Foundation (Stiftung)

The Liechtenstein Foundation can be used purely as a private benefit/family foundation or as a non-profit foundation, the latter being supervised by the Liechtenstein Foundation Authority,and is tax-exempt.
With the total revision brought into force on 01/01/2009, Liechtenstein now has one of the world’s most modern foundation laws.
The Liechtenstein family foundation is a foundation that uses dedicated assets for a specific purpose and is a legal person of the Liechtenstein Persons and Companies Act (PGR). The legal freedom enabled by its flexibility allows the Liechtenstein foundation to respond to the wishes and ideas of its founders. The family foundation cannot be used for commercial or economic activity, but can hold shares in companies and other assets as part of its assets. In this respect, the family foundation helps in the planning of a long-term order of succession by avoiding splitting of assets and allowing for the preservation of a family’s assets over generations.
The legally defined minimum capital stands at 30,000 Swiss Francs and must be fully paid in. The family foundation is liable for its own assets only. The family foundation is created through the creation of the deed of foundation and the dedication of its assets. Family foundations are not publicly visible in the Commercial Register.
The supreme governing body is that of the Board of Directors, which directs the business of the foundation according to its supplementary deed of foundation. The founder can restrict the activities of the Board of Directors through other means, such as audits, credit transfers, control rights and/or veto rights. In principle, beneficiaries can be described after any fashion (e.g. by ethnicity, gender, etc.).