TRSM32060 - Registration: contents: information required: contents: individuals or businesses who have control over the trust

Trustees are required to provide details for any person who has control over the trust. Typically, these persons may be described in trust deeds or in common use as protectors, advisors, enforcers or nominators. However, it is the nature of the control the persons have which is relevant, not the title the person is referred to.

An individual or business has control over the trust if they have the power, under the trust instrument or by law, to:

  • Dispose of, advance, lend, invest, pay or apply trust property
  • Vary or terminate the trust
  • Add or remove a person as a beneficiary, or to or from a class of beneficiaries
  • Appoint or remove trustees or give another individual control over the trust
  • Direct, withhold consent to or veto the exercise of the powers of the settlors, trustees or beneficiaries

This may be where the person can exercise these powers alone, where they can exercise them jointly with another person or where they can exercise them with the consent of another person.

Information to be provided on an individual who has control over the trust

  • Full name

  • Date of birth

  • Country of nationality
    • This is the country of which the individual is a national. In most cases, this is where the individual was born and where their passport is issued.
    • Some individuals may have dual or multiple nationalities. If so, selecting any applicable country of nationality is acceptable. However, if one of those countries of nationality is the UK, trustees must select the UK and not any other country.

  • Country of residence
    • This is usually the country where the individual lives and works most of the time during the tax year. If there is any doubt, trustees can check whether an individual is UK resident through the Statutory Residence Test (SRT).
    • For more complicated cases where the residency of the individual changes between tax years, HMRC will expect the Trust Registration Service (TRS) to be updated with that change once the position for that tax year has been established as part of that individuals ongoing tax obligations.
    • Some individuals may have more than one country of residence, as defined by the laws of each of those countries. If so, selecting any applicable country of residence is acceptable. However, if one of the countries of residence is the UK, trustees must select UK and not any other country.

  • Mental capacity
    • An individual does not have mental capacity if they cannot understand, retain, use or weigh information to make decisions about their role in the trust because of an impairment or disturbance in the functioning of their mind, such as they have a mental illness, learning disability, dementia, acquired brain injury, or they cannot communicate. See TRSM32100 for further information on mental capacity.

Information to be provided on a business who has control over the trust

  • Business/organisation name

  • Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR)
    • If the business is registered in the UK and has a UTR

  • Registered address
    • If there is no UTR or the UTR is not available