Updated 13.08.2026
Legal structures · Private foundations
A private foundation in Liechtenstein thebirthplace of the civil-law foundation
Liechtenstein invented the private foundation in 1926 — every other jurisdiction copied this very model. A century of practice, banks of Swiss standing and a reputation that needs no explanation. The most expensive and the most respected structure in the range.
- We check eligibility under the EEA sanctions rules before the work begins
- We work with licensed fiduciaries of the principality
- We prepare the source-of-funds file to the Swiss standard
The guide figures depend on the composition of the assets, the number of beneficiaries and the bank’s requirements. The exact quotation for the set-up and the annual upkeep is fixed before the agreement.
Applicability
Is Liechtenstein the right structure for your task
01 Main purpose
02 Assets
03 Beneficiaries
04 Bank account needed
The selector does not give a legal opinion: applicability is confirmed after the analysis of assets, family and tax residence.
The structure
What a Stiftung is
A Liechtenstein private foundation is a legal person without members or shareholders: it owns the assets itself and distributes them under its charter. It was this construction that became the model for the foundations of Panama, Austria, the UAE and all the rest.
The institution is a hundred years old: a body of court and administrative practice has built up and can be relied on in the design. No young jurisdiction can offer that.
The principality is part of the Swiss financial space: Liechtenstein banks have worked with private capital for centuries.
The rules for distributions, the conditions for heirs, the powers of the council and of the protector can be tuned very precisely — the law allows wide freedom.
Liechtenstein left the «grey» lists long ago, takes part in the exchange of information and sells reliability rather than privacy.
Fit
Applying the structure: when it fits and when it does not
A plain filter, sanctions restrictions included.
- Capital from $5m: the principality’s fees are for substantial capital
- You hold an EU passport, EU residence or a citizenship outside the sanctions perimeter
- The priority is reliability, a century of practice and first-tier banks
- The task is dynastic planning across generations
- The assets and the heirs are predominantly in Europe
- Russian or Belarusian citizenship without EU residence: corporate services are restricted by the sanctions rules
- A budget below $25,000 for the set-up: there are more accessible jurisdictions
- You need the maximum protection from creditors: the Cook Islands and Nevis trusts are stronger
- A dispute has already begun: a late transfer can be set aside
Roles
The legal structure and the governing bodies
The civil-law model: the organs of a legal person instead of trust roles.
Transfers the assets and approves the charter. After the transfer they do not own them personally.
The governing body: decisions on the assets and the distributions strictly within the charter.
The controlling figure: approving key decisions, changing the composition of the council.
The family, the children, you yourself. They receive distributions under the charter; the names are not published.
Protection
The legal limits of using the structure
The strengths together with the limits.
The foundation’s property does not form part of the founder’s estate and is not divided on divorce.
A century of applying the law: the consequences of decisions are known in advance rather than discovered in court.
Capital passes under the foundation’s rules, bypassing inheritance disputes and forced-heirship shares.
A structure from the principality is accepted by Swiss and Liechtenstein banks without further explanation.
The limits we state plainly: the structure does not protect against claims that arose before the assets were transferred — such transfers can be set aside. It does not cancel the tax obligations of the founder and the beneficiaries and does not make assets invisible: the exchange of information and the duty to declare both operate. Criminal proceedings, sanctions regimes and maintenance lie beyond what any structure can do. Anyone who promises otherwise is misleading you. Separately: for citizens of Russia and Belarus without residence in the EU or the EEA the provision of corporate and trust services is restricted by the sanctions rules — we check eligibility before the work begins and offer lawful alternatives if the jurisdiction is closed.
Prices
The options for the structure and the cost
The «from» prices are for a standard structure with a confirmed source of funds and eligibility under the sanctions rules.
from $28,000
Annual upkeep: upkeep thereafter from $14,000 a year
Consolidating the family’s capital in a reliable jurisdiction
Included
- A check of eligibility under the sanctions rules
- Design and the foundation charter
- Establishment of the Stiftung
- A licensed council member — the first year
- Government and notarial fees
from $36,000
Annual upkeep: upkeep thereafter from $17,000 a year
A structure with banking in the principality
Included
- Everything in the «Foundation» package
- A source-of-funds file to the Swiss standard
- Opening an account with a Liechtenstein or Swiss bank
- Support through the compliance procedures
from $48,000
Annual upkeep: upkeep thereafter from $23,000 a year
Substantial capital: the complete circuit with a protector and a plan for generations
Included
- Everything in the «Foundation + account» package
- The protector: the control arrangement and the by-laws
- The investment policy and the mandate
- A plan of distributions across generations
- Annual support and reporting
The package does not include the bank’s own charges, legal work in the countries of the assets when real estate and shareholdings are transferred, or a professional controller if you want one.
What drives the quote
The factors that affect the cost of the project
The packages cover the standard tasks. Here is what moves the budget — and it is counted before the agreement, not after.
Accounts and portfolios are simple. Real estate and shareholdings require lawyers in the countries where they are held.
Every country of assets adds a check and the formalities of the transfer.
Capital from several sources over a long period takes longer to assemble.
Banks differ in what they require: for some the basic pack, for others an extended one.
In the quotation we separate our own fee, the administrator’s fees and the government charges. The total is fixed by the agreement — there are no charges beyond the quotation.
Cost of ownership
The cost of the structure over three years
A structure costs money not only when it is created: administration, reporting and bank compliance recur every year.
- Creating the structure and the documents
- Registration and government fees
- Opening the structure’s bank account
- The first year of administration
- Administration of the structure
- Reporting and mandatory notifications
- Bank compliance and the KYC refresh
- Support of distributions to beneficiaries
- Administration of the structure
- Reporting and mandatory notifications
- Bank compliance and the KYC refresh
- A review of the structure as circumstances change
What each year contains depends on the jurisdiction, the assets and the bank’s requirements. We prepare the three-year calculation together with the set-up quotation — before the agreement.
Tax
Taxation, reporting and disclosure
The foundation pays the principality’s corporate tax at 12.5% on the taxable base; for holding structures that base is usually minimal. Your own obligations are determined by your country of residence.
A rate of 12.5% on profit, with a minimum annual tax for purely holding foundations. We calculate the specifics for your structure.
A foundation is a foreign structure: participation is declared, and where there is control the CFC rules apply.
Liechtenstein takes part in the automatic exchange: data on accounts goes to the beneficiaries’ country of residence.
Information on the foundation and its beneficial owners is held in a closed register: there is no public access, and the authorities obtain it on request.
We do not build arrangements to conceal income and we do not work with funds whose origin is not evidenced by documents.
Banking
The banking infrastructure of the foundation
The structure is often created for the sake of the principality’s banks: this is part of the Swiss financial space.
Banks in Liechtenstein and Switzerland are the main option for this structure.
Who the founder and the beneficiaries are, where the capital came from, the purpose of the foundation, the sanctions factors.
The Swiss documentation standard is the most demanding of all: a chain for every source is mandatory.
Banks in the principality work with substantial capital: the minimum amounts placed are above the market average.
A refusal by a bank is not the end: we work out the reason and go to the next one with the file corrected. No one guarantees approval, and neither do we.
Documents
Documents and information for the establishment
We assemble the pack once — the same pack goes to the administrator and to the bank.
- 01Personal documents Passports and proof of address: the founder, the foundation council, the beneficiaries.
- 02The source of the capital Sale agreements, bank statements, dividend resolutions, tax returns.
- 03The list of assets What is going into the foundation: accounts, portfolios, real estate, shareholdings — with the title documents.
- 04Tax residence The countries and the taxpayer numbers of every party: the notifications and the reporting depend on them.
- 05The rules for distributions Who receives funds, when and on what conditions — these rules go into the foundation’s charter.
- 06Current obligations Claims, debts, guarantees and disputes: they determine whether the protection works at all.
No documents are needed at the first consultation — we work through the task in words.
Comparison
Compare Liechtenstein with other structures
| Liechtenstein | |
|---|---|
| Setup | from $28,000 |
| Annual | upkeep thereafter from $14,000 a year |
| Timing | 4-6 weeks |
| Typical use | Capital from $5m: the principality’s fees are for substantial capital |
Select up to two jurisdictions above. A detailed legal comparison is prepared for the specific task.
Process
The stages of establishing the structure
From the review of the task to a finished structure with an account.
What is being consolidated or protected, who the beneficiaries are, whether there are current disputes. We say plainly whether the structure is needed at all.
1-2 daysThe charter, the organs, the rules for distributions, the controller’s powers, the composition of the assets to be transferred.
3-5 daysIdentity documents and source-of-funds evidence for the administrator and the bank.
1-2 weeksThe constitutive documents, the appointment of the officers, registration.
4-6 weeksMoving the assets into the structure with correct formalities in the countries where they are held.
Opening the structure’s account and setting the rules for the work that follows.
Comparison
Liechtenstein against the alternatives
The main parameters side by side, so that the choice is an informed one.
| Liechtenstein | Austria | Luxembourg SPF | UAE · RAK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Form | Foundation | Foundation | Company | Foundation |
| The age of the institution | Since 1926 | Since 1993 | Since 2007 | Since 2019 |
| Access for Russian citizens | Only with EU residence | Only with EU residence | Only with EU residence | Open |
| Establishment | 4-6 weeks | 6-8 weeks | 3-5 weeks | 2-3 weeks |
| Cost from | $28,000 | $32,000 | $18,500 | $9,500 |
The comparison is as at the date the page was updated; whether it applies to your case is confirmed once the profile has been reviewed.
FAQ
Questions and answers
The fees of the principality’s licensed fiduciaries are at the level of the Swiss financial industry, and a local lawyer is part of the project. You are paying for a century of practice and access to first-tier banks.
Without residence in the EU or the EEA — no: the provision of corporate and trust services is restricted by the sanctions rules. With residence or a second passport outside the perimeter — yes. We check eligibility before the work begins and offer alternatives outside the EU.
A foundation is a legal person with its own charter and organs, and it owns the assets itself. A trust is a contractual construction in which the trustee owns the assets. Civil-law banks and notaries find a foundation easier to follow, while trusts are stronger in court protection from creditors.
The register is closed: there is no public access, and the information is disclosed to the competent authorities on a reasoned request. The principality takes part in the automatic exchange of information on accounts.
There is little formal minimum for the establishment, but the structure only makes economic sense from several million upwards: the upkeep and the banking thresholds are set for substantial capital.
From $14,000 a year: the council members, the administration, the reporting. With a bank and a protector it is higher. The exact figure is fixed in the quotation before the agreement.
Calculation
Structure and budget: Liechtenstein
Describe the assets, the family and the task. We will come back with the applicable structure, the setup budget and the annual upkeep.
A structure does not cancel existing creditor claims or the tax obligations of the settlor. Where the task cannot be solved lawfully, we say so before the engagement.