What is limited liability company?

The Limited Liability Company (LLC) has become a powerful tool for accomplishing many asset protection goals. The LLC is the most versatile and convenient strategy for owning rental property, insulating Dangerous Assets, operating a business, and achieving an excellent level of financial privacy.

The LLC provides the protection from liability of a corporation without the formalities (corporate minutes, bylaws, directors, and shareholders). In contrast to corporate law, which allows shareholders and officers to be individually sued if the corporate formalities are not followed, the LLC law specifically bars a lawsuit against a member for the liabilities of the LLC.

A primary goal of the LLC legislation was to change this result by clearly stating that the members and managers of the LLC could not be named in a lawsuit against the company. The new law was drawn specifically to provide a vehicle which would protect the owners from liability associated with the business-what the corporation was intended for but no longer accomplished.

A member of an LLC is not responsible for claims or judgments against the company. When we are dealing with a rental property or an active business, the potential liability associated with the business is a primary concern. But as we have stated, the law specifically provides that the members of the LLC cannot be sued.

Property held in an LLC cannot be seized by a creditor of a member. All income of the LLC is passed directly through to the personal returns of the members. When property is transferred to the LLC or distributed from it, there are no separate tax consequences. There is no tax when funds are withdrawn from the company. The only tax paid is on the income earned, which is reported on the owner's personal tax return. This system avoids the complications and potential double taxation that plagues the corporate format.

LLC vs. IBC or onshore corporation

The primary distinction between an LLC and a company is that the LLC is a tax-neutral vehicle because it is taxed as a partnership, rather than as a corporation. Thus, using an LLC eliminates tax at the corporate level. In this regard, it islike company but without all the restrictions and disadvantages. So if the LLC itself has no tax payment obligation - then who does? The obligation for any taxes that would otherwise be owed by the LLC bypasses the LLC itself and attaches directly to the members of the LLC. Members are to LLCs what shareholders are to normal companies. Other companies, as well as individuals and trusts, can be members of an LLC. There are no limits on the number of members or the classes of members that an LLC may have. The important thing to remember is that each member is responsible for his, her or its own pro-rata part of any overall tax obligation of the LLC and that the LLC itself has no tax obligations.

Multi-National Joint Ventures

LLCs are excellent vehicles for structuring joint venture arrangements between project participants from different countries. This is so because the venture can enjoy all of the benefits of incorporation, but each member is liable for his own taxation in his own country. Moreover, the membership flexibility allows different joint ventures to have different levels of ownership and reward based upon the value that each constituent member brings to the project.

Jurisdictions