Liechtenstein Anstalt and Foundation Structures: A Complete Guide

Introduction to Liechtenstein as a Wealth Centre

Liechtenstein is a tiny principality of some 39,000 people, sandwiched between Switzerland and Austria. Despite its size, it is one of the world's most sophisticated wealth management and private structuring jurisdictions, with a legal tradition of private law entities — the Anstalt, the Stiftung (foundation), the Treuhänderschaft (trust-equivalent), and the Gesellschaft (company) — that has attracted significant international wealth since the early twentieth century.

The Principality is a member of the European Economic Area (EEA) but not the EU, which means it benefits from EEA market access (including financial services passporting) while retaining some regulatory independence. The financial services sector accounts for approximately one-third of Liechtenstein's GDP.

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The Liechtenstein Anstalt

What Is an Anstalt?

The Anstalt (German: "establishment") is a uniquely Liechtenstein legal structure defined under the Personen- und Gesellschaftsrecht (PGR — the Law on Persons and Companies) of 1926. It is a hybrid entity that occupies a position between a company (with transferable membership interests) and a foundation (self-owned, with no external members).

The Anstalt's fundamental flexibility is that it can be structured in two distinct ways:

Option 1: Anstalt with Members (Shareholders) The Anstalt issues membership certificates (Anteilsscheine) that function similarly to shares in a company. Members receive economic benefits (distributions) and may exercise voting rights. This structure is functionally similar to a company.

Option 2: Anstalt Without Members (Self-Owned) The Anstalt has no external members. It owns itself (in practical terms, its founder's interests are absorbed into the entity). This is similar to a foundation — there are no shareholders, and the Anstalt's assets are held by the entity itself for specified purposes. The founder may include provisions for beneficiaries to receive distributions.

Formation of an Anstalt

Formation requires:

1. A founding deed (Gründungsurkunde) — public or private document
2. Registration with the Liechtenstein Public Register (Öffentlichkeitsregister)
3. Articles (Statuten) — may be private (not registered if the Anstalt has no members)
4. A Liechtenstein registered agent or trustee company as domiciliary

Costs:

• Registration fee: CHF 400–600
• Annual minimum tax: CHF 1,200 per year (Liechtenstein flat minimum tax for entities)
• Professional service fees: CHF 3,000–8,000 per year (domicile, administration)

Practical Uses of the Anstalt

Use	Why Anstalt Is Suitable
Holding structure (with members)	Flexibility between company and foundation in single structure
Family wealth holding	Self-owned variant can hold assets for beneficiaries across generations
Intellectual property holding	Can hold and license IP with maximum discretion
Operating company holding	Members variant can hold subsidiaries; governance by Articles
Pre-mortem estate planning	Self-owned Anstalt can transfer assets outside succession law in many jurisdictions

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The Liechtenstein Foundation (Stiftung)

Types of Foundation

Liechtenstein law recognises several foundation types under the PGR (as revised in 2009):

Type	Description
Private Foundation (Privatstiftung)	Non-charitable; holds assets for beneficiaries; most common for wealth management
Family Foundation (Familienstiftung)	Specifically for benefit of family members; may have specific succession provisions
Charitable Foundation (gemeinnützige Stiftung)	Charitable or public benefit purposes; tax privileges
Mixed Foundation	Combination of private and charitable purposes

Structure of a Liechtenstein Private Foundation

A Liechtenstein private foundation has:

• Founder: the individual who establishes the foundation and contributes initial assets
• Foundation Council (Stiftungsrat): the governing body; equivalent to a board of directors; responsible for managing the foundation's assets and activities
• Beneficiaries: individuals (or classes of individuals) designated to benefit from the foundation's assets or income
• Protector (optional): an individual or body with oversight powers (ability to replace foundation council members, veto distributions, receive accounts)

The foundation deed (Stiftungsurkunde) is registered with the Public Register. Private foundation deeds may be held partly as private attachments (not publicly registered) — the beneficiaries' identities are typically not in the public register.

Forced Heirship and Liechtenstein Foundations

One of the most significant uses of the Liechtenstein foundation is to remove assets from the scope of forced heirship rules. Liechtenstein private foundations are generally recognised as a genuine transfer of assets from the founder — provided the transfer was not motivated primarily by intent to defraud creditors and occurred sufficiently in advance of death. Assets held in a Liechtenstein foundation may therefore be distributed to chosen beneficiaries (which may not include forced heirs under the home country law) rather than following statutory inheritance rules.

Important caveat: the effectiveness of this planning depends on the home country's conflict of laws rules and public policy provisions. Some jurisdictions (particularly within the EU under the EU Succession Regulation 650/2012) will apply their own forced heirship rules regardless of the law governing the foundation. Specialist advice is required.

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Beneficial Owner Registration

The Liechtenstein Register of Beneficial Owners

Liechtenstein implemented the EU's 4th and 5th AMLD (by virtue of the EEA Agreement) and introduced a central register of beneficial owners. Key features:

• All Liechtenstein legal entities must register their beneficial owners
• The register is maintained by the Office of Justice (Amt für Justiz)
• The register is not publicly accessible — it is accessible to competent authorities and professional service providers (lawyers, accountants, trustees) when performing AML due diligence
• Beneficial owners are individuals who hold more than 25% of shares/voting rights, or who exercise ultimate effective control

For Liechtenstein foundations, the "beneficial owner" concept is applied pragmatically:

• The founder is registered (at minimum for the period of establishment)
• The members of the foundation council are registered
• Beneficiaries with a definite entitlement (rather than discretionary objects) may be required to be registered

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Banking Secrecy: The Historical Position and CRS/FATCA Reality

The Traditional Position

Liechtenstein was historically one of the world's most secretive banking jurisdictions. The combination of:

• Strict professional secrecy obligations on banks and trustees (criminal liability for breach)
• Non-disclosure of beneficial ownership information
• Limited treaty cooperation with foreign tax authorities

...made Liechtenstein a favoured location for undisclosed offshore assets by European nationals, particularly German, French, and Italian taxpayers.

The Collapse of Secrecy

This position collapsed progressively from 2009 onwards:

Year	Event
2009	OECD Grey List; Liechtenstein signs bilateral tax information exchange agreements
2010	FATCA enacted by US Congress; Liechtenstein ultimately signs IGA
2012	Germany-Liechtenstein DTA includes exchange of information
2016	CRS implementation — Liechtenstein commits to automatic exchange
2017	First automatic exchange of CRS information under Liechtenstein AEOI law
2018	LDF (Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility for UK taxpayers) closed — had operated 2009–2016

The result: Liechtenstein banks and trustees now automatically report account information of foreign-resident clients to their home country tax authorities annually under CRS. The era of undisclosed Liechtenstein accounts is definitively over.

What Liechtenstein Privacy Means in 2025

In 2025, Liechtenstein offers:

• Privacy from public registers (beneficial owners not publicly accessible)
• Privacy from private parties (no one can search Liechtenstein trust records without legal process)
• No privacy from tax authorities in CRS-participating countries (all financial account information flows automatically)

This is the same privacy profile as other reputable offshore jurisdictions (Jersey, Guernsey, Isle of Man). It is legitimate privacy — protection from casual or commercially motivated intrusion — but not secrecy from tax authorities.

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The LDF: The Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility

The Liechtenstein Disclosure Facility (LDF) was a bilateral agreement between the UK government and the Liechtenstein financial centre, operational from September 2009 to December 2016. It allowed UK taxpayers with undisclosed assets in Liechtenstein to regularise their UK tax position on favourable terms:

• Fixed penalty of 10% (compared to the standard 30%+)
• Period of disclosure: 1 April 1999 onwards
• Immunity from prosecution for most cases (subject to full disclosure)
• Ability to bring assets from other jurisdictions within the disclosure if done through Liechtenstein

The LDF is now closed. UK taxpayers with undisclosed Liechtenstein assets must use HMRC's current disclosure facilities (the worldwide disclosure facility). The penalties are higher, but unlike the LDF period, HMRC now receives CRS information automatically — meaning undisclosed Liechtenstein assets are increasingly visible to HMRC without any requirement for a specific investigation.

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Current Practical Uses of Liechtenstein Structures

Family Wealth Structures

Liechtenstein foundations remain genuinely useful for:

• Multi-generational family wealth planning where the founder wants to separate assets from their personal estate
• Families with members in multiple jurisdictions (the foundation's governance can be customised)
• Families in jurisdictions with unstable legal or political environments (the foundation's assets are subject to Liechtenstein law, which is generally stable and respected)

Holding Structures

The Liechtenstein Anstalt (members variant) can function effectively as a holding company for non-UK assets where the founder/principal is non-UK resident and seeking a neutral holding jurisdiction with strong courts and a mature professional services sector.

IP Structures

Liechtenstein has an IP box regime (effective 2017 reform aligning with BEPS Action 5) providing reduced taxation on qualifying IP income. The Anstalt or a Liechtenstein AG (Aktiengesellschaft) can hold IP efficiently for Swiss or Austrian connected groups, with income subject to Liechtenstein tax at a rate of 12.5% before IP box deduction.

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Comparison: Liechtenstein vs Alternatives

Feature	Liechtenstein	Channel Islands	Malta	BVI
Foundation law	Comprehensive (PGR since 1926)	Trust law only	Foundation Law 2007	Trust law; no foundation law
Anstalt-type hybrid	Unique to Liechtenstein	Not available	Not available	Not available
CRS/FATCA	Yes (automatic exchange)	Yes	Yes	Yes
Public beneficial ownership	No (authority access only)	No	No	No
Forced heirship planning	Good (with advice)	Moderate	Good	Limited
Legal system quality	EEA law; civil law (German tradition)	Common law (English)	Civil/common law hybrid	Common law (English)
Cost	High (CHF-based fees)	High	Moderate	Lower

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HPT Group and Liechtenstein Structure Advisory

HPT Group advises private clients and family offices on the use of Liechtenstein foundations and Anstalt structures for wealth management, succession planning, and holding purposes. We work with licensed Liechtenstein professional service providers and our own international private client team to design structures that achieve the client's objectives within the post-CRS transparency framework. We also assist clients with legacy Liechtenstein structures in assessing their current compliance position and restructuring where the original planning rationale no longer applies. Contact HPT Group to discuss Liechtenstein wealth structuring.