Can an offshore asset-protection trust also serve as my estate plan, and how much does it cost to set up and operate the trust every year?
The offshore trust can act as the clients estate plan (or can easily be integrated into an existing estate plan). Costs can vary, but generally speaking it will cost $22,000 to establish both an offshore trust and offshore LLC and will cost $3,900 annually to maintain. An offshore trust alone will cost $19,000 (with annual costs of $3,000) and an offshore LLC alone will cost $3,000 (with annual costs of $900). In all cases, the first year’s annual maintenance fees are included in the price quoted. Annual expenses are incurred for corporate trustee fees, trust protector fees, local registered agent fees (for the Nevis LLC) and government registration fees (apply to both trusts and LLCs). All required forms for reporting the establishment and/or initial funding of foreign financial accounts to the U.S. government will be provided and submitted as required under federal law.
