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Will Writing, an Important Part of Expat Financial Planning

Inheritance Tax

If you have a sizeable estate this increases the possibility of it incurring significant inheritance tax, potentially across more than one jurisdiction.

If you have only one Will you need to ask your expat financial adviser whether it adequately addresses the tax issues at the heart of each jurisdiction or whether there is another way to mitigate liability in a way that is in the interests of your heirs and other beneficiaries.

Common or civil law?

The UK is a common law country whereas most others in the EU are civil law jurisdictions. This may have some impact on whether your Will is recognised in all the countries in which your assets are held.

EU Succession Regulation

EU Succession Regulation (EU 650/2012) (“the Regulation”), also known as Brussels IV, was introduced to unify succession laws across EU member states. It allows expats residing in the EU to elect the law of their country of origin rather than that of their country of residence.

This is particularly important in countries such as Spain and Portugal which have ‘forced heirship’ rules in place dictating that on death you must hand on your assets in certain ways—i.e. along traditional bloodlines.

This can help create clarity with regard to cross-border inheritances as it standardises succession law across the EU, reducing costs and reducing the potential for delays and contention during the probate process.

Although the UK opted out of the regulation, UK nationals living in the EU can still opt to have UK succession law apply on death.

Advice from Blacktower Financial Management

Are your assets recognised as “movable”, should you have one Will or more and should you use the EU Succession Regulation to nominate your country of nationality for inheritance and probate?

At Blacktower Financial Management our experts can help you negotiate these important questions and more. As a an expat financial services and wealth management specialist with many years of experience in numerous overseas jurisdictions, we can help you protect and grow your wealth while also working to ensure that your wishes are fully recognised and fulfilled on death. Contact us today for more information.

This communication is for informational purposes only and is not intended to constitute, and should not be construed as, investment advice, investment recommendations or investment research. You should seek advice from a professional adviser before embarking on any financial planning activity. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the information contained in this communication is correct, we are not responsible for any errors or omissions.

Other News

Healthy Financial Habits

Sunset over countrysideAs we crest the wave into February, it would be safe to assume that some of January’s good intentions may have been washed away in the relentless flow of days and weeks that seem to pass ever more quickly. It can be tempting, if we haven’t made any significant progress with our goals, to just let them go for another year under the belief that frankly, life can be hard enough already.

The best course of action here, is to be kind to yourself. All the most worthwhile things in life are achieved through consistent, small actions – actions that can be turned into habits and gradually give form to our, as yet, unachieved goals. Practice a little every day, and mountains can be moved; so why should personal finance be any different and what are the best habits to adopt?

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GREXIT

Grexit

Yet again what another country does or doesn’t do could have huge implications of the rest of Europe and the Western world. 

The clock is ticking for the Greek government to pay back the International Monetary Fund over €1bn (£720m) in loans in early May, as well as fund €1.4bn Treasury bill redemptions, and other major payments, including coupon payments on Greek government bonds.

It would appear that the Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis has been sidelined in Greek debt negotiation talks, but as Holly Cook from Morningstar says “The situation hasn’t changed that much, no matter who is actually doing the talking, they can’t stray too far from what their original mantra was, because their original mantra was all about anti-austerity… They’ve got a relatively tight margin for maneuver.”

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