All right, I've posted on here about getting inheritance from Canada over here and received some great advice. But now here's a real stumper:
My father's intentions were good when he had the idea and included it in his will, but I guess he never really thought it through: He added a clause that a whole life insurance policy for his grandchildren be opened in the amount of $10,000 each by his trustee (my uncle), who is to set up the policy with the option to hand control of said policy over to the children's guardian, or to the children themselves when they turn 21.
I'm not sure why he thought this was a good idea, though, considering I have been living in Asia for over 20 years, with no intention of returning, and both of my children are Japanese born minors who will most likely never live in Canada. The nature of a whole life policy (from my basic understanding and as per the conditions of the will) is that it needs regular (monthly) contributions, for life insurance bundled with some type of investment growth. In this case, however, there will be no one in Canada to make the contributions, my kids are not Canadian citizens, so neither they nor I pay taxes in Canada, and they will most likely never live in Canada for any significant amount of time. So what do we do? My uncle consulted with a financial planner/accountant and a lawyer, and it seems that he must adhere to the word of the will – meaning he can't just hand the children or I the money and be shut of it. If I find some type of whole life policy here that the funds can be applied to, that is also complicated, as my uncle doesn't have any means of researching, opening, and maintaining a Japanese version of a whole life insurance plan.
The little wheels inside my head are turning, but frankly I'm at a loss as to what to do. I'd rather not have the whole life plan for the kids here or back in Canada, as it needs monthly contributions and some monitoring, paperwork, etc., but it's stipulated in the will. I am hoping for a work around, perhaps the Japanese education/insurance plan that supports their schooling? But a whole life is intended to be for someone's lifetime I believe, not short term gain regardless of intentions. Anyway, if anyone has any ideas here, please feel free to chime in.
by 3Qberrymatch