Register a trust
How to register a trust on the Trust Registration Service.
Before you start registering a trust
Most types of UK resident, or non-UK resident trusts with certain links to the UK, need to be registered on the Trust Registration Service (TRS).
You should check if you need to register a trust.
What you’ll need to register a trust
The information you give must be the same as shown on any official documents relating to the beneficial owners of the trust, such as:
- the trust deeds or any other formal declaration
- passports, birth certificates, marriage certificates and adoption information
- official mailing addresses and postcodes
There are some questions in the service that let you continue without giving the information, but it must be given within 90 days of the trust being registered.You can find out how to update and manage your trust’s details.
You’ll need to include:
- the name of the trust (limited to 53 characters in the service) — you can shorten the trust name to fit, but do not delete any important information, such as the settlor’s name
-
the date the trust was created — this is when assets were first put into the trust, if you do not know the date, give either:
- the date the trust deeds were signed
- the date of death of the settlor for will trusts
- if the trust is an express trust or not
- details of whether a non-UK trust has a business relationship in the UK
You should be able to find these details in the trust deed and from any correspondence that the trust has had with HMRC.
Lead trustees
All trustees are equally legally responsible for the trust, but trustees must nominate one ‘lead trustee’ to be the main point of contact for HMRC. A lead trustee can be an individual or an organisation.
The lead trustee or an agent acting on their behalf must:
- register the trust
- keep the registration up to date
The lead trustee will receive any documentation relating to TRS.
Contact information for the lead trustee must be kept up to date.
If the lead trustee is an individual, you’ll need to include their:
- name
- date of birth
- address
- National Insurance number (if they’re a UK resident)
- passport details (if they’re not a UK resident)
- email address
- telephone number
- country of residence and nationality
If the lead trustee is an organisation, you’ll need to include their:
- business name
- Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR)
- address
- email address
- country of residence
If a limited company is registered on Companies House, the organisation will have UK residency. If it is not registered, you’ll need to select the country where the main office is located.
Settlors, other individuals and organisations
A settlor is an individual who has put assets into a trust. Other individuals include more trustees and protectors.
For individuals, you’ll need to include their:
- full name
- address
- date of birth
- date of death, if relevant
- last known country of residence
- last country of nationality
- mental capacity at the time of registration — HMRC will assume the individual has mental capacity, unless you tell us they do not
Find out more information about what mental capacity means in relation to trusts in the HMRC manual.
For deceased settlors, if available, you’ll need to include their:
- last address
- National Insurance number (if they were a UK resident)
- passport details (if they were not a UK resident)
- date of death
For organisations, you’ll need to include their:
- organisation name
- country of residence
Beneficiaries
You should give the details of all known beneficiaries who can benefit from the trust.
If you have more than 25 beneficiaries in any one beneficiary type, keep a note of additional beneficiaries for your own records.
Named beneficiaries
You’ll need to give details of all beneficiaries and potential beneficiaries named as such in the deed.
This includes:
- individuals
- organisations
- charities or trusts
Classes of beneficiaries
You can use a ‘class’ of beneficiaries to describe a group of individuals who are not yet known or named individually in the trust deed, for example, future grandchildren of the settlor.
If the members of the class can reasonably be identified individually by the trustees, they should be recorded as named beneficiaries.
Employment related beneficiaries
This is used to record beneficiaries who are part of an organisation, for example, employees of a company.
You’ll also need to give an approximate number of beneficiaries in the group.
Beneficiaries that are charities or trusts
For beneficiaries that are charities or trusts, you’ll need to include the:
- name of the charity or trust
- country of residence
For charities, this is usually where the charity is registered, or where it’s principal or main office is located.
Other beneficiaries
This is for beneficiaries that do not fit into the other categories. This category should not include named or specific individuals.
Individuals should be recorded as individual beneficiaries.
For other beneficiaries, you’ll need to include the:
- country of residence
- description of the beneficiary
Ownership or controlling interest in a company based outside the EU, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein.
This is when a trust has ownership of, or a controlling interest in a company based outside the EU, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein.
You’ll need to include the:
- company name and address
- country whose laws govern the company
- date when the trust took a controlling interest
What extra information you’ll need for taxable trusts
You’ll need to include:
- the type of trust
- details about how it was set up
- details of any assets the trust has
- if the trust is listed as a Schedule 3A trust — these trusts are only registered if a UTR is needed to declare a tax liability
Shares
You’ll need to include the:
- share company name
- number of shares
- class and type of share
- approximate value of the shares when you register the trust
Partnership
You’ll need to include the partnership start date and description.
Business
You’ll need to include the:
- business name, description and address
- approximate value of the business when you register the trust
Property and land
You’ll need to include the:
- address, name or description of the property or land
- estimated full value of the property or land at the time of registering the trust
- estimated value of the portion of land or property held in trust if it does not own it all
Money and other assets (such as cars, jewellery and art)
You’ll need to include:
- the total amount of money in the trust
- a description of the asset
- the value of the asset when you register the trust
Before you use the service
If you’re the lead trustee
You need to have an Organisation Government Gateway user ID and password.
This is different to an Individual Government Gateway user ID and password. You cannot use an Individual Government Gateway user ID and password to register a trust.
You’ll need a different Organisation Government Gateway user ID for each trust you’re responsible for.
You can create an Organisation Government Gateway user ID when registering.
You need to select ‘Organisation’ on the screen that is displayed after you have created your password.
You’ll need:
- an email address (this will be linked to the trust’s Organisation Government Gateway account)
- your full name
- a phone number
If you’re an agent
You need to:
- be registered as an agent
- create an agent services account (if you do not have one)
Register a trust with HMRC
Log in with your agent services account or Organisation Government Gateway user ID and password.
You can save your progress for up to 28 days. After 28 days, you’ll need to start the registration again.
If you need a proof of registration document, you’ll need to sign out after you have registered and then sign back in to get a copy of the proof of registration document. The declaration document is different to the proof of registration document and will not be accepted as proof.
HMRC services may be slow during busy times. Check if there are any problems with this service.
After you’ve registered
The lead trustee will receive:
- the trust’s UTR if you’re registering a taxable trust
- a Unique Reference Number (URN) if you’re registering a non-taxable trust
If the lead trustee or agent did not give all the information when registering the trust, they must complete the missing information within 90 days of registering the trust.
If you registered a taxable trust, HMRC will send the lead trustee a UTR, usually within 15 working days. You’ll need the UTR to start filing Self Assessment tax returns.
If you registered a trust that is not taxable, the lead trustee or agent can get the URN by signing back into the service following submission of the registration.
Viewing or making changes to registration details
Information on the trust register must be correct and kept up to date.
You can manage your trust’s details and find out more about:
- updating your trust’s details
- getting proof of registration
- changing a trust from non-taxable to taxable
- authorising an agent to view and make changes
- closing a trust
Proof of registration document
You may be asked for an up-to-date copy of your proof of registration, this may happen either:
- at the beginning of a business relationship
- as part of the company’s ongoing monitoring of clients
To find out how to get proof of registration, check how to manage a trust.
Find out about reporting a trust discrepancy to HMRC, which includes what will happen if you do not give a ‘relevant person’ a proof of registration document.
Report that beneficial owners may be at a disproportionate risk of harm
We may share details about you or your client’s trust with:
- law enforcement authorities
- third parties
This is if they submit requests for information meeting the requirements of the Money Laundering Regulations, for example, if they can show your trust is suspected of money laundering.
Read HMRC’s Privacy Notice to find out more about how we use your personal information.
If you think that sharing information could lead to beneficial owners becoming at risk, you can tell HMRC about beneficial owners at a disproportionate risk of harm.