Offshore trusts

Our specialist private client services

For international families, an offshore trust (non-UK trust) can provide asset protection and a form of living will that allows an individual to control who benefits from your wealth during their lifetime and after their death.

Our trust experts can support you in structuring your wealth effectively, whether helping to set up an offshore trust, managing an existing structure or responding to beneficiaries’ changing circumstances. This includes:

• Advice on creating a new offshore trust, managing an existing one or winding up a structure which no longer serves its purpose
• Helping trustees and beneficiaries to understand the UK tax implications of making distributions or providing benefits to UK or non-UK resident beneficiaries
• Helping trustees to navigate other actions which might have UK tax implications, e.g. change of trustee residence, making or taking out loans, investing in different asset classes
• Advising on foreign entities such as Anstalt entities and foundations
• Computing relevant income and stockpiled gains pools
• Dealing with UK tax returns whether for income tax, capital gains tax (CGT) or inheritance tax
• Assistance with ATED (Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings) returns
• Help using HMRC’s Trust Registration Service
• Preparing tax returns for beneficiaries to disclose their trust distributions and ensure they are taxed correctly

For non-doms seeking to protect offshore assets, recent changes to UK tax law are likely to increase exposure to UK tax for those who have been UK resident for an extended period (10+ years). We can help you to understand your tax situation and take steps to manage it.