Taxation

• Income and gains of an international trust derived from sources outside Cyprus are exempt from all kinds of tax in Cyprus.

• No Cyprus estate duty is chargeable in respect of assets belonging to an international trust created in Cyprus.

• The only tax obligation is stamp duty of approximately Euro428,00 on the instrument creating the trust.

• Dividends, interest and other income received by a trust from a Cyprus international business company are neither taxable nor subject to withholding tax.

Asset Potection and Irrevocability

• The trust is not void or voidable in the event of the settler’s bankruptcy or liquidation unless it is made with the intent to defraud creditors;

• A trust protects assets from any malicious law suits and from the risk of unforeseen financial difficulty and political stability;

• In the absence of express provision in the instrument creating the trust, a trust shall be deemed irrevocable by the settler and his legal representatives.  The duration of an international trust can be up to 100 years.

Flexibility

• Cyprus Law permits the governing law of the trust to be changed to a foreign law and also permits a foreign trust to adopt as its governing law the Law of Cyprus provided such change is recognized by the laws of the country concerned.

Confidentiality

• Section 11 of the Law prohibits the trustees or any other person from disclosing any information about the trust unless there is a court order mandating such disclosure.

• There are no reporting requirements to any government authority on the activities of the trust and the names of the settler and the beneficiaries.

• The trust provides complete anonymity with regard to the ownership of the assets the subject matter thereof.

• No registration requirements.

The 1992 Law expressly provides that the international trusts are exempt from the obligation of registration under any law.

Variety

• The trust property can include all kinds of assets situated anywhere in the world.