A trust office (trustkantoor) is a Dutch service provider that holds a licence from De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) to provide trust services to legal entities and companies. These services include acting as a director, providing a registered address together with other administrative services, and acting as an administrative representative. Local Management is a DNB-licensed trust office.
What a Trust Office Does
Under the Act on the Supervision of Trust Offices 2018 (Wtt 2018), the main trust services are:
- Managing legal entities, for example acting as director of a Dutch BV on behalf of its owners.
- Domiciliation combined with other services, such as providing a registered address together with record-keeping, tax return preparation or preparing financial statements.
- Trustee services, such as acting as trustee for a shareholding.
- General administrative representation, such as signing on behalf of a legal entity under a power of attorney.
Who Uses a Trust Office
Typical clients are foreign-owned groups with a Dutch holding or finance company, funds and investment structures, and international families who own companies in the Netherlands. They use a trust office when they need a local director, a Dutch registered address or help with corporate administration.
What a Trust Office Is Not
A trust office is not a bank, and it does not give tax advice to the same clients for whom it provides trust services. Tax and legal advice come from your own advisers, while the trust office handles management, domiciliation and compliance.
Why the Licence Matters
Providing trust services professionally or commercially without a DNB licence is prohibited in the Netherlands. A licensed trust office is supervised by DNB and must carry out due diligence on its clients. Read more in our article on the Wtt 2018, or see how a trust office is priced in What does a trust office cost?
Questions about this topic? Talk to Rolf Wemmi, Director of Corporate Clients at Local Management, via rolf@localmanagement.nl or +31 20 737 2217.