New Trust Act – January 2021

If you’re protecting your family property in a trust, there may be changes you need to make before the new Trusts Act comes into force in January 2021. The changes to the Trusts Act (the first in more than 60 years!) aim to make trust law more efficient and accessible, simplify core trust principles and essential obligations for trustees, and make it easier to resolve disputes. The Trusts Act puts into law the duties of trustees and requires much greater transparency around trust activity.

With these changes, trustees now face increased compliance requirements. Here’s what you need to do.

1. Review your trust: Talk to us and your lawyer to review arrangements for your trust. There might be opportunities to improve your tax structure and reduce your risk profile.

2. Revisit your succession planning: The new legislation has extended the maximum life-span of trusts by 80 years, to 125 years. This means you’ll need to make significant succession planning adjustments.

3. Be prepared for beneficiary requests: The new law means most trust beneficiaries will be able to request financial reports on the state of the family trust and find out ‘who gets what’. Be prepared for extra admin and costs.

4. Compliance duties will increase the time and cost of administering some trusts, meaning some are no longer cost-effective.

5. Know your responsibilities as a trustee, which include:
a. Knowing the terms of the trust
b. Acting according to the terms of the trust
c. Acting honestly and in good faith
d. Acting for the benefit of the beneficiaries, or to further the permitted purpose of the Trust

ASWEFA has been benefiting from the outstanding service Tael Solutions has provided for a number of years. During these years ASWEFA has changed names, expanded from one company holding to 6 company holdings as we have franchised and developed 3 new sites and franchises. We not only contract Tael for monthly and annual account processing but they also manage our Trust accounts and IRD requirements. As well as this we hold quarterly financial meetings to have them assist us to explore and set financial goals and address areas of increased costings or potential sales opportunities to ensure we run at maximum capacity. These meetings involve looking at everything from staff capacity and future requirements to site/machinery/technical requirements to ensure we are future proofing our business as much as possible. They know our business well and can make observations with a fresh set of eyes that always provoke new thoughts and ideas. We are privileged to provide this reference and recommend Tael for any business big or small – but in particular if you are wanting to grow as they have become an integral part of our business and contributed to our success.

Treena Myers - ASWEFA Regional Office - Forklift training providers

I moved our law firm’s accountancy and business advisory work to TAEL Solutions over a year ago now and I have been consistently impressed with its energy, focus, and command over every aspect of how the business side of our practice operates and augmenting a better run, more efficient business. I highly recommend TAEL solutions to those looking to improve their business financial performance.

I moved our law firm’s accountancy and business advisory work to TAEL Solutions over a year ago now and I have been consistently impressed with its energy, focus, and command over every aspect of how the business side of our practice operates and augmenting a better run, more efficient business. I highly recommend TEAL solutions to those looking to improve their business financial performance.

Doug Cowan - Cowan Law

I wish I had found the team at Tael earlier! As a small business owner with minimal experience and understanding of Accounting and Bookkeeping, I've learnt a valuable lesson: 'surround yourself with the right people' The contrast between Tael Solutions and my previous firm couldn't be greater. They understand my business and provide the insight, recommendations and guidance that I so desperately needed. The team at Tael are a pleasure to deal with and I am confident that I'm in good hands.

Mike Covich - LocoMedia Limited

TAEL Solutions Ltd have been processing our accounts for two years now. For the first year they completed and prepared the annual accounts prior to auditing and for the second year we moved to full monthly accounts and looking after all tax issues, right through to Board Reports and preparation for auditing. As a Not for Profit organisation we especially appreciate the advice we get in regards to our responsibilities in our reporting for Community Services (Department of Internal Affairs) and our major grant providers. We are a small team and prefer to put our efforts into the provision of support services to our “kids” and their families. I would recommend Natasha and the team at TAEL Solutions to any SME or NFP requiring accounting services and professional support to help grow their business and to ensure that good accounting and governance practices are provided.

Keith Mackenzie - Chief Executive, Kidney Kids NZ

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New Trust Act – January 2021

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