Offshore Trust Formation and Services – Essential Guide

Offshore trust formation is an integral part of asset, wealth, and tax planning across the globe. Before becoming the sophisticated financial planning tool. Today, the trust began as a simple agreement between a landowner (settlor), a trusted relative or friend, and the landowner’s dependents (beneficiaries). Today, trusts are governed by the sets of modern laws that are designed to meet the needs of settlors and beneficiaries who employ professional trustees in order to protect their wealth. Offshore trust services can provide valuable assistance to those who want to administer a trust competently in accordance with a settlor’s long-term wishes.

One of the most important things you should know about a trust is that while the trustee is granted legal title by the settlor, he or she is obliged to care for and look after the transferred property for the future benefit and enjoyment of the beneficiaries. A trustee therefore, can be considered a custodian who can’t personally benefit from trust assets from charging a reasonable fee for its care. All rights to the asset or assets in question belong to beneficiaries who also have the legal right to force trustees to act according to the terms specified in the trust instrument as well as the laws that govern the trust. Trustees on the other hand, must never act in an illegal manner.

Historically, trusts were made as private agreements between individuals, with trustees being a family member or a friend. Today however, there is a growing interest in offshore trust formation for different kinds of assets, ranging from personal properties to more complex investments. Protecting your assets and reducing tax on your properties and investments can be more effective with the help of professional offshore trust services that can help you establish a trust and make the most out of this increasingly sophisticated tax and asset planning tool.