Private Wealth, Family Offices, HNWIs: Establish, Register, Set up Holding Company in Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the UAE (Dubai, Abu Dhabi)

Wealth Planning and Structuring Solutions

Holding Company Abu Dhabi (here)

Holding Company Switzerland (here)

Holding Company Liechtenstein (here)

Trustee in Switzerland (here)

Dormant Assets in Swiss Banks (here)

Beneficial Ownership Registers (here)

CRS Anti-Avoidance Switzerland (here)

CRS Due Diligence Switzerland (here)

Economic Substance Rules (here)

Mandatory Disclosure Rules (here)

Find the right holding vehicle and implement professionally

This post talks about how to establish, put in place and operate safe and compliant asset holding structures which are easy to manage. If you want to set up, create, and register a holding company for financial assets, real estate, private equity investments or a precious art collection you have landed on the correct website.

Holding companies are often used by private clients and wealthy families for tax optimization as well as wealth, estate, succession, and legacy planning.

While the special Swiss holding company regime was repealed in 2019, Switzerland remains a very interesting location for holding companies and private equity investment firms, mainly thanks to the so-called Swiss participation exemption whereby dividends and capital gains from qualified participations (i) of at least 10% or (ii) with a fair market value of at least CHF 1 million in subsidiaries are tax free.

However, alongside tax there are other considerations when choosing the right asset holding structure - be it in the form of an ordinary limited liability company, foundation, establishment, family trust or SPV.

Administrative issues play an equally important role, that is, the ability of wealthy families to easily administer a holding company, especially if local directors are involved, as is often the case in Switzerland, Liechtenstein or the United Arab Emirates.

A comparative approach involving a good understanding of different legal systems is key, as well as experience in coordinating the interaction of the holding's stakeholders (family - directors - bank - audit firm - tax authorities).

Our private wealth planning services include:

• Setup and management of tax-compliant private wealth and business structures: operating companies (OpCos), holding companies (HoldCos), establishments (Anstalten), foundations (Stiftungen), special purpose vehicles (SPVs), and discretionary express trusts that meet relevant regulatory and economic substance requirements

• We establish and manage asset holding companies in Switzerland (here), Liechtenstein (here), and the United Arab Emirates (UAE): in Abu Dhabi (here) or Ras al Khaimah (here)

• CFC day-to-day administration: accounting, tax filing, in addition to reporting in the controlling person’s home jurisdiction

• International tax structuring: involvement of local counsel where necessary

• Asset protection and succession planning via Swiss private trust company (here)

• Economic citizenship and residency advice (here)

Become and stay compliant - at home and abroad

• We factor tax compliance into the entire lifecycle of our private wealth consulting – from the setup of business and holding structures to the funding of professionally managed bank accounts at Tier-1 custodians

• We draft KYC reports for complex clients which meet the standards of western banks’ compliance departments and risk committees

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References

Herzog Sabine, Jahnel Werner (2022) Nachlassplanung (Schulthess) (here)

STEP (2020) Advising the Wealthy Client: A Handbook for Working with the Ultra Wealthy (Globe Law and Business) (here)