Utmost International Spanish Bond

The Utmost International Spanish Collective Investment Bond (previously Quilter Int') is a popular tax compliant bond for investors living in Spain. The bond is a unit linked, whole of life, lump sum investment policy designed to be held for 5 years or more.
The bond is Spanish compliant which means that Utmost International have fiscal representation in Spain and only allow EU regulated funds to be used. Although Utmost International are based in Dublin, Ireland the product is offered in Spain under EU freedom of services rules. The bond benefits from preferential tax treatment by the Spanish authorities and allows us to construct a bespoke portfolio for you as there are many high quality funds available. It has an excellent online portal where you can keep up to date with performance and can be held in a variety of different currencies.
As the investment is constructed as a whole of life policy you can name your own beneficiaries as well as holding the investment in more than one name (typically spouses for example). Upon the death of the first policy holder 100% of the rights pass on to the surviving policy holder without exposure to Spanish inheritance tax or lengthy probate procedures. There is also the potential to mitigate Spanish wealth tax with a portfolio bond such as this.

Verdict

Pros:

1) One of the largest international Life Assurance firms in the world.
2) Benefits from tax deferral, compound growth, proportional tax relief and IHT mitigation.
3) The ability to construct portfolios for the cautious through to adventurous investor.
4) High levels of investor protection.
5) The best online system available for viewing all your investments in one place and tracking performance - very user friendly.
6) A range of different currencies available - often within one bond if required.
7) A wide variety of EU regulated funds for all risk types.
8) Potential to mitigate Spanish wealth tax.

Cons:

1) Care is needed when choosing funds in order to keep costs to a minimum.
2) Minimum investment of €100,000, £90,000, US$110,000 (or currency equivalent).
3) Withdrawing money in the early years will reduce the potential for your investment to perform.

Conclusion:

If used correctly in the hands of a professional and experienced adviser with a good knowledge of the Spanish tax system the Quilter International bond is a superb all in one structure for holding your investments in one place. The technology in the online system is second to none. A possible alternative would be to use a non life assurance based investment platform but the same tax breaks in Spain may not apply.

If you are an existing Utmost or Quilter policy holder needing a review of investments or you are new to investing as a resident of Spain please contact us for further information by filling out the form below or calling me direct on +34 951 390 201 or click for more information on Spanish compliant bonds.

Patrick Macdonald ASCI
International Financial Adviser