[mattbell]

I absolutely want to avoid having my IP in the US. It doesn't make sense to us. I'd much rather have the IP owned by an offshore trust that licenses it to my operating company in Singapore.

But if it prevents us from raising capital in the Valley well... that's a problem. Especially if we are seeking small time investments at first where it would create a shit-ton of compliance requirements for the US angels.

Oh well...

[philiphodgen]

Design your ideal business operation setup then reverse intothe tax constraints. That is a much more efficient process at your stage. Pretend paperwork and taxes don't exist for your Investors. You will manage that later. Tax and paperwork are overhead costs to be controlled, not key determinants for how you do business.

And don't use a trust to hold IP. There are exceptional use cases for trusts in a business context. It is probable that they don't apply to you. Use regular business entities. You are a business. Some day you will grow big and go public or get sold. Build accordingly. Don't do stuff where people say "WTF this is amateur hour" and start to doubt your judgment in other arenas.

[mattbell]

Good advice, thanks!