Anyone who has built wealth over time across Italy and other countries, including property, bank accounts, perhaps a business or company interests, will sooner or later ask an important question: how can it be protected and transferred without exposing it to unnecessary risks, taxation or disputes between heirs? The good news is that the legal system provides specific instruments for this purpose. Here are the main options to consider and how to choose between them carefully.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wealth spread across two countries is more exposed than wealth concentrated in one place. Protecting family wealth between Italy and abroad means shielding it from a series of risks that multiply precisely because of its international nature: the overlap between different legal systems, the risk of double taxation and the possibility that assets may become fragmented or remain blocked when transferred to the heirs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The reasons for addressing the issue are practical. Some families want to preserve a family business from being divided among several children. Others wish to protect part of their wealth from potential claims by future creditors. Some simply want the transfer to the next generation to take place in an orderly manner, without disputes and avoidable costs. In every case, protection is not something to improvise at the last moment, but a project that should be developed in advance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One point should be clarified immediately because it guides every decision: lawful asset protection means using the instruments provided by law, not avoiding legal obligations. Segregation and planning are intended to organise and safeguard assets, not to defraud creditors or tax authorities, and they must be structured with this boundary clearly in mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the following sections, we review the principal instruments, from asset segregation and international succession planning to family agreements, explaining what each is used for and when it should be considered. The aim is to provide a clear map so that the solution genuinely suited to the family\u2019s circumstances can be chosen consciously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The first concept to understand is asset segregation<\/a>. Segregating assets means separating part of one\u2019s wealth from the rest of the estate, dedicating it to a specific purpose and, within the limits of the law, protecting it from the general personal circumstances of the owner. In practical terms, those assets form a separate fund with their own purpose and do not merge with the remainder of the person\u2019s wealth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The most flexible instrument from an international perspective is the trust. Originating in common law systems, it became capable of recognition in Italy through Italy\u2019s accession to the 1985 Hague Convention. Its structure revolves around three figures: the person who establishes the trust and transfers assets into it, the trustee responsible for administering them, and the beneficiaries for whose benefit the assets are held.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The feature that makes the trust particularly valuable is segregation. The assets transferred into the trust cease to form part of the personal estate and become a separate fund managed in the interests of the beneficiaries. As a general rule, they are protected from claims by the trustee\u2019s personal creditors. Where the trust is properly structured, this effect continues after the death of the person who established it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For a family with assets in Italy and abroad, the trust offers a level of flexibility that is difficult to match. It nevertheless requires careful drafting and attention to the formalities needed to make it effective against third parties, including registration where required. It is therefore a powerful instrument, but one that produces the best results only when handled with expertise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Segregation is one element, but international asset planning<\/a> is the broader strategy. Planning means deciding in advance how wealth will be managed, protected and transferred, taking into account the fact that several legal systems are involved and must be coordinated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first instrument is the choice of the law applicable to the succession, known as professio iuris. Within certain limits, this allows a person to designate the law of their country of nationality as the law governing the entire estate. It is a powerful tool because it removes uncertainty about who will inherit and in what shares, regardless of where the assets are located.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alongside this sits the will, or several coordinated wills where assets are spread across different countries. They must be drafted so that they coexist without revoking one another and respect the reserved shares of protected family members. The conscious choice of the couple\u2019s matrimonial property regime is also part of planning, because it affects how assets are divided between the spouses and, consequently, what will form part of the estate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are also instruments involving allocation and segregation, such as the trust, which may be incorporated into the broader strategy to protect specific portions of the wealth. The strength of planning does not lie in any single instrument, but in combining them coherently. Each element must be selected in light of the others so that the overall structure remains effective in practice and over time. It should also be reviewed when life changes, because relocation, the birth of a child or a new investment may alter the balance and require the plan to be updated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Among the instruments designed for a specific purpose, the family agreement is particularly useful for those who wish to transfer a business. It is a contract through which an entrepreneur transfers all or part of the business, or a holder of company interests transfers their shares, to one or more descendants, completing the generational transfer during their lifetime rather than leaving it to the succession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Its distinctive feature is that it operates immediately between living persons rather than on death. The effects are immediate, providing stability and certainty during a sensitive transition in the management of a business. To balance the positions involved, the descendant receiving the business or company interests compensates the other family members who would be entitled to a reserved share, either with money or other assets, unless they waive that entitlement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The family agreement represents an exception to the general principle under Italian law prohibiting agreements concerning a future succession. For this reason, the law surrounds it with precise requirements, beginning with the participation of the relevant family members, making it an effective instrument that must nevertheless be structured rigorously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alongside it, the legal system offers other instruments tailored to particular needs, which must be selected case by case. For a family operating a business across two countries, considering a family agreement in good time may prevent the value created over many years from being fragmented by future disputes between heirs. Deciding during one\u2019s lifetime and using the correct legal form is the way to transfer the business to the person who will continue it without also leaving behind a conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Having the correct instruments is not enough. They must work together across different countries. Coordinating assets between Italy and abroad is what transforms a collection of documents into an effective strategy, and it is also the most delicate stage because each legal system has its own rules concerning validity and publicity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The starting point is always a complete map: which assets exist, in which countries, in whose name they are held and what restrictions apply to them. On that basis, the law governing each issue is identified, from succession to the matrimonial property regime, and it is verified that the chosen instruments are recognised and effective in the countries where they must operate. A trust, for example, must be structured so that it is recognised in the country where the assets are located. A will must be coordinated with wills made elsewhere. A family agreement must be adapted to the actual corporate structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Taxation must also be considered. In an international estate, tax exposure may arise in several countries, and careful planning addresses this from the outset in order to avoid duplication and unexpected liabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is precisely where coordination makes the difference. Our work is not to accumulate legal instruments, but to direct them as a coherent whole. We test each document against the rules of the country where the asset is located, verify that the trust will be recognised where it operates, ensure that the wills do not contradict one another, confirm that the family agreement fits the actual corporate context and assess whether the tax burden may be duplicated across several countries. We work with professionals in the jurisdictions involved, but the value lies in remaining the single point of coordination for the entire structure. Wealth organised properly today can be transferred smoothly tomorrow instead of becoming a puzzle for those who remain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Protecting international wealth is not a standardised exercise, but a tailored process. This is why legal assistance makes the difference between genuine protection and protection that exists only in appearance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The lawyer\u2019s first responsibility is coordination. This means analysing the legal systems involved together, identifying the combination of instruments best suited to the family\u2019s objectives, from segregation and succession planning to dedicated family agreements, and drafting them with the precision required to remain effective over time. It also means ensuring that each instrument is valid and effective across borders, coordinating the necessary formalities in the different countries and monitoring taxation so that protection does not result in unexpected costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is also a value that goes beyond technical expertise: distinguishing solutions that are lawful and effective from those that may prove fragile or, worse, open to challenge. Wealth is genuinely protected only through solid structures, not through shortcuts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If your wealth, or that of your family, is distributed between Italy and other countries and you wish to protect and transfer it carefully, the Family Law Boschetti team can help you create a tailored strategy, with the expertise and discretion required by such a sensitive matter, so that what you have built remains secure and passes in an orderly way to the next generation. The first step, as always, creates no obligation. Its purpose is simply to map your circumstances and identify which instruments are genuinely relevant.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Anyone who has built wealth over time across Italy and other countries, including property, bank accounts, perhaps a business or company interests, will sooner or later ask an important question: how can it be protected and transferred without exposing it to unnecessary risks, taxation or disputes between heirs? The good news is that the legal […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2933","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2933"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2933\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2934,"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2933\/revisions\/2934"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.familylawboschetti.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/a>International asset planning: the main instruments<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>Family agreements and dedicated instruments<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>How to coordinate assets in Italy and abroad<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>The role of the lawyer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n