Solicitors, Helen Milburn and Rebecca Logue explore your options.
Have you heard of a Family Investment Company (FIC) to manage your estate for future generations? This could be a great alternative, with beneficial tax implications to something like a Discretionary Trust for the right family – so it’s always a good idea to explore all the options when it comes to estate and succession planning.
FICs are becoming an increasingly popular alternative to a Discretionary Trust – and what is right for different families will be as unique as your family structure.
Helen Milburn and Rebecca Logue of Jacksons Law explore the similarities and differences to help you weigh up the pros and cons.
“The main similarity is the purpose behind them,” Helen says.
“The generation that hold wealth often want to pass this on to the next generation, but don’t necessarily want to give them free reign over it!”
FICs and Trusts are particularly important for high net-worth clients, as part of estate planning. Such clients also have one eye on tax mitigation strategies – and both FICs and Discretionary Trusts can support these.
Helen says: “A Discretionary Trust has always been a popular vehicle for this, enabling you to pass your assets into a trust, to remove them from your own estate into the careful hands of trustees, who manage and control your assets.
“The trust is set up as a long-term mechanism to benefit a class of persons, for example, children and the next generation after them.”
Rebecca adds: “The FIC operates on a similar basis, whereby the company is managed by directors who have a similar duty of care, usually to children who have a defined shareholding.”
With a FIC, the board of directors are family members and the operation of the FIC and shareholding are tightly controlled through the company structure.
Articles of association and shareholder agreements are carefully drafted to reflect the family’s wishes.
Shareholders can be restricted to family members only, to ease concerns of shareholdings being transferred outside the family unit.”
Rebecca adds: “There can also be an element of control reserved – should the shareholders stray out of line!”
A Discretionary Trust can offer similar benefits, as there is a set class of beneficiaries under the overarching control of trustees. However, with a Discretionary Trust, the class of beneficiaries could be much wider.
“The beneficiaries could include young grandchildren and unborn future generations, whereas a FIC generally has to have adult beneficiaries,” says Helen.
“It is possible to contain a Discretionary Trust within a FIC to hold shares for minor beneficiaries or future generations, which can be a popular strategy.”
So what are the different assets that can be held in Discretionary Trusts or FICs?
Helen says: “There are different suitabilities, depending on the assets being held.
“A FIC is a company and therefore may be best suited to holding investment portfolios, trading companies or a property portfolio.
“If you are thinking of your holiday home by the sea, this may be better placed into a Discretionary Trust.”
Tax, the word on everyone’s lips, is also a factor when it comes to choosing between a FIC and a discretionary trust.
Helen says: “Whichever way you go, there are tax consequences, but it comes down to specifics when working out the most tax efficient option for your family.
“Each option will have different implications for the inheritance tax, capital gains tax or income tax that may be due – so it all comes down to getting the right advice.”
Solicitors, accountants, tax advisers and financial planners can all work together to help you explore your options.
For more information, contact Helen today on 01642 873050 or email enquiries@jacksons-law.com
www.jacksons-law.com