Liechtenstein Charitable Foundations and Philanthropy

Not automatically. On application, the Tax Administration exempts legal persons that pursue exclusively and irrevocably charitable purposes without profit motive (SteG Art. 4(2)). The exemption does not cover the net income of commercial operations whose receipts exceed CHF 300,000 in total. A licensed trustee prepares the application, the Tax Administration decides, and no outcome is promised.

LFT collects the documents, prepares the drafts and coordinates with the authorities. A licensed Liechtenstein trustee, named in your engagement letter, forms the foundation and files the registration, because forming legal persons for third parties is a trustee activity (TrHG Art. 2). Practising it by way of business without a licence is an offence.

STIFTA charges CHF 200 to 1,000 for evaluating an audit report, CHF 150 for a decision on the audit waiver and CHF 150 to 2,000 for inspecting books, on a basis of CHF 150 an hour. The register entry is CHF 700 (annex version of 1 August 2024). LFT's own fee is on request.

Yes, in part. The register entry is mandatory. It shows the council members with name and signing mode and records that the foundation is under supervision. STIFTA treats the contents of the foundation documents it learns of as confidential (StRV Art. 12), but the register itself is not confidential.

The court appoints an audit body for each supervised foundation, which checks once a year that the assets are used according to the purpose. On application STIFTA may waive it. The small-asset waiver needs assets below CHF 750,000, no public appeal for donations and no business in commercial form; other grounds exist. STIFTA decides; no waiver is promised.

STIFTA, part of the Office of Justice, supervises charitable foundations. It must see to it ex officio that the assets are managed and used according to their purposes, and it may demand information (PGR Art. 552 § 29(3)). Private-benefit foundations are supervised only if their deed so provides.

Purposes that promote the general public, in particular in the charitable, religious, humanitarian, scientific, cultural, moral, social, sporting or ecological fields, served wholly or predominantly. Predominance is measured by the ratio of private-benefit to charitable distributions. A foundation that mainly serves family purposes with charitable additions is classed as private-benefit.

The minimum capital is CHF 30,000 (PGR Art. 552 § 13(1)), or EUR or USD 30,000 where the capital is raised in those currencies. The official charges are the register entry of CHF 700 and, as the general rule for foundations, a formation levy of 2 per mille of the capital, at least CHF 200 (SteG Art. 66).

A family foundation may add charitable purposes, but one that mainly follows family purposes is classed as private-benefit, not charitable (PGR Art. 552 § 2(4)). It is then supervised by STIFTA only if its deed so provides. The licensed partner advises on which type fits the founder's purposes.

Only where the business directly serves the charitable purpose or a special statute allows it (PGR Art. 552 § 1(2)). A business in commercial form rules out the small-asset audit waiver (StRV Art. 5(1)). For a company rather than a foundation, see how a ready-made company in Liechtenstein changes hands.

Voluntary payments to exempt Liechtenstein charitable bodies are deductible up to 10 % of taxable income (SteG Art. 16(3)(h)). The deduction extends to exempt recipients seated in another EEA state or in Switzerland that meet the same conditions. Anything further is a tax-advice question for a licensed trustee.

A foundation is entered in the commercial register and supervised by STIFTA. A charitable trust, defined from 1 July 2026, is notified to STIFTA within 30 days of its creation and supervised by it. Existing charitable trusts must be notified by 31 December 2026, and failing to notify can draw a fine up to CHF 10,000.