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You must register your trust with HMRC as:

• They will need to check your trust complies with anti-money laundering regulations and other checks.
• You will need to get a Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) for your trust. You’ll need this when filling in a Self Assessment tax return for example.

The responsibility for registering a trust lies with the trustees. If you’re a trustee and need help with the registration process, call our solicitors now on 0203 007 5500.

• Capital Gains Tax
• Income Tax
• Inheritance Tax
• Stamp Duty Land Tax
• Stamp Duty Reserve Tax
• Land Transaction Tax (only in Wales)

Moreover, you may still have to register even if your trust is not liable to taxation. This includes:

• All UK express trusts (unless they have been specifically excluded)
• Non-UK express trusts that:
  • Acquire property or land in the UK
  • Enter into a business relationship within the UK and have at least one trustee resident located in the country

  If you have a non-resident trust (i.e. the trust does not reside in the UK), you must register it if any income it receives from the UK becomes liable for taxation.

You do not need to register your trust if it doesn’t meet any of the criteria below. This includes if:

• It is used to hold life or retirement policies that only pay out on death, terminal illness, permanent disablement or to cover the healthcare cost of the person assured.
• It is used to hold money or assets of a UK-registered pension scheme
• The trust is registered as a charity in the UK or not required to register as a charity
• It holds insurance policy benefits received after the death of the person assured (applicable until two years after the death of the assured.)
• It is a co-ownership trust that holds shares of property or assets that are owned by 2 or more people for themselves.
• The trust is for bereaved children under 18 or adults aged 18 to 25, and was created under the will of a deceased parent or the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.
• The trust was set up before 6 October 2020 and holds £100 or less. Any pilot trusts set up after this date will need to register.
• It is a financial or commercial trust, created for professional services or business transactions for holding money for clients or other assets.

If one of these applies to your trust, and becomes liable for UK taxation, you will then need to register it.

There are other examples of trusts that are excluded from registration, including express trusts or trusts created by legislation. It is best to consult a solicitor on whether your trust requires registration in order to avoid any potential legal consequences.

If you’re unsure whether or not your trust needs to be registered, our solicitors can help. Call us directly on 0203 007 5500 to get in contact with one of our specialists.

The timeframe you need to follow when registering depends entirely on the type of trust you have. This is determined by the date the trust was made and if the trust is liable to taxation or not.

Once registered, the HMRC will send the lead trustee a UTR within 15 working days. You’ll need this to start filing Self-Assessment tax returns.

If your trust is not liable to taxation, you can get your URN by going back into the online service once you have completed registration.

Instructing a solicitor to help you with trust registration makes the process much easier. By allowing experts to guide you through the process, you can avoid fines or potential setbacks that you might encounter by doing so alone.

If you need an experienced trust registration solicitor, contact our team by calling 0203 007 5500 or sending an email to [email protected].

Yes – our trust solicitors can help with creating a trust. To make the registration process easier, we can also do this for you upon its creation.

Whoever helped to create the trust holds no bearing on if they’re needed for registration. Our solicitors can help whether your trust was made by us or elsewhere.