ABSTRACT
Taxation may impact on trusts at various levels, namely at the settlor or beneficiary level; or, conversely, within the settlor's jurisdiction or in the offshore jurisdiction where the trust has been established. In respect of trusts established in the offshore financial centres, the majority of such jurisdictions do not impose a tax on trusts or indeed trust distributions, provided that the beneficiary is not resident in the offshore jurisdiction. Notwithstanding this generous tax position, it is still necessary to examine how the trust may be used within a double taxation treaty perspective, and to explore the tax and regulatory forces within jurisdictions such as the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States of America which impact on the use of trusts as planning vehicles in the offshore financial centres with their liberally certified trust statutes.
