Trust FAQs

Trust FAQs - What is a Trust?

A trust is an obligation binding a person (an individual or a company) called a 'Trustee' to deal with 'property' (money, investments, land or buildings or other assets, such as paintings) in a particular way, for the benefit of one or more beneficiaries.

The cash and investments held in the trust are also called the 'capital' or 'fund' of the trust. This capital (or fund) may produce income, for example interest or dividends. The land and buildings may produce rental income. The way which the income from the Trust is taxed depends on the type of trust.

If you are thinking of setting up a trust to benefit your family our specialist Chartered Tax Advisor will be able to comprehensively review your situation and provide the right solutions. Premier Solicitors are able to work with you on a fixed fee basis to setup a Trust.

What is a 'trustee'?
What is a 'beneficiary'?
What are the responsibilities of a trustee?

What is a 'trustee'?

Trustees are the legal owners of the trust property. They are legally bound to look after the property of the trust in a particular way and for a particular purpose. Trustees administer the trust and in certain circumstances make decisions about how the property in the trust is to be used. You may wish to appoint professional Trustees, in which case our expert team at Premier Solicitors are able to help, otherwise usually family members are Trustees.  This is particularly important where you require an independent professional to oversee a family trust.

We also let you know that if you are currently a Trustee looking after an on-going family trust, whether a professional Trustee or a lay Trustee, at Premier Solicitors we can assist you with our Trust Administration Services.  We have in-house expertise to deal with the legal running of the trust, together with the preparation of the accounts and tax returns.  Whether you currently use Solicitors or Accountants to deal with your family trusts, they will outsource the work they cannot do, whereas we can deal with it all in-house proving you efficiency savings and one point of professional contact. 

If you are a Trustee contact us for a no-obligation quote; we are confident we will significantly lower the trust costs for the beneficiaries!

What is a 'beneficiary'?

A beneficiary is anyone who benefits from the property held in the trust. There can be one or more beneficiaries, such as a whole family or a class of people, and each may benefit from the trust in a different way.

For example, a benefit may be:

• the income only, or
• the capital only, or
• both the income and capital of the trust.

If you are a Beneficiary and want legal advice on your rights as a beneficiary contact us for a no-obligation quote.

What are the responsibilities of a trustee?

The responsibilities depend on the type of trust and the terms under which the trust is created. The ‘Settlor’ or the creator of the Trust, may have given instructions that Trustees carry out various functions, and trust law may impose further obligations.

For taxation purposes the Trustee(s) are responsible for:

• notifying the Inland Revenue that tax is due, within six months of the end of the tax year for which it is due, where you have not received a tax return for the year
• keeping records of the income and capital gains of the trust
• completing and sending back any tax return issued to you
• paying any tax due on the income or capital gains of the trust
• supplying certificates or vouchers to the beneficiaries to show how much income they have received from the trust in the tax year and how much tax the trustees have deducted. 

Premier Solicitors can provide this service at low fixed fees with no hidden costs. Premier Solicitors will ensure that all the Trusts’ taxation obligations are met.

There are a number of different sorts of trusts, but usually they fall into one of the following categories:

• bare trusts
• interest in possession trusts
• discretionary trusts
• accumulation and maintenance trusts
• mixed trusts.

For tax purposes, there are also settlor-interested trusts and non-resident trusts and special trusts.

Call us today on 01234 35 80 80 to speak to a member of our qualified team.

More Trust Terminology

If you need some more help understanding how our fixed fee Trusts may be of benefit to you, here's some more explaination of Trusts terminology:

• Bare Trusts
• Interest in Possession Trusts
• Immediate Post-Death Interest
• Trusts for Bereaved Minors
• Discretionary Trusts
• Accumulation Maintenance
• Mixed Trust
• Settlor-interested Trust
• Protective Property Trust
• Home Protection Trust
• IOU Discretionary Will Trust
• Pilot Trusts

Please note that the advice provided on this webpage is not to be relied on wholeheartedly. If you have any queries please do not hesitate to call Premier Solicitors on 01234 35 80 80.