Because sometimes the most valuable thing a book can do is make you look at your own life with fresh eyes.

And that, Henderson definitely accomplished.

Book: Nomad Capitalist by Andrew Henderson | ISBN: 9798461831486

Previous: Chapter 16 - How to Get Started

This concludes my Nomad Capitalist series. Thanks for reading!