In this age of global trade and entrepreneurship, it’s not uncommon to have investments in several countries and to have family members living all over the world. So what happens to your estate when you have assets in multiple countries and beneficiaries who are citizens of different countries? Unfortunately, in the United States, your estate could be subject to very high taxes unless you do something now to protect your assets. At MEG International Counsel, PC, our international estate planning attorneys are licensed in both Mexico and the United States and have many years of experience helping wealthy multi-national families protect their estates for future generations.
How Do We Help International Estate Planning Clients?
Our clients are primarily ultra-wealthy citizens of Mexico or other Latin American countries who have considerable investments and assets in the U.S. as well as in their home countries. Their spouses, children, or grandchildren may be U.S. citizens, which complicates estate planning for them. We want these types of clients to be aware of the following:
- Your investments and assets in the U.S. will be subject to an estate tax of at least 40%.
- Your businesses outside the U.S. will be subject to the same tax when they are transferred to beneficiaries—such as children or grandchildren—who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
- The tax exemption for foreign citizens is only $60,000, so any amount above that will be taxed.
- U.S. citizens leaving assets to a spouse who is a foreign citizen will also be subject to high estate taxes.
In other words, it can be very costly for foreign individuals with U.S. beneficiaries or property located in the United States to pass that property on after their death, but there are ways to protect your assets. U.S. citizens or residents are entitled to certain exemptions, so a simple living trust may be all they need to protect their estate from high taxes when it is passed on to a foreign citizen. However, to protect their assets, foreign citizens may need services such as:
- Restructuring and retitling property in the U.S.
- Gifting certain assets before death
- Transferring property into certain legal entities or trusts
- Other specialized or sophisticated solutions
Our skilled attorneys will closely examine your unique situation and offer the most effective solutions for guarding your wealth and protecting your beneficiaries from high U.S. taxes.
International Estate Planning Attorneys Offering Complete Estate Planning Services
Our estate planning attorneys are committed to helping you protect your assets, control the distribution of your assets after death, and determine the direction of your business or family after you are gone. Our comprehensive estate planning services include the following:
- Estate, gift, and GST tax planning
- Domestic and international asset protection trusts
- Trust administration
- Business succession
- Powers of attorney
- Life insurance planning
- Emergency planning for minors and college students
- Much more
Whatever kind of estate plan makes the most sense for you and your family, we will draw up the documents, help you fund trusts, and stay in touch over many years to make sure your plan still works for you. If you choose to enroll in our MEG Cares℠ program, you will meet with us to review your plan every year and have unlimited access to our attorneys for telephone or email consultations, changes or modifications to your plan, notary public services, and more.
We Build Relationships With Our Clients
We are passionate about our clients’ success and provide top-notch customer service. Not only do we meet their estate planning needs, but we also help them when they move to the U.S. or travel internationally. As attorneys who were educated in Mexico and the U.S., and are licensed to practice law in both countries, we make our Latin clients feel at home as we help them navigate the complicated American tax code and protect their hard-earned assets for future generations. We offer the latest in communication technology so that we can work with international clients wherever you are. Reach out to us today to learn more about how we can help you protect your assets for the next generation.