As part of the EU anti-money laundering directive aimed at combatting money laundering, serious crime and terrorist financing, the Trust Registration Service was established in 2017.
New rules in relation to registrations of Trusts came into force on 6 October 2020, requiring all UK trusts (apart from a few exceptions) and some non-UK trusts in existence on or after 6 October 2020 to register the Trust with HM Revenue and Customs by 1 September 2022, to avoid penalties. Any new trusts created after 1 September 2022 must be registered within 90 days.
If you are a Trustee of a Trust, you should check with the other Trustees of the Trust and your advisers, whether the Trust has been registered. If it hasn’t been registered, check if it falls within any of the exceptions. If no exceptions apply, the Trustees will need to decide who is to be the lead Trustee and the lead Trustee should then register the Trust or make arrangements with an adviser such as a Solicitor, Accountant or Financial Adviser to register the Trust.
Information as to the exceptions to Trusts that need to be registered, along with how to register a Trust and the information needed to register a Trust can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/register-a-trust-as-a-trustee
If you require any assistance with regards to the Trust registration, please do not hesitate to contact Heather Lally at heather.lally@dtmlegal.com or stephen.mackellar@dtmlegal.com or call them on 01244 354800
