Two industry technical veterans - with over 80 years experience between them - have set up a new business to help trustees cope with changing legislation.

Nick Edwards and John Woolley have set up Trustee Support Services (TSS) to respond to the widening of the scope of the Trust Registration Service (TRS). 

New trustee registration rules were published on 1 September and the new firm’s website went live last week.

The company believes that it is likely that many thousands of existing trusts will need to be registered by 1 September 2022 as well as new trusts (including pilot trusts and bypass trusts that may not hold any assets of significance during the settlor's lifetime).

TSS has been launched to help register trusts on the TRS on behalf of trustees. 

HMRC launched the updated Trust Registration Service (TRS) and new rules on trust registration on 1 September to comply with the Fifth Money Laundering Directive. 

Most existing and new express trusts now need to register on the TRS (previously only trusts that had incurred a tax liability had to register). The deadline for existing trusts to register is 1 September 2022. New trusts must register within 90 days of creation or by 1 September 2022 if later. 

Mr Edwards said the initial focus with TSS is to act as agent for trustees to register their trusts on the TRS.

He said that while trustees were able to do this themselves the TRS was not “particularly user friendly” and he believes many lay trustees may find it daunting. 

Mr Edwards also run their own consultancies separately: Mr Edwards firm is Consultniks and Mr Wooley’s is called Wooltech Limited, a firm he set up earlier this year after retiring from Technical Connection, a well known consultancy and education service.