PETALING JAYA: Estate planning specialist Rockwills International Group is seeing an uptake in demand for foreign wills by Malaysians.
Its group CEO Azhar Iskandar Hew (pix) said this latest phenomenon follows increasing investments by Malaysians abroad and growing awareness of the need to protect these assets with proper estate planning for the benefit of their heirs.
Rockwills, which pioneered will writing and estate planning in Malaysia, has been able to offer foreign will-writing services through collaboration with legal firms and estate planning companies in several countries that are the popular choice for Malaysian investors.
“Through our partners who are well-versed with local laws governing foreign ownerships of assets, we are able to serve the needs for a last will and testament that safeguards the interest of Malaysian investors overseas,” Azhar said.
Rockwills has been experiencing high demand for foreign will-writing services, particularly in countries like Australia, New Zealand, the UK, the US, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, China (including Hong Kong), and India. More Malaysians are having properties and investments abroad in a move to diversify their portfolio and manage investment risks.
A 2021 survey by global property consultant Knight Frank LLP revealed that there was a 25% increase in preference among high-net-worth investors for investment opportunities overseas. Azhar said this held true even during the last two years of the Covid-19 pandemic. Probably with more time on their hands and being able to be more discerning to lock in good investment choices, the investment appetite of Malaysians did not go into lockdown.
“If anything, it has sharpened it. We noticed this when a greater number of our clients request to amend their wills to include their overseas properties and investment. The surge in overseas investments brings with it a different set of challenges for the investors and among them is the need to have a separate foreign will written,” he added.
A separate foreign will saves legal cost, which can be extremely expensive if not prearranged. It will also save time on resealing. Resealing is essentially an endorsement of the Malaysian probate where the investments are located within the Commonwealth or, for non-Commonwealth countries, the need to wait for the Malaysian probate to be obtained first before applying for a separate probate overseas.
A separate foreign will allows the executor named in it to obtain probate without the need for the Malaysian probate to be granted by Malaysian courts. In addition, having a foreign will prepared by local experts will ensure compliance with local laws for probate to be obtained in future.
Furthermore, in the event the Malaysian will is being disputed, it may not affect the ability of the executor of the foreign will to obtain probate in that country as the foreign will is not in dispute.
“Many Malaysians with overseas investments are under the impression that as long as their foreign assets are included in their Malaysian will it is fine. Many are not aware of the potential inheritance issues, legal complications and additional costs involved in the administration of foreign assets upon their demise,” said Azhar.
