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What’s the point of a Kenyan International Trust?

Writer's picture: John DebellotteJohn Debellotte

Introduction

An international trust is a legal arrangement that allows you to set up an offshore asset protection structure. The trust is created in Kenya and the trustee and beneficiaries are all located outside of the country.

What is a Kenyan International Trust?

A Kenyan international trust is a foreign-owned trust which is formed under the laws of Kenya. It is also referred to as a foreign-owned trust or an offshore trust.

Are Kenyan International Trusts Created Equal?

There are several types of international trusts and they vary in their benefits. Some international trusts are created for the purpose of avoiding tax, which is not something that a Kenyan trustee can do for you. There are also some international trusts that create financial accounts in offshore jurisdictions, which is not something a Kenyan trustee can do for you either.

The most beneficial type of international trust involves creating accounts in another country while still having your assets physically located inside Kenya. This type of trust allows you to avoid double taxation, but it also has other benefits such as helping you protect your finances from creditors and giving your family access to funds when needed—without paying taxes on them (in most cases).

US Benefits of a Kenyan International Trust

Tax Benefits of an International Trust

U.S. citizens, as well as U.S. persons living outside the United States (U.S. expatriates), may be able to reduce their US estate tax exposure by establishing a Kenyan international trust or other international asset protection structure for their assets.

A Kenyan international trust has several benefits for U.S citizens:

  1. It allows you to transfer your money into the country without paying any fees or taxes;

  2. It gives you privacy and confidentiality while living in Kenya;

Why Do You Want to Use a Kenyan International Trust?

A Kenyan International Trust is not a financial product but rather a structure for holding assets. It’s useful for people who:

  1. need to protect their assets from being seized by creditors

  2. want to avoid probate and other estate taxes

  3. want to leave their holdings to heirs without having to go through legal proceedings in court

Asset Protection of a Kenyan International Trust?

Asset Protection of a Kenyan International Trust?

The main purpose of asset protection is to ensure that your assets are placed in an entity that is separate from other entities, so that if proceedings are taken against you, those proceedings cannot affect your ability to access the trust assets. The reason for this is simple: If someone successfully sues you or takes legal action against you, then it may be necessary for them to take money from the trust in order for them to satisfy their judgement. However, if there was no separation between yourself and the trust entity then this would mean that any money taken from it could also be used by anyone else who has access to it (such as family members).

Privacy in an International Trust?

Privacy laws differ between each country. It’s important therefore that when creating an international trust, one should consider whether they wish their details will be disclosed publicly or privately because depending on where they live may determine whether they need privacy protection which differs per country. For instance, Kenya does not have privacy laws, therefore, all information contained within a Kenyan international trust is public knowledge unless specifically stated otherwise; whereas England has very strict rules regarding the disclosure of information regarding its citizens, therefore, any international trust set up there must state clearly how much detail will be disclosed publicly versus privately. This can make choosing where best place to set up our Kenyan International Trust difficult depending upon what type of privacy protection needed

Privacy in an International Trust?

There are many reasons you might want to set up an international trust, including:

  1. To protect your beneficiary from creditors

  2. To avoid the tax implications of passing assets to beneficiaries who live in countries with high estate taxes

However, as a private trust, you can also expect privacy. A Kenyan International Trust will not require disclosure of any information about its beneficiaries or assets unless required by law.

Who can be a beneficiary of a Kenyan International Trust?

A beneficiary is a person or organization that the trust is designed to benefit. In most cases, beneficiaries will be individuals (such as yourself), but they can also be charities or organizations. Beneficiaries of an international trust will typically be named in the trust agreement itself and may also be listed in a separate document called the “schedule”.

What you should know if you are a Beneficiary of a Kenyan international trust?

If you are a beneficiary of a Kenyan international trust, it is important to understand what your role is and how the trust works. A key responsibility of beneficiaries is to follow the instructions in the trust document. This may include reporting their progress in carrying out the instructions to their trustee on an annual basis or as required by the trustee. Beneficiaries are also expected to comply with any other conditions set out in their trusts including paying taxes on income they earn using funds from within the trust, maintaining adequate insurance coverage, etcetera. In addition, if there is no provision made for beneficiaries who fail or refuse to carry out their obligations under these terms then they remain liable for any tax liabilities incurred during this period.

What are some other benefits of having an International Trust?

  1. You can avoid probate. When you die, the court will appoint a personal representative to handle your affairs. The probate process can take months or years and cost thousands of dollars in attorney fees.

  2. You can transfer assets to your beneficiaries without paying taxes on them. If you give assets directly to someone else, then they’re considered a gift and may be subject to taxes when they inherit them from you. Assets held in an international trust aren’t taxable because the trust isn’t considered U.S.-based property under U.S law—so long as it’s established outside of the country and registered with Kenya’s Companies Registrar Office (CRO).

  3. You can avoid estate taxes by putting all your assets into an International Trust before death; no matter how much money or property is involved, there are no federal estate taxes for estates worth less than $11 million per person ($22 million per couple). This means that many people who would normally have had their estates taxed won’t have to pay any after transferring their wealth into a properly set up international trust beforehand!

An international trust is appropriate for anyone who wants to protect their assets and have privacy.

An international trust is a legal entity that can own assets. It’s beneficial because it provides privacy and can be used to protect your assets from creditors. For example, if you’re a celebrity or politician, you may not want your financial information publicly known. Additionally, trusts are useful in protecting your money from lawsuits or other legal claims made against you by someone else (a spouse, ex-spouse, or child). This allows the trustee of the trust (the person who manages it) to decide where the money goes without interference from other parties involved in litigation against them.

We can help with setting up an international trust for you if it makes sense for your situation. Feel free to get in touch with Diaspora Freedom Initiative at MyFreedom@DiasporaLtd.com for more information.

Conclusion

We’ve covered a lot of ground in this article, but we hope that you now have a better idea of what international trusts are and how they might be useful to you. If you’re still unsure about whether an international trust is right for you, please contact us at MyFreedom@DiasporaLtd.com

© 2022 Diaspora Freedom Initiative, LLC

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