The short answer

Every policy and account passes to your family in one of three ways: by a beneficiary nomination, through a trust, or through your estate and will. Write life insurance in trust so it pays quickly and usually sits outside your estate. Keep pension expression of wish forms up to date. Check who the policyholder, life assured and beneficiaries are on any offshore bond. Make a Thai will for Thai bank accounts and assets, because Thai banks act only on a Thai court order. Think about children — minors usually can't receive money directly — and about currency. Then review everything after every major life change. Lawrence will check it all, free.

Why beneficiaries go wrong for expats

Beneficiary mistakes rarely come from bad decisions. They come from forms filled in once and forgotten while life moved on — and for expats, life moves on more than most. A move abroad, a new relationship, children born in another country, a business, a home in Thailand: each one changes who should benefit and how.

The good news is that almost all of these are easy to fix while you are alive and well — and impossible to fix afterwards. A beneficiary review takes a few hours of paperwork and can save your family months of delay and tens of thousands of pounds.

How each policy and account passes on

The usual route for each type of asset — and what you need to check.

A general guide — every policy and scheme has its own rules. Lawrence will check yours in a free review.

Life insurance: why the trust matters

Life insurance exists to put money in your family's hands when they need it most. Whether that happens in weeks or months depends largely on one decision: whether the policy is written in trust.

Without a trust

A UK life policy that isn't in trust usually pays into your estate. That means your family waits for probate — often weeks or months — before the money can be released, and the payout is added to the value of your estate for inheritance tax. Who receives it depends on your will or, if there's no will, the intestacy rules. For an unmarried partner, that can mean nothing at all.

With a trust

A trust is a legal arrangement where trustees hold the policy for the beneficiaries you choose. When you die, the insurer pays the trustees, who pass the money on. According to Which?, a policy in trust can usually pay out faster because it doesn't wait for probate, and the payout usually sits outside your estate for inheritance tax. Most insurers let you add a trust when you buy the policy, usually at no extra charge. Yet only around one in four customers of one UK broker set up a trust in 2025.

Choosing trustees

Pick trustees you trust who can act quickly — often your partner plus one or two others. For expats, think about where trustees live: someone in the UK may find it easier to deal with a UK insurer, while someone in Thailand may be closer to the family. Having at least one trustee in each country can work well.

Flexible or fixed?

Trusts come in different types. Some name fixed beneficiaries; others give trustees discretion to decide who benefits and when — useful if circumstances change or children are young. Once a policy is in trust, it generally can't simply be taken back out, so it is worth getting the type right at the start.

Our guide to international life insurance for expat families explains how to choose the cover itself.

Pensions: the form most people forget

For many expats, a pension is the largest asset they own — and the one with the most neglected beneficiary paperwork. Most UK defined contribution pensions don't pass under your will. Instead, the scheme decides who receives the death benefits, guided by your expression of wish (or nomination) form.

Not binding — but crucial

A nomination isn't legally binding: providers have discretion and aren't obliged to follow it, though they normally do unless there are exceptional circumstances. That discretion is what usually keeps pensions out of your estate. But if your form is twenty years old and names someone you'd no longer choose, the scheme has to make a difficult judgement — and your family may wait while it does.

How death benefits are taxed

• Death before 75 — income paid to beneficiaries is free of UK income tax, and lump sums are tax-free up to your remaining Lump Sum and Death Benefit Allowance (the standard allowance is £1,073,100).
• Death after 75 — benefits are taxed at the recipient's marginal rate when they're paid.
• Two-year rule — benefits generally need to be paid or designated within two years of the scheme being told of the death, or tax treatment can change.
• From 6 April 2027 — unused pension funds will form part of your estate for inheritance tax, which changes the planning for many people.

A beneficiary living in Thailand may also face Thai tax rules on income they bring into the country, so where your beneficiaries live matters as well as where you do.

Overseas pensions

If you've transferred to an overseas scheme such as a QROPS, death benefits follow that scheme's rules and its own nomination form. Check it as carefully as any UK pension. Our guide to international pension transfer considerations covers the wider picture.

Offshore bonds and investment policies

Many expats hold investments through offshore bonds and life-assurance-based investment policies. These are technically life insurance contracts, and that makes the roles on the policy unusually important.

• The policyholder owns the bond and can make decisions about it.
• The life assured is the person whose death ends the policy. When the last life assured dies, the bond usually pays out.
• The beneficiaries receive the value — directly, through a trust or through the policyholder's estate.

Getting these roles right can make a big difference. A bond with several lives assured — for example, a couple and their children — can continue after one death instead of being cashed in, which may be better for tax and investment growth. A capital redemption version doesn't depend on a life at all. And a bond held in trust can pass to the family without waiting for probate.

Many international platforms offer ready-made trusts, sometimes free of charge. Ardan International, for example, offers a free beneficiary trust on its platform. Our guide to offshore investment structures explains how they fit together.

Who owns the policy matters too

Beneficiaries aren't the only names on a policy that count. Who owns a life policy changes who controls it, who the payout belongs to and, sometimes, how it is taxed.

Own-life policies

Most people insure their own life and own the policy themselves. Without a trust, the payout then belongs to their estate. That is why a trust is so important for own-life cover.

Life-of-another policies

A couple can each own a policy on the other's life. If one partner dies, the surviving partner already owns the policy and receives the payout directly as the owner — no probate needed. This can be a simple alternative for couples, though it has drawbacks if the relationship ends or both partners die together.

Joint-life policies

A joint-life, first-death policy covers two people and pays out once, on the first death. It is usually cheaper than two single policies, but leaves the survivor uninsured. Two single policies cost more but pay twice if both partners die, and each can be put in its own trust with its own beneficiaries — often better for blended families.

Employer death-in-service benefits

Many employers provide life cover as a multiple of salary, usually paid at the trustees' discretion under a scheme trust. These also have a nomination form, separate from your pension. It is one of the most often forgotten forms of all — and it ends when you leave the job, so don't rely on it alone.

Leave your family a map

Policies that nobody knows about can go unclaimed for years. For expats with money in several countries, the risk is much greater: a partner in Thailand may not know the name of a UK pension provider, and children in the UK may not know about a Thai bank account. A simple family file solves this.

• A list of every policy and account — provider, country, reference number and contact details.
• Where the wills are kept, and the names of your lawyers in each country.
• Copies of trust deeds and nomination forms, or where to find them.
• Trustees, executors and guardians, with their contact details.
• Your adviser's details — so your family has someone to call.
• Key documents — passports, marriage and birth certificates, property papers.

Keep it somewhere secure that at least two people can reach, and update it at every review.

Where to start

A free check of every beneficiary, trust and nomination you have — and introductions to specialists for new cover.

Thai bank accounts and assets

Thailand doesn't recognise beneficiary nominations on ordinary bank accounts, and it doesn't recognise a UK grant of probate. When a Thai bank learns of a death, the account is frozen — and joint account holders can lose access too. The bank will release the money only on a Thai court order appointing an administrator.

That has real consequences for a family living in Thailand. If the household's day-to-day money is in a Thai account in one partner's name, the other partner may have no access to it for months. With a Thai will and no dispute, getting the court certificate typically takes around four to six months; relying on a foreign will usually adds six to twelve months more, because it has to be translated, legalised and proved.

What to do

• Make a Thai will covering your Thai assets, alongside your UK will. Make sure the two don't revoke each other.
• Give each partner money in their own name — enough to live on for several months.
• Keep a list of accounts, policies and contacts somewhere your family can find it.
• Understand property rules — a foreign heir who inherits Thai land must usually sell it within a set period, and condo ownership has its own rules.

Our guide to what happens to your estate if you die overseas explains Thai probate step by step.

UK inheritance tax and beneficiaries

Since 6 April 2025, UK inheritance tax has been based on residence rather than domicile. Broadly, you're within UK inheritance tax on your worldwide assets if you've been UK resident for at least 10 of the previous 20 tax years. After leaving the UK, that status continues for a "tail" of between three and ten years, depending on how long you were resident. After that, generally only UK assets are within scope.

For those within scope, the main figures are a nil-rate band of £325,000, a residence nil-rate band of up to £175,000 when a home passes to direct descendants, and a 40% rate above the allowances. Gifts between spouses are usually exempt, though the exemption can be limited when one spouse isn't a long-term UK resident.

Why this matters for beneficiaries

• Life cover not in trust usually adds to the estate — and can be taxed at 40%.
• Pensions from April 2027 — unused funds will count towards the estate, so who you nominate and how much you leave in a pension needs rethinking.
• Trusts can keep money outside the estate, but have their own tax rules.
• The tail — recently arrived expats may still be fully within UK inheritance tax for years.

Tax rules are complex and depend on your circumstances; Lawrence works with tax specialists where needed.

Thai inheritance tax and heirs

Thailand has an inheritance tax, but it applies only to inheritances above ฿100 million received by an individual heir, at 10% — or 5% for ascendants and descendants — with spouses exempt. Most expat families will never pay it, but very large estates should plan for it.

More relevant for most families are Thailand's inheritance rules. Without a Thai will, Thai assets pass to statutory heirs in a set order: descendants, parents, siblings and so on, with a married spouse sharing alongside them. Marital property is usually split first, with half belonging to the surviving spouse. Thailand doesn't have forced heirship, so a Thai will can leave everything to a spouse or anyone else you choose.

Unmarried partners

An unmarried partner is not a statutory heir in Thailand, and may have no rights to your Thai assets without a will. The same is often true in the UK for pensions without a nomination and life cover without a trust. If you're not married, nominations, trusts and wills in both countries are essential — not optional.

Children as beneficiaries

Most parents want their children to benefit, but naming young children directly can create problems. Children under 18 usually can't receive money in their own right, so a payout may have to be held by someone else or dealt with by a court. And a large sum handed over at 18 isn't always what parents would choose.

Better ways to provide for children

• Use a trust for life cover and investments, with trustees who can pay for school fees, living costs and university.
• Choose a discretionary trust if you want trustees to decide when children receive money — for example at 21 or 25.
• Name guardians in your will — and think about which country the children would live in.
• Leave a letter of wishes explaining how you'd like money used, especially for education.

Education is often the biggest single cost. If you're saving for school or university, our guide to saving for international school fees in Thailand shows how a plan and life cover work together.

Second marriages and blended families

Many expats in Thailand are in a second marriage or long-term relationship, often with children from more than one relationship. Without clear planning, money can easily flow in a direction nobody intended. If everything passes to a new spouse, children from a first marriage may receive nothing if the spouse later leaves everything to their own family. If everything goes to the children, a surviving partner in Thailand may be left without a home or income.

Trusts are one of the best tools here. A life policy or investment can provide an income for a surviving partner while protecting the capital for children. Separate policies for separate purposes — one for the partner, one for each set of children — can make intentions clear. And a letter of wishes, kept with the trust, helps trustees understand what you wanted.

Currency: getting the money to the family

A UK life policy or pension usually pays in pounds; an international policy may pay in dollars or euros. If your family lives in Thailand, that money has to be converted into baht — often at a stressful time, and often in large amounts. The exchange rate on the day, and the margin charged by the bank, can make a difference of thousands of pounds.

Trustees and beneficiaries don't have to accept the bank's rate. A specialist FX provider can quote a better rate, spread the transfer over time, or fix a rate in advance. Telling your family and trustees this now, and leaving them a contact, is a simple way to protect the payout.

When to review your beneficiaries

Beneficiary arrangements should be checked every few years, and always after a major life change:

• Moving country — including moving to Thailand, or moving on.
• Marriage, divorce or a new relationship.
• The birth or adoption of a child or grandchild.
• Buying property in Thailand or elsewhere.
• A pension transfer, or starting to draw a pension.
• A new policy or investment, or closing one.
• The death of a beneficiary or trustee.
• Changes in tax rules — such as pensions entering inheritance tax from April 2027.

Our guide to family financial protection when relocating covers everything else a move changes.

The most common mistakes

• Never writing life cover in trust — slower payouts and possible inheritance tax.
• Old pension nominations — naming an ex-partner, or nobody at all.
• Relying on a UK will in Thailand — it can work, but adds months.
• Everything in one partner's name — leaving the other without access.
• Naming young children directly instead of using a trust.
• Getting bond roles wrong — the wrong life assured can force a sale.
• Assuming an unmarried partner is protected — often they're not.
• Not telling anyone — policies nobody knows about can go unclaimed.

Three real-world examples

These are illustrations, not real clients.

David, 50 — remarried in Thailand

David's UK pension nomination still named his first wife, and his life policy, taken out with his old mortgage, wasn't in trust. In a review, he updated his nomination to split benefits between his Thai wife and his two adult children, put a new life policy in trust for his wife, and made a Thai will leaving his Thai bank accounts and condo to her. His UK will now deals only with UK assets.

Emma and Tom, both 39 — two young children in Bangkok

Their life cover named each other as beneficiaries and then "the children". They moved both policies into discretionary trusts with a brother in the UK and a close friend in Bangkok as trustees, added a letter of wishes covering school fees, and named guardians in their wills.

Paul and Sue, 63 and 61 — unmarried, retired in Hua Hin

Paul assumed Sue would inherit everything. In fact, as an unmarried partner she wouldn't have been a statutory heir in Thailand, and his pension had no nomination. They made Thai and UK wills, completed nomination forms, and opened a Thai account in Sue's name holding six months' living costs.

Your beneficiary checklist

1. List every policy, pension, bond and account — country, provider, value and reference number.
2. For each, note who would receive it and how — nomination, trust or estate.
3. Write life cover in trust, with trustees in the right countries.
4. Update pension nominations for every scheme, UK and overseas.
5. Check offshore bonds — policyholder, lives assured and trust.
6. Make wills in each country where you hold assets, that don't revoke each other.
7. Protect children and partners — trusts, guardians and money in each partner's name.
8. Tell your family where everything is, and review every few years.

Keeping your documents safe

A beneficiary list is a map of your family's finances — exactly what fraudsters want. Store it securely, share it only with people who need it, be wary of unexpected calls about "unclaimed policies", and use a private, protected connection when you log in to pension and insurer portals from public Wi-Fi.

How we researched this guide

This guide draws on Which? (11 July 2026) on life insurance trusts; interactive investor (2026) on pension death benefits and nominations; ThaiLawOnline (10 October 2026) and Thailand Starter Kit (September 2026) on Thai probate, heirs and frozen accounts; HaysMac on residence-based UK inheritance tax; AJ Bell (July 2025) on allowances and pensions in inheritance tax; and Forvis Mazars on Thai inheritance tax. Checked 14 October 2026. JLIT takes leads for insurance and introduces specialists; it does not sell insurance. This guide is general information, not personal financial, tax or legal advice.