HELPLINE: 
The first step in building your future French Assurance Vie
Imagine arriving in France with a Luxembourg Assurance Vie that is already several years old. Most British expatriates don’t realise this is possible.
At DTB Wealth Management, we often explain that some of the most valuable cross-border planning takes place before you leave the UK. Rather than waiting until you become French tax resident, you can begin building the foundations of your future wealth strategy while you are still living in Britain.
For many clients, that first step is a Luxembourg Private Client Portfolio (PCP). Although commonly referred to in the UK as an offshore investment bond, it is legally a Luxembourg life assurance policy. When you later become resident in France, it is recognised as a Luxembourg Assurance Vie — meaning the French tax holding period has already begun. Time, quite simply, is already working in your favour.
FLEXIBILITY WITHOUT COMPROMISE
Opening a PCP does not mean locking away your wealth. Whether you invest 150,000 GBP or several million pounds, your capital remains available. Partial or full withdrawals can be made whenever required, subject to the tax rules applicable at the time. You are building long-term tax advantages without sacrificing financial flexibility.
While you remain UK tax resident, the policy also benefits from the 5% cumulative tax-deferred withdrawal allowance.Each year, you may withdraw up to 5% of your original investment without creating an immediate UK income tax liability. Any unused allowance carries forward, providing considerable flexibility should your circumstances change. Where appropriate, Top Slicing Relief may also reduce the effective rate of tax when a chargeable event eventually occurs.
THE LUXEMBOURG ADVANTAGE
Luxembourg is a tax-neutral jurisdiction for life assurance. Rather than taxing the policy itself, the applicable tax regime is generally that of the country where the policyholder is resident. Combined with Luxembourg’s internationally recognised Triangle of Security — which segregates policyholder assets from the insurer’s own balance sheet under strict regulatory supervision — it provides an exceptionally robust framework for internationally mobile families.
STRATEGY BEFORE STRUCTURE
Not every PCP is identical, and choosing the right insurer is only one part of the process. The real value lies in designing the right strategy.
At DTB Wealth Management, we never begin with products. We begin with your objectives. For many future French residents, a Luxembourg PCP is simply the first chapter of a carefully designed cross-border wealth strategy — one that starts before you leave the UK and continues long after you arrive in France.
The strategy always comes before the product — and for many of our clients, the strategy begins long before they cross the Channel.
Considering a move to France?
Speak to DTB Wealth Management before you relocate and discover how planning early could help you make the most of your future life in France.
contact@dtbwealthmanagement.com | +33 (0)1 77 75 96 93