Family Office

We understand the need for security and confidentiality when dealing with the private financial information of wealthy families. As trusted advisors to family offices we act in the strictest of confidence

How we can help with your Family Office

We understand the need for security and confidentiality when dealing with the private financial information of wealthy families. As trusted advisors to family offices we act in the strictest of confidence. We are able to balance the business and family needs of clients by liaising with their other professional advisors. We focus on maintaining, protecting and enhancing family wealth.

We are experienced in providing high level and intricate advice on the tax structures of the business concerns of Family offices. Where families have interests overseas we are able to advise on international tax and residence and non domicile status.

Our tax specialists are also experienced in advising on trust and estate planning in order to preserve family wealth for future generations.

On a practical level our outsourced services team provide family office accounting services to ease the administrative burden of running a household. We can also provide you with regular financial information and to related parties if required, which can be based overseas.

Our services to family offices include,

Tax, Trusts & Estates Advisory

• Tax advice – personal, company, UK and international
• Company structures
• Tax planning strategies
• Trusts and estate planning
• IHT planning
• Tax returns

Family Office Accounting

• Bookkeeping
• Payroll
• Human Resources Management
• Budgeting and cashflow forecasting
• Accounting
• Management reporting
• Financial Planning Advice

What is a Family Office and do you need one?

Those with sufficient family wealth and insufficient time to manage their assets often seek help from professional advisors. That help can be one-off project based, or more structured regular support taking the form of a Family Office.

Accountants are in the perfect position to be able to provide this much needed support, as over time we often get to build up an understanding of members of the wider family, and the family dynamics, when attending financial meetings.

Clients have different needs, some will ask me to look after all of their financial interests and related areas, whilst others will ask me to work alongside personal employees or an advisory team. The nature of Family Office support is that it is bespoke and flexible and driven by the needs of the client.

Typically, the Family Office Services I provide to clients can include all or any of the following:

• Integrating tax planning, particularly Inheritance Tax wealth management plans
• Coordinating financial and tax requirements across borders
• Advising on the set up and running of family Trusts, and providing personal Trustee and Executorship
• Coordinating investment advisors
• Managing legal advice
• Supervising insurance brokers
• Managing the financial records of businesses and personal expenditure
• Payroll and HR support for personal employees
• Supervising care arrangements for the elderly or infirm, and operating under financial power of attorney where necessary
• Assisting in philanthropic ventures

In most situations I take great care to involve the next generation, mentoring them to be able to take their place in the team as they mature into their roles. Inheritance tax planning and Capital Gains Tax planning are usually key considerations to be reviewed within this process of intergenerational involvement.

How a Family Investment Company can be a useful planning tool

Structuring part of the family’s investments through a limited company can be part of the overall tax and inheritance plan. Limited companies have a comparatively low tax rate, currently 19% compared to the higher 45% and 38.1% income tax rates. Parents can keep control through their shareholdings, but allow younger members to become involved in the investment plans and take a dividend (usually to cover their maintenance and education costs) through their ownership of a different class of non voting shares.

The Family Investment Company is a useful tool when considering gifts in excess of the amounts which can be passed effectively through family Trusts.

My clients highly value having access to an individual outside their family unit who can provide, if needed, an objective viewpoint on the decisions that they need to take regarding their wealth.

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