The top of rate of tax is now 55% (including PRSI and Universal Social Charge). We provide advice to clients on how they can minimise the amount of income on which they pay tax at this top rate of 55%.While each case is treated differently it is often possible to minimise 55% income simply by choosing a different investment product or restuturing a client’s income by utilising different structures to reduce the overall tax rate.

Nobody can predict the future, but this does not mean that we do not try to plan for it. You have worked hard to accumulate your assets. It is prudent for you and your family to have a solid estate plan in place to help reduce or eliminate potential taxes on the transfer of passing of assets.

Benefits of Estate Planning:
• To manage control of assets to specific family members in accordance with your wishes.
• To transfer your assets in the most tax-efficient manner.
• To protect your beneficiaries from the dangers of receiving wealth at an inappropriate time in their lives.
• To put in place the necessary investment and governance system to manage the family wealth after your demise.
• To identify who is responsible for different tasks for your estate such as the Executor, Trustee and Guardian.
• To assist in managing the wind-up of the assets of your estate, both domestic and off shore.
• Outline each of your assets and ensure they will transfer to your desired beneficiaries in the easiest and most cost-efficient way possible (this may involve the use of trusts where suitable).
• Explore the potential benefits and opportunities of extracting of assets from your business.
• Make sure all of your estate-planning documents are up-to-date, including your will and power of attorney.
• Estimate the inheritance, estate, and income taxes associated with your death.
• Create a bespoke plan to minimise or potentially eliminate the taxes involved in passing your estate to your heirs.

At some point in time, every business owner leaves his/her business, voluntarily or otherwise. A clear exit strategy should be a part of your business plan from the beginning as it affects key decisions about how you grow and develop the business. The business plan and exit strategy must be compatible with your personal goals for income, flexibility, lifestyle, family, retirement, and estate planning objectives. Exit planning involves complex issues such as taxation on exit from business, wealth preservation, contingency planning, and income tax, estate, and gifting regulations. Few business owners give this much consideration when starting their business; however, at some point in time it will become a very important consideration. The time to start planning for this is now.

Even with an exit plan, there are various ways to transfer your business interest:

Transfer ownership to your children.
Sell to other owners or employees.
Sell to a third party.
Liquidate in an orderly way.

Trying to go it alone can prove expensive, even catastrophic. For most business owners, this is a once-in-a-life-time event and it needs to be done right. In the same way that you made the decision to invest in your business and nurture it, you must plan ahead to maximise your return from a disposal or transfer of the business.

Formulating an effective exit plan will provide a clear understanding of the ownership transition goals and the various steps which will be required in order to achieve them.

We in Opes Wealth Trust will help you:
• Clarify your personal goals and objectives.
• Conduct a detailed analysis of your business.
• Select the most appropriate exit route, having regard to your objectives and other issues such as tax efficiency and tax reliefs.
• Implement and oversee the exit plan

Opes Wealth Trust specialises in maximising the opportunities within the tax code

The rate of tax that can apply to income and gains from investment’s income can vary from 0% up to 55%. Therefore it is very important for individuals to understand the tax treatment of investments at the time of making the initial investment.

We have considerable expertise in this area and have helped many of our clients reduce their tax liability on investment income or gain’s by advising on the tax treatment of various different types of investment product and structures.

• Investing with a tax break.
• Receiving investment returns with a reduced charge to tax.
• Liquidating your financial investments with minimal tax charges.

We believe that this approach to planning can help you accumulate assets in a much more productive and efficient manner.

The complexity of the tax landscape continues to increase. From a wealth creation perspective, it is therefore important to take advantage of the tax benefits which still remain. At Opes Wealth Trust we focus on utilising the Irish tax code to enable our client’s reduce their” effective tax rate”.