Register of Overseas Entities for Trusts
When a trust sits anywhere in an overseas entity’s ownership chain, the trustees, settlor and beneficiaries must be disclosed and verified. A STEP-qualified, UK-regulated agent handles it for a fixed £1,200 + VAT registration fee plus a £1,000 + VAT trust supplement — filed within 24–48 hours.
Register an Overseas Entity with a Trust
Call us and tell us what you need, or send the entity name, jurisdiction and a note of where the trust sits. We confirm the scope and fixed fee the same working day.
When Does a Trust Have to Be Disclosed on the Register of Overseas Entities?
The Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022 treats trustees as a category of beneficial owner. Where the trustees of a trust, acting in that capacity, hold more than 25% of the shares or voting rights in the overseas entity, can appoint or remove a majority of its directors, or otherwise exercise significant influence or control, the trustee is a registrable beneficial owner — and the trust condition is triggered.
The same applies where a trust sits higher up the ownership chain: a company owned by a trust, a nominee arrangement holding shares for trustees, or a discretionary trust settled offshore with an offshore trustee. Companies House guidance on GOV.UK is clear that the legal effect of the arrangement decides what must be reported, not the label on the deed. The trust disclosure is made as part of the entity’s registration under the Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022 (ECTEA 2022), and it is what allows the entity to complete any UK property transaction or land transaction that follows.
Trust information Companies House requires
- The trust’s name and the date it was created
- Each settlor — the person who put the assets into the trust
- Every current trustee, and former trustees where relevant
- Beneficiaries, or the class of beneficiaries, with dates of birth and addresses
- Any interested person with rights over the trust, such as a protector or power-holder
- How the trust connects to the overseas entity and the registrable beneficial owner
Where the ownership chain is not trust-based, our registration of overseas entities lawyers London page covers the standard service.
What Do the Register of Overseas Entities for Trusts Fees Cover?
All fees are fixed and quoted before we begin. Companies House fees are statutory, charged at cost and shown separately: from 1 February 2026 the Companies House registration fee is £250, the Companies House update fee £134 and the Companies House removal fee £301. Give us the title number of each UK property the entity holds and we confirm the scope on the first call.
| Service | Our fixed fee | Companies House fee |
|---|---|---|
| Overseas entity registration — standard Entity + up to 2 beneficial owners / managing officers, verification, OE VF01, filing, Overseas Entity ID | £1,200 | £250 |
| Trust supplement Trust as beneficial owner: verify the trust + up to 2 trustees or beneficiaries, prepare the trust information | £1,000 | — |
| Registration — complex (multi-layer ownership, nominees, more than 4 beneficial owners or more than one jurisdiction) | From £1,750 | £250 |
| Additional trustee, beneficiary, beneficial owner or managing officer (each) | £150 | — |
| Trust update — annual update statement where a trust is involved | £500 | £134 |
| Section 12 information notice drafted and served on a suspected beneficial owner | £150 | — |
| Fast-track — 24-hour priority handling of our work | £500 | — |
All professional fees plus VAT. Companies House fees are statutory, charged at cost and shown separately.
Our fast-track service prioritises our own handling; it cannot guarantee a Companies House decision within 24 hours. Entities that have sold all their UK land can instead instruct a removal application — £700 + VAT plus the £301 Companies House removal fee.
How Does Trust Verification and Filing Work?
Trust filings fail when a party is missed or the ownership chain is described inconsistently. We settle the scope before verification starts, so nothing is omitted and nothing is filed twice.
Call us and tell us what you need
We confirm where the trust sits, who must be reported and the fixed fee — usually on the first call.
Review the deed and chain
Our STEP-qualified principal maps the ownership chain and identifies every trustee, settlor, beneficiary and interested person.
Verify as UK-regulated agent
Identity verification of the entity, beneficial owners, trustees and beneficiaries — remotely, worldwide.
File with Companies House
Registration and trust information filed; Overseas Entity ID issued; annual update date diarised.
Are Trust Details on the Register Public?
Most information on the Register of Overseas Entities is public. Trust information is the exception: it is held by Companies House but is not displayed on the public register in the ordinary way. HMRC, law enforcement and certain other bodies can access it, and third parties can apply for trust information in limited circumstances under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 provisions. Individuals at serious risk of violence or intimidation can also apply to have their personal information protected — the protected information route — so that it is withheld from the public register.
Two points clients often confuse. First, HMRC’s Trust Registration Service is a separate regime — TRS registration does not discharge the ROE duty. Second, the update duty still applies: every overseas entity must file an annual update statement within 14 days of each anniversary, confirming or updating its trust disclosure, and pay the £134 Companies House update fee each time. We diarise the date and file the overseas entity update statement for you.
What Makes Trust Structures Difficult — and How We Deal with It
- Discretionary trusts — classes of beneficiary rather than named individuals; we describe the class correctly and verify the named parties who must be verified
- Offshore trustees and nominees — professional trustees in Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, the BVI or Cayman; we verify them using corporate registry evidence and certified documents
- Layered chains — trust → holding company → SPV → UK property; we map every layer so the beneficial owner analysis stands up to a Companies House query
- Section 12 notices — where a suspected beneficial owner will not engage, we draft and serve the statutory information notice for £150 + VAT
- Late or missed filings — if the trust was never disclosed, we regularise it; see our Register of Overseas Entities penalties page for what is at stake
- Exit — when the UK land is sold we can remove an overseas entity from the register for £700 + VAT
Why Instruct Edward Young Notaries & Lawyers for a Trust Structure?
- STEP-qualified principal — trust law expertise, not just form-filling; we read the deed and advise who is reportable
- UK-regulated agent and Authorised Corporate Service Provider — regulated by the Faculty Office, we hold an agent assurance code and complete verification in-house
- Fixed fees quoted first — £1,200 + VAT registration and £1,000 + VAT trust supplement; Companies House fees at cost
- Remote, worldwide — trustees and beneficiaries verified wherever they are; appointments at 19 Wigmore Street if you prefer
- Continuity — the same team handles the annual trust update and any later change of trustee or beneficiary
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Register of Overseas Entities for Trusts: FAQs
Address: 19 Wigmore Street, London W1U 1PH · Phone: +44 20 7499 2605 · Email: notary@notarypubliclondon.co.uk
Hours: Monday–Friday, 09:00–17:30
Regulated by the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury · Member of the Notaries Society · STEP-qualified principal · Registered Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP) with Companies House · UK-regulated agent for the Register of Overseas Entities
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Related Register of Overseas Entities Services
- → Register of Overseas Entities guide — the full 2026 picture
- → Registration of overseas entities lawyers London — standard registration, £1,200 + VAT
- → Overseas entity update statement — from £400 + VAT
- → Remove an overseas entity from the register — £700 + VAT
- → Register of Overseas Entities penalties — what happens if you miss a deadline
- → ID1 form verification for individuals — HM Land Registry identity check
- → ID2 form verification for companies buying or selling UK property
- → Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP) — what it means for your filings
Trust in the Ownership Chain? Call Us.
Fixed £1,200 + VAT registration plus £1,000 + VAT trust supplement. STEP-qualified, UK-regulated agent. Verified and filed within 24–48 hours. Tell us what you need.