Documents needed to change trustee: the checklist to print

The documents needed to change trustee fall into six families: the trust deed and its amendments, the record of decisions, the accounts, the list of bank and custody relationships, the identity and ownership file, and the correspondence that explains how the trust has really been run. A new trustee cannot judge what it is taking on, or draft a clean deed of appointment, until it has seen all six.

This page is a working list. Print it, tick it off, and note against each line who holds the original. If you are still weighing whether to move at all, read switch trustee or stay and fix first; if the decision is made, the sequence is in changing trustee step by step.

Why the paperwork comes before the move

A trust has no legal personality of its own. What exists is a deed, a set of assets held by the trustee, and a history of decisions. When the trustee changes, the incoming trustee inherits duties that were shaped by that history. Missing pages are therefore not a clerical detail: they are gaps in what the new trustee can verify.

A Swiss trustee that acts professionally is an authorised financial institution under the FinIA (LEFin, FINIG). It is authorised by FINMA, and its day-to-day supervision is carried out by a supervisory organisation that FINMA itself authorises and oversees. Changes in the facts on which an authorisation rests must be reported to that organisation in advance. For you, the practical consequence is that an incoming trustee will ask for a complete file, because it has its own onboarding and anti-money-laundering (AMLA, GwG) duties to meet before it accepts the role. For more on what that approval covers, see FINMA and SO-FIT: what trustee approval means for you.

Where each document sits and who supplies it

The table below maps the core documents to the place they are normally found and the person who can release them. In many trusts the outgoing trustee holds most originals, but the settlor, the protector and the family's advisers often hold copies that fill the gaps.

Deed, amendments and appointments

Start with the instrument that governs everything. You need the signed trust deed with every schedule, and each amendment, restatement or deed of addition that followed. A deed that was varied twice and restated once may exist as four separate documents, and only the full set shows the current terms.

Then gather every earlier deed of retirement and appointment. They show how the trustee came to be in office and whether past changes followed the power of appointment in the deed. If the settlor kept any reserved powers, or a protector holds the power to remove and appoint, note it now: that person's signature may be needed on the new deed.

Minutes, resolutions and the record of decisions

Minutes and written resolutions are the evidence of how discretion has been exercised. Ask for the register of distributions, loans and investment decisions, along with the reasoning recorded for each. Gaps are common, and an incoming trustee will want to know about them early rather than discover them later; the case in an independent review reveals missing minutes shows how that conversation tends to go.

Accounts and the bank list

Request the trust accounts for every year since the trust began, or as far back as records exist, together with the latest management accounts. If the trust owns a company, add the accounts and statutory records of each underlying entity.

Alongside them, build a bank and custody list. For each account note the institution, the account holder name, the type of account, the people with signing authority and the date it was opened. Banks will need to be told about the change, and some will treat the new trustee as a fresh client. The practical side is covered in your trustee and the trust bank accounts.

Identity and ownership file

The incoming trustee must identify the settlor, any protector, the beneficiaries and anyone who exercises control, in line with anti-money-laundering rules. Gather certified identity documents, proof of address, and the source-of-wealth explanation held on file. Include the self-certification forms used for automatic exchange of information (AEOI, CRS), and any status information the trust holds under US or other foreign reporting regimes.

If a settlor or beneficiary is a US person, say so at the outset; it changes the questions a new trustee will ask, as set out in questions for your trustee.

Letters of wishes and correspondence

Include the current letter of wishes and earlier versions. Add correspondence with beneficiaries that records requests, complaints or promises, and any advice received on tax or on the trust's structure. These papers explain why decisions were taken and help the new trustee keep continuity without repeating mistakes.

The printable checklist

• Signed trust deed with all schedules
• Every amendment, restatement and deed of addition
• All deeds of retirement and appointment, including the original appointment
• Register of trustee decisions, minutes and written resolutions
• Trust accounts for every year available, plus the latest management accounts
• Accounts and statutory records of each company the trust owns
• Bank and custody list with signatories and opening dates
• Certified identity documents for settlor, protector, beneficiaries and controllers
• Source-of-wealth explanation held on file
• AEOI and CRS self-certifications and other tax-status forms
• Current and earlier letters of wishes
• Correspondence on complaints, requests and advice received
• Contact details for the drafting lawyer, accountant and protector

One line filled in, as an example

Fictional illustration: a family settled in Lausanne holds a trust set up by a grandmother. One row of their list reads as follows.

A table like this, one line per document, turns a vague worry into a short list of requests. Mark anything missing in plain words. A frank list helps a new trustee scope its review and shapes how the independent review of an existing trust is run.

What to do with gaps

Some documents will not be found. Do not recreate them from memory and do not backdate anything. Record what is missing, who said it should exist, and what you did to look for it. The outgoing trustee has duties to hand over records, and what it must release is described in the handover file from the outgoing trustee. If the outgoing trustee is slow or unresponsive, see replacing a failing trustee.

The incoming trustee will decide what it needs to accept the role. Its requirements depend on the structure, the assets and the countries involved, so they cannot be fixed in advance. Fees depend on the structure and are indicated after the confidential assessment.