Family Trusts

Discover clear and practical steps to confidently establish and manage a family trust Family trusts can be a game-changer for protecting your assets, managing your wealth and securing your family's financial future—but they're often misunderstood. Family Trusts: A Plain-English Guide for Australian Families cuts through the complexity, simplifies legal and financial processes, and offers clear explanations and advice that you can really use. This book will help you decide if a family trust is right for you, then provide simple steps that enable you to make informed decisions and confidently engage with advisers. Fully updated to reflect current laws and legislation, this sixth edition is essential for navigating the modern finance and taxation landscape. Inside, you'll discover how to: Evaluate trusts: Weigh the advantages and disadvantages to determine if a trust is right for you—and identify alternative strategies Navigate tax and social security: Understand tax obligations, capital gains and how trusts impact benefits Protect your assets: Help safeguard against creditors and bankruptcy using strategic trust structures Tailor your trust: Explore discretionary trusts, unitised trusts and philanthropic uses, with the help of practical case studies This expertly written guide includes updates on trustee qualifications, hybrid trusts, non-resident beneficiaries, and key legislative changes. It is a must-have resource for anyone looking to preserve their family's prosperity for generations to come.

About the authors vii Preface ix 1. The concept of a trust 1 2. Modern family trusts — advantages and disadvantages 9 3. Types of family trusts 29 4. The trustee 39 5. Administrative aspects of a trust 63 6. Income tax as it relates to trusts and trust distributions 85 7. Capital gains tax 103 8. Taxation of family trusts 113 9. The family discretionary trust 137 10. Trust accounting 147 11. Social security 155 12. Investment decisions 171 13. Other types of trusts 177 14. Other issues to consider 197 Appendix A: Wills and trusts compared and contrasted 221 Appendix B: Differences between trust deeds and powers of attorney 223 Appendix C: Tax rates 2024–25 225 Glossary 229 Index 253