The Trust Registration Service
This information sheet has been prepared to provide you with the necessary information regarding The Trust Registration Service (TRS) which goes live on 1st September 2022 and explains what it means to you.
The new rules to register Trusts were introduced in October 2020 by the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds Regulations, as a means of trying to stop the illegal transfer of funds and to improve the transparency about the ownership of assets held in Trust.
It has always been the case that certain Trusts set up during someone’s lifetime had to be registered, now it is becoming Law for other types of Trusts to be registered as well.
Most Trusts that LCS write are written into a Will and, as such will come into being upon the death of the Testator (person whose Will it is). This is because the Trust is created from the Will upon death, until then it is just ‘written’ but is not in existence.
Some Trusts should be registered as soon as they are set up like our Asset Protection Trust / Lifetime Settlement Trust. Others like our Property Trusts have a period of two years from the date of the first death in which to register.
It is your Trustees responsibility to register a Trust, this is something that LCS is not permitted to do for you, but we can advise you on how to do this.
Before registering, go to Register a Trust as a Trustee – Gov.UK. A Government Gateway user ID and password will be needed when registering a Trust and the above link will tell you how to obtain this.
If you have an Asset Protection Trust / Lifetime Settlement Trust, it must be registered now.
A Discretionary Trust written into a Will should be registered upon the death of the Testator (the death of the person whose Will it is)
If you have a Lifetime Interest Property Trust and your partner or spouse has already passed away, the Trust must be registered now. However, you do not need to register if you are both still alive.
LCS are here to help and guide you if you are uncertain about whether your Trust should be registered. Call us on 0345 017 8250
Client/ Trust Reg/June 2022