UK resident or non-resident trust?

Trustees are treated as a single notional person, distinct from the individuals who make up the trustees. With that in mind, the residence status of trustees as a body under UK rules is as follows:

All trustees are resident in the United Kingdom

The trust is resident in the UK for Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax purposes.

All trustees are resident outside the UK

The trust is not resident in the UK for Income Tax and Capital Gains Tax purposes.

There is a mixture of resident and non-resident trustees acting at the same time

From 6 April 2025, the existing rules for taxing non-UK domiciled individuals ended. At the time of writing, it is not clear how this impacts the following guidance applicable up to 5 April 2025. The article will be updated in due course. 

The trust is resident in the UK unless the settlor was:

• not resident in the UK and
• not domiciled in the UK

at the time the settlor made, or is treated as making, the settlement and any time when the settlor adds property to the settlement.

If the settlement arises on a settlor’s death then the settlor’s residence and domicile status are considered immediately before the death.

These are the UK rules on trustee residence – other jurisdictions may have different rules.

For Trust Registration Service purposes the residence status of a trust is set out here.