This course provides an end-to-end overview of trusts, aligned to their full lifecycle-from understanding what a trust is and how it is created and registered, through to its ongoing management, tax compliance and eventual termination. It covers the different types of trusts, the roles and responsibilities of trustees and beneficiaries and the practical aspects of dealing with trust assets, contracts and distributions.

A focus is placed on tax and regulatory considerations, including determining trust residency (place of incorporation and effective management), the application of Double Taxation Agreements, Section 7C estate-pegging implications and the broader reasons trusts attract scrutiny from a tax perspective.

The course addresses inter vivos trust advantages and disadvantages, offshore trust considerations and structures where trusts hold shares in companies or close corporations. Participants will further benefit from insights into current legislative and case law developments (2025 - 2026), ensuring an up-to-date and practical understanding relevant to estate planning, advisory and fiduciary practice.