Establishing a Trust in Panama

Defense of own acquisitions is one of the highest priorities for many entrepreneurs. For this intention, special corps are created, the surveillance of which is transferred to other institutions. These companies are called trusts. Trusts can be set up in different countries, but most people prefer offshore zones because there is more loyal legislation and the absence of many payments. One of the interesting places to create such corporations is Panama.

Many owners of various acquisitions seek to create an offshore trust in Panama. These trusts allow them to acquire tax benefits. The local legislation clearly states that acquisitions and belongings that do not belong to the country should have such a zero tax rate. The situation is similar to the income that the co-founder receives from his trust-assets.

Why you should consider assigning a trust in Panama

For foreigners, opening a trust company in Panama offers many opportunities. First and foremost is the protection of their assets and the absence of likely extradition of income or data about the trust-owners. Moreover, the country has legislated the liability of persons who disclose secretive info without the orders of local courts. Such a person can even be imprisoned for six months.

For safeness, the owners of trusts also have several economic reasons for creating such legal-entities in this countryside. First of all, it is about the absence of taxation. But it is also indicated that if the owners of trusts are taxpayers in other countries, they need to provide info about earnings from trust-assets in Panama for the authorities in their country of enrollment.

Edges of Panama`s trusts

Incorporation of a trust company in Panama is quite a favorable solution. Each owner of such a legal-entity can get the following edges:

• in Panama trusts are formed by foreign inheritors;
• local officials do not disclose data on the trust’s founders without a decree;
• the trust does not need to be enlisted with the governance (consequently, there will be no mention of its co-founders in public-records);
• trust-assets are not subject to domestic tariffs;
• trust-assets are protected from creditors;
• with the right set of documents, it is conceivable to execute a trust in 24 hours (and such legal-entities can exist forever).

In Panama, trust docs can be filed not only in Spanish but also in English.

Procedure for their creation

To quickly formalize a trust company, you need to go through the registration of a trust in Panama. To do this, it is necessary to follow all the rules for the preparation of documents and the creation of a legal entity. For example, when choosing the name of the company, be sure to include in it the direct word trust. Thanks to this, local officials will quickly realize what type of legal entity they need to work with.

Trusts do not need to be registered with the government if there is no real estate among the assets. The trust agreement is considered valid from the moment the co-owner and the settlor sign the docs.

The founders of the trust need to spell out the purposes of the corporation and specify the types of assets that will be owned by the organization. They also undertake to specify the powers of the settlers and restrictions on the ultimate beneficiaries. In addition, the agreement specifies the term of validity of the trust agreement (it may be stated that the trust has no expiration date).

In addition:

• each trust agrees to provide docs with the signatures of both parties creating the trust;
• the co-owners of such legal-entity must hire a lawyer or law firm with Panamanian registration as resident agents;
• the settlor must have an office in Panama;
• the trust-deed can specify the hiring of a protector to protect the ultimate inheritors.

As you can see, you need to submit not the largest package of docs. But if you are trying to create such a legal entity for the first time, it is better to seek advice from those who have already encountered such structures.

Who will help with the registration

Creating trust in Panama is not the most difficult process. However, many people who wish to establish such a legal entity make mistakes even when submitting the simplest set of documents. As a result, they redo it, and all such actions entail financial losses and loss of profit for the co-founders of the trust.

Therefore, we recommend that you consult with our specialists before filing documents for the creation of a trust. Each of them has repeatedly filed documents for Panamanian structures. Therefore, we know their requirements and will be able to help you gather such a package of documents that you will be able to accumulate acquisitions for your trust, rather than worry about its creation.