Trust registrations

Learn how trust registration affects landholder duty concessions

Key information

The trustee of a unit trust scheme can apply to register the scheme as:

Registration provides concessionary treatment under the landholder provisions. A scheme that would otherwise be treated as a private unit trust scheme is treated as a public unit trust scheme or a wholesale unit trust scheme.

Benefits of registration

The benefit of registering a scheme as a declared public unit trust scheme is that acquisitions of less than 90% are generally not subject to duty under the landholder provisions. However, depending on the conditions attached to the scheme’s registration, an acquisition of an interest of less than 90% may result in a liability for duty if a disqualifying circumstance occurs.

For a scheme registered as a wholesale unit trust scheme, imminent wholesale unit trust scheme or declared wholesale unit trust scheme, the acquisition of units is only subject to duty if a person acquires an interest of 50% or more (rather than 20% or more in a private unit trust scheme).

Registration of a unit trust scheme usually starts from the date an application is made. Registration can be backdated to a date before the application was made if:

the unit trust scheme met the registration criteria at that time, and
the Commissioner is satisfied there are good reasons to do so.

However, the Commissioner will not backdate a registration to prevent a liability from arising on an acquisition of an interest in the scheme. In these circumstances, the Commissioner takes the view that registration of the scheme is being sought for the purpose (or collateral purpose) of avoiding or reducing the duty otherwise applicable under the Duties Act 2000 (the Act).

For more information on registering a unit trust scheme, refer to:

Updated: 9 September 2026