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Imagine a talented sportsperson who has just signed a lucrative contract with a well-known Italian football club. The contracted income is high, leading to the accumulation of considerable assets for the sportsperson. But at the same time, successful and high-earning sportspersons are at a special risk of losing some or all of their assets again. Boris Becker is just one prominent example. How can internationally successful athletes protect themselves in this regard?

In two judgments in 2015 and 2017, the Administrative Court of the Principality of Liechtenstein (VGH) considered private asset structures (Privatvermögensstrukturen, PVS) under Article 64 of the Liechtenstein Tax Act (SteG). In one of these two decisions, the German legal form of the GmbH & Co. KG (limited liability company & limited partnership) played a central role. This article first explains the main characteristics of a Liechtenstein PVS and provides insight into both of the VGH decisions. The main part of the article looks at whether and in what cases a Liechtenstein foundation is suitable to serve as the limited partner of a German GmbH & Co. KG.

It was a great success: The first FS+P Sport Symposium was held on 26 June 2019, where eight high-quality speakers and 45 selected guests accepted the invitation of Dr. Marco Felder. The guests included lawyers, tax experts, professional trustees, asset managers, representatives of sports agencies, the executive board of the Liechtenstein Olympic Committee, and representatives of sport sponsors such as LGT Bank Ltd. and Rauch Fruchtsäfte GmbH . The conclusion of the talks is clear: Liechtenstein has had an excellent economic link with sport for many years and is in many respects an outstanding location for internationally successful sportspersons and artists.

The formation documents of foundations drawn up by Liechtenstein professional trustees often contain provisions on protectorates. A protectorate may be established if, at the time the foundation is formed, there is not yet a sufficient relationship of trust between the client and the professional trustee. In such cases, clients want to make sure that the assets they transfer to the foundation and separated from their personal assets will be used for the purposes they intend. As a founder, the client therefore wants to reserve the right to exert influence on the management and use of these assets. For this purpose, certain rights may be assigned to the protectorate.

Die Sicherung von Vermögen in einer wirtschaftlich unsicheren Welt setzt Stabilität voraus. Liechtenstein verfügt über ein hohes Ausmass an Stabilität.