New Mexico LLC, IBC's, Trusts for Asset Protection

When you order our Silver or Gold Asset Protection Package, you will have direct access to recommended offshore incorporators who can assist you with opening your own offshore company and bank account. You will have a choice of several recommended jurisdictions including Belize & Panama. Here is a little information on the Belize IBC and the Panamanian Foundations:

Belize IBC

Why Belize?

Belize is situated on the Caribbean seaboard of Central America, with the Mexican border on its North and the Guatemalan border on the West and South. With only a two hours flight from Miami, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Charlestown South Carolina, New Orleans and Los Angeles, Belize is very convenient for doing business. Belize has been Independent since 1981 and is the home of approximately 250,000 people of diverse ethnic background. Belize is known for its political and economic stability and its Legal System is based on English Common Law and local statute. Its currency is the Belize dollar which is pegged to the US dollar of a rate of BZ$2.00 to US$1.00. English is the official language; however, Spanish is widely spoken. In the past, Belize’s financial system was driven by the exportation of logwood and mahogany and of late on agriculture, but it soon became obvious that diversification of the economy was essential for its survival, and in particular the development of offshore financial services which was launched in 1990.

The Offshore Company or International Business Company (IBC) is a tax-free and exchange control-free Limited Liability Company, incorporated under the laws of Belize, however all its profit-earning activities must be conducted outside Belize. A foreign company also has the option to continue under the law of Belize as an IBC and would still have all the benefits provided by law. IBC’s incorporated in Belize are often used by high net worth individuals to lease and own property, estate planning, tax optimization and also in conjunction with trust and by international companies in cross border transactions.

The IBC Registry in Belize is fully computerized and modernized and can accomplish company incorporation within less than one hour. The registry allows for Chinese Incorporations and the shares held in a company may be denominated in any currency. Belize, with its developing market and over 35,000 companies to date, affords individuals the uniqueness of names due to availability. This is to say, that though we have come a long way, we are still only at the tip of the iceberg.

A fundamental feature of the IBC in Belize is how the law was specially designed to be cost saving. One of the ways this has been accomplished is by ensuring that the registration fee remains competitive alongside the other offshore jurisdictions. The license fee for a standard company having an authorized share capital of US$50,000 having par value is US$100.00. The registered agent/office fee is about US$300.00 along with a one-time setup fee of roughly US$450.00. Because there are no minimum capital requirements, no need for audited accounts, no annual returns, no requirement for a local director or secretary and no requirement for an annual general meeting, the costs of maintaining a Belize IBC are kept to a minimum.

Another feature that makes a Belize IBC attractive is its flexibility. Only one director and one shareholder are necessary and it may have bearer shares or registered shares, voting or non-voting shares as well as the authorized share capital may or may not have a par value. The IBC may conduct any business that is not prohibited under the laws of Belize save and except for banking, insurance, trust management and collective investments, which requires a license. The IBC may also purchase its own shares and redeem its own shares.

Although the Belize IBC must conduct all its profit earning activities outside Belize, it may lease an office in Belize, obtain the services of Belize professionals and trust companies, keep its company records and hold meetings in Belize, operate an account with a local Banking institution, hold shares in another Belize IBC and own vessels registered in Belize.

Finally, one of the most important features why Belize is so attractive is Confidentiality. We are currently living in an era where there has been a significant increase in scrutiny, regulations and increase in taxes. Belize’s law has provided provisions to make certain that the freedom of the individual and the sanctity of private commercial transactions are available. To register a company in Belize proper due diligence is carried out by the registered agents in compliance with The Money Laundering Act and Code of Conduct in Belize. A company may choose to have nominee directors or nominee shareholders; however, the only document presented for public filing at the registry is the Memorandum and Articles of Incorporation. There is no requirement for public disclosure or annual filing of accounts under the act. The Financial Intelligence Unit of Belize and the International Financial Services Commission of Belize are the only two organizations that have privy to client’s information upon request.

In conclusion, Belize’s geographic location, convenient time zone, political and economic stability, common law legal system, educated, competent and accessible professionals, English speaking work force, up-to-date modern electronic communications and tax advantages makes doing business in Belize easy, convenient, affordable and professional. These attributes of Belize provide the perfect balance, as it relates to confidence, integrity and reliability in Belize’s dynamic offshore service sector and answers perfectly “WHY BELIZE?”

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Panamanian Foundations

Panama Foundation - The Panama Foundation has been modeled after the Lichtenstein Foundation which has always been one of the world’s best asset protection vehicles. In Panama the Foundation is formally referred to as the Panama Private Interest Foundation. In Lichtenstein the Foundation is referred to as the Lichtenstein Family Foundation. The Panama Foundation is like a combination of an anonymous corporation, a trust and a will but it is not like any one of these individually. It is a dynamic and fluid asset protection vehicle.
Panama Foundation versus Lichtenstein Foundation – There are some serious differences between the two foundations which we will point out. The Panama Foundation only requires $10,000 of capital while the Lichtenstein Foundation requires 30,000 Swiss Francs. Lichtenstein Foundations have a greater bookkeeping responsibility than the Panama Foundation. In the Panama Foundation the beneficiaries or heirs can not attack the inheritance schedule. What you write is what they get. In the Lichtenstein Foundation the heirs or beneficiaries can attack the inheritance pursuant to: Article 560 of the Lichtenstein Law. The Panama Foundation has a fixed annual fee of $300.00 paid to the government. The Lichtenstein Foundation has a variable fee which is based on amount of capital being managed in the Lichtenstein Foundation and this figure is generally one percent. Ouch! In the Panama Foundation the founding parties supervise the Foundation themselves through the office of the Foundation Protector and/or through the Council Members which can be nominees. In the Lichtenstein Foundation the role of the supervisory body is undertaken by the government pursuant to Article 564 of the Lichtenstein Act and this is of course privacy invasive. The Lichtenstein Foundation has the ability to convert into an Anstalt or Trust Company. There is no such provision for the Panama Foundation and in our opinion no such a need due to the favorable legislation in Panama.

Panama Foundation Not Profit Oriented – The Panama Foundation is not supposed to be engaged directly in commercial for profit activities although it can hold the shares of a Corporation in any jurisdiction that is directly engaged in commercial activities anywhere in the world. This is mostly to prevent people with income derived from within Panama from activities taking place in Panama from using the Panama Foundation to avoid Panama taxes for onshore derived income.

Panama Foundation and Death of Founder – The founder can create a Panama Foundation to come into effect at the time of his or her death or at the time of the creation of the Foundation. The deceased activation could be by private document which would need to be notarized in Panama. The formal procedure necessary for the execution of a will would not be applicable under these circumstances. The founder would still retain the rights to revoke such a document before their death.

Panama Foundation is a Judicial Person- This is similar to a corporation. The assets of the Panama Foundation shall constitute an estate separate from the estates of the founder, the protector and beneficiaries for all legal purposes and in no event shall the assets of the Panama Foundation be used to satisfy any debts of obligations of the founder, protector or beneficiaries (and of course the nominee council members). There is a fraudulent conveyance provision of three years. If one were to convey assets to a Panama Foundation to avoid attachment by a creditor, that creditor could contest the transfer of the assets to the Panama Foundation for a period of three years from the time of the transfer. There is nothing illegal about a fraudulent conveyance under Panama Law; it is merely a remedy available to a creditor who wishes to attempt such a recovery which requires a full court case. In the event a creditor would prevail the entire Panama Foundation would not be set aside and all of the assets would not be exposed, just the amount the creditor could prove to the Panama Court was transferred to the Panama Foundation to remove the assets from the reach of the creditor. This is not an easy thing to prove and is heavily based on intent. Such a case would be expensive, time consuming and not that easy to win. Panama Foundations have special protections from pre-trial freezes or embargoes (sequestering) of assets. The hardest entity to go after in Panama in the Panama Foundation.

Panama Foundations are Anonymous – Only the nominee foundation council members appear in the public registry. Our law firm does not list you as the founder for privacy. The protector and the beneficiaries are not publicly available. The letter of wishes or instructions as to how the Panama Foundation assets are to be handled is also a secret document. You normally receive signed but not dated letters of resignation from the nominee council members.

Panama Foundation Tax Free – Under Panama Law the Panama Foundation is tax free as long as all the income is derived from offshore, not from within Panama. Panama has no inheritance taxes at all. In Panama there is no capital gains tax on bank interest. In Panama there is not tax on gains from the sales of securities unless they are from a Panama Corporation.

Panama Foundation has no Owner - A Panama Foundation by definition has no owners. There are no shares or stock certificates. There is a founder (not you we supply that), beneficiaries which may or may not be you which are secret in any event, and a Foundation protector which may be you, or a corporation and the Foundation is Protector is also a secret. The Foundation Council members appear in the public registry and nominees are used to preserve anonymity. The protector which is an optional position can control the entire Foundation. You do not own a Panama Foundation, no one does. What if you used a Corporation as a foundation protector and other corporations and foundations as beneficiaries, how would you be associated or connected directly to the foundation? Remember the ownership records on these corporations are not publicly available. What if the Panama Foundation owned a Corporation and that Corporation hired you to work for it and sign on its bank account since part of your duties specified in your written contract with the corporation which was signed and notarized by the nominee directors was to execute the bank account.

Panama Foundation Uses – A Panama Foundation can own corporations anywhere, it can own real estate, boats, airplanes, art work, gold, rare stamps and coins, jewelry, patents, royalty rights, autos, collectables, stocks, bonds, options and other things of value.

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