Seychelles Trust

2. Key Features of Seychelles International Trust:

• Functionaries of trust are settlor, trustee, beneficiary and protector
• Minimum assets of a Seychelles International Trust is USD 1
• Constitutional document is Trust Deed, not available to public
• Trust duration period is 100years, whereas charitable trust can be formed for perpetuity
• Change domicile of a Seychelles International Trust is permitted
• Seychelles International Trust Exempt from all taxes in Seychelles

3. Restrictions of a Seychelles International Trust:

• Seychelles International Trust cannot hold immovable property in Seychelles
• Seychelles International Trust cannot own shares of companies registered in Seychelles (Trust can hold shares of IBC)
• Settlor of a Seychelles International Trust cannot be resident of Seychelles
• Settlor of a Seychelles International Trust cannot be sole beneficiary of Trust

4. The Settlor:

Is the person who “provides trust property or makes a testamentary disposition on trust or to a trust.” The settlor, creates the Trust by placing certain property that s/he owns into the Trust, i.e. by transferring that asset to another person (Trustee) along with the clear instructions that the asset be held for the benefit of a third party.

The Settlor of a Seychelles International Trust may be either an individual or a legal entity.

5. The Protector:

Is not a mandatory party to all Seychelles International Trust, but maybe chosen by the Settlor. The Protector supervise the Trustee, thus providing additional assurances to the Settlor that the trust assets are properly managed.

The Seychelles International Trust Act does not specifically refer to protectors or guardians, but does expressly provide for the establishment of Trusts, which require the trustee to consult or obtain the consent of another person before exercising a particular function. As, such there is no impediment to the appointment of a protector or guardian. However, the appointment terms and the powers of the protector should be explicitly set forth in the Trust Deed or other appointment instrument in order to maintain the formalities required by the International Trust Act.

6. The Trustee:

Is legal entity to which the Settlor transfers legal title to the Trust asset(s). While being the holder of the legal title means the trustee is in full control of the trust assets, the Trustee is nevertheless under a legal obligation to exercise a heightened fiduciary duty of care- trustees must maintain trust property in the best possible manner for the benefit of the Beneficiaries. Moreover, the Trustee is legally precluded from using the trust assets for his own ends, as the beneficial ownership resides with the Beneficiary.

The minimum number of Trustee in a Seychelles International Trust is one (1), and must be a licensed Trustee in Seychelles.

7. The Beneficiary:

Is the third party for whose benefit and profit the trust asset is held and managed by the Trustee. The Beneficiary of Beneficiaries may be either specifically named in the Trust Deed or may be a sufficiently defined group of persons. The Settlor of the Seychelles International Trust may also be named as the Beneficiary, but may not be the sole beneficiary. Seychelles also supports trust for charitable purposes, and general purpose trusts.

8. Taxation of a Seychelles International Trust:

As long as all Seychelles International Trust income is derived from outside of the Seychelles, then Seychelles International Trusts, and the respective trust property is permanently exempt from income and business tax, estate, inheritance, succession or gift tax and all instruments relating to the trust property or to transactions carried out by the trustee on behalf of the trust are exempt from stamp duty.