How to bequeath and donate assets without using a will
Updated: Sep 16, 2021
Estate Planning: Bequeath and Donate with ProtectInvest
If appropriate precautions have not been taken in the event of a death, the inheritance will be divided in accordance with legal guidelines. However, this will shall rarely represent what your customer would have wished.
A professional estate planning respects the last will of your customer, avoids conflicts between the inheritors, and regulates the benefits of partners, children and others. And remember: it can also be a tax-efficient solution.
ProtectInvest offers numerous possible combinations for bequeathing or donating assets that take the customer's wishes into account regarding how and when his assets are to be transferred.
Bequests through ProtectInvest structured without the creation of complex and expensive legal contracts. Generally, this is achieved by nominating beneficiaries, to whom the assets are to be transferred tax efficiently in the event of death of the insured person. Although eventually inheritance/donation taxation will be applicable, there are high levels of tax allowances in this regard (e.g., €400,000 for children) which can be used every 10 years by both parents. For example, a husband and wife can each donate €400,000 free of inheritance/donation taxes (i.e., €800,000 in total) every 10 years to each of their children. When there are two children, this amounts to €1.6 million every ten years.
Donations can be made when subscribing the insurance contract using the available tax allowances without losing control of the money, as it is possible for the applicants to have different ownership structures defined in the policy. For example, a father, as applicant 1, may donate 99% of the premium to his son by naming him applicant 2 and keep 1% in order to keep control of the investment as both applicants signature is necessary to cash in any funds or to make changes to the contract.
By naming different applicants as well as insured persons (which are unlimited in ProtectInvest) it is possible to bequeath and to donate in numerous combinations whichever will suit the wishes of the person subscribing the insurance policy. It will be easy to structure in order to donate at a given time a part or all the assets to whomever is designated as beneficiariy. Depending on how you structure the contract you can also benefit from income-tax freedom beside the inheritance tax allowances.
If beneficiaries are “irrevocable beneficiaries” within the insurance contract then these (wife/children or others) will be protected from any possible creditor`s claim against the applicant/s of the insurance contract. This can for eg. be the case when the applicant of the policy would be confronted to a personal bankruptcy or the bankruptcy of his company.
By nominating beneficiaries (revocable or unrevocable), assets can be transferred without using a will. Long-term conflicts over inheritance can thus be avoided, and the assignment of rights to withdraw money does not interfere in the investment strategy which has and is still controlled by the policy owner.
With ProtectInvest
you can flexibly plan the financials and inheritance structure of your client today, for example through a will.
beneficiaries can receive proceeds of the policy contract upon death income tax free.
you can reduce or avoid donation or inheritance taxes through early inheritance planning.
you are able to take advantage of the prerogatives of Liechtenstein life insurance laws and optimize the inheritance of your clients.
In comparison with other products, ProtectInvest allows you to structure and manage your financials cost-effectively. ProtectInvest gives your clients the flexibility to change beneficiaries at any time, in case they are revocable beneficiaries.
Other than ordinary unit-linked contracts, ProtectInvest works like a bank account, but free of withholding tax. With ProtectInvest, your clients have permanent access to all funds, ETFs and/or managed portfolios available at our custodian banks, and the insurance contract ProtectInvest has a permanent liquidity which can be accessed at any time without any extra fees.
Don`t hesitate to structure your clients financial needs today with ProtectInvest. With ProtectInvest, you can manage your client`s estate and design it to be tax-efficient.
Our team of experts at ProtectInvest will be happy to assist you in the structuring of bequests and donations, including illiquid assets.
If you have any questions, please contact us. We will be pleased to help you.
Markus Graf
VR Nucleus Life AG | Managing Director nl360 vertriebs gmbh
Tel.: 0041 61 520 00 70 | Mobile (Switzerland): 0041 76 27 27 448
Mobile (Germany) 0049 151 533 833 44 | graf@nl360.eu | www.nl360.eu