The IRD has recently made changes to the annual reporting requirements for domestic trusts, so that they can better understand and monitor the use of trusts and their financial positions.
From this year (2021-2022) and onwards, any trust that receives an income will need to provide financial statements and complete tax returns as well as providing more information on your IR6 about the trust’s:
Earnings
Financial Position
Settlements
Settlors
Distributions
Beneficiaries
Powers of Appointment
Whilst many trusts will need to comply with these new rules, there are several that are excluded:
Non-active
Foreign
Charitable
Eligible to Māori authority
Widely-held superannuation funds
Exempt employee share schemes
Debt funding special purpose vehicles
Energy line trusts
An estate, as long as property isn’t being held on trust for beneficiaries
If in the tax year the trust has not had income other than $200 or less of bank interest and has had no deductions you may be eligible to make a non-active trust declaration.
We will be going through all the trusts and if your trust falls under these new rules then we’ll be in touch to discuss the next steps, likewise if your trust is eligible for a non-active trust declaration. If you would like to read more about the new changes you can read the ‘NZ Domestic Trust Disclosure Rules’ here. Or visit www.ird.govt.nz/trusts If you do have any questions regarding these new changes do give us a call on 07 578 5416