Wyoming asset protection trustn.
Reviewed by Owen Hathaway, AttorneyUpdated June 4, 2026Wyoming's version of a self-settled asset protection trust, allowed under state law to protect the creator's own assets from future creditors.
A Wyoming asset protection trust is a self-settled, irrevocable qualified spendthrift trust created under Wyoming statute, allowing the settlor to be a discretionary beneficiary while protecting the trust assets from the settlor's future creditors. Wyoming's favorable trust laws make it a frequently chosen jurisdiction for this strategy.
As with any self-settled protection trust, results depend on proper setup, a qualified Wyoming trustee or administration nexus, statutory waiting periods, and steering clear of transfers that defraud existing creditors.
Authorized under the Wyoming Uniform Trust Code's qualified spendthrift trust provisions (Wyo. Stat. Title 4, Ch. 10). A Colorado resident may use a Wyoming trust, but the strength of protection against a Colorado judgment can turn on conflict-of-laws questions, location of assets, and other relevant facts.
Related terms
- domestic asset protection trustA self-settled irrevocable trust allowed in certain states that can shield the person who created it from their own future creditors, something most states, including Colorado, don't permit.
- spendthrift trustA trust with a clause that keeps a beneficiary from giving away or borrowing against their interest and blocks the beneficiary's creditors from reaching it before distribution.
- self-settled trustA trust the creator sets up for their own benefit. In most states this offers little protection from the creator's creditors; a few states allow protective versions.