Location: Europe

Jersey office

Jersey overview

Equiom Jersey

Equiom was established in Jersey in 2009, with the company’s fiduciary offering consolidated following the acquisition of Andium Trust Company Limited in 2012. Since then, strong organic growth combined with the acquisition of Lloyds Trust Company (Channel Islands) Limited and its subsidiaries in May 2015, and the acquisition of Vivat Trust & Corporate Services Limited in January 2016, have resulted in the significant development of Equiom’s Jersey office. We are proud to have been awarded Jersey Good Business Charter status. 

Why choose Jersey?

  • Politically and economically stable
  • Independent status has been maintained for more than 800 years
  • One of the best regulated international finance centres
  • Comprehensive and robust business, legal and communication infrastructure

Jersey Good Business Charter mark



Equiom (Jersey) Limited is regulated by the Jersey Financial Services Commission

Awards

  • ACQ5 Awards
    • Full Service Company Formation Services Provider of the Year Channel Islands - 2018
    • Trust Company of the Year - 2018
  • Citywealth - International Financial Centre Awards
    • Runner up: Jersey Trust Company of the Year - 2018

Jersey Services

Our Jersey team has a wealth of experience relating to the setting up and administration of trusts and companies, along with specialist skillsets including aviation and real estate.

  • Crewing Services

    A safe pair of hands at the helm

    Equiom Jersey is home to our crewing experts. Crewing an individual vessel or fleet of superyachts is something you have to navigate with care.

    We offer tailor-made crew employment services within dedicated crew structures for vessel owners and operators.  

    Our crewing services in Jersey include: 

    Owner services

    • Commercially efficient solutions to employment matters
    • Guidance to seafarer employment agreements
    • Comprehensive, fully automated payroll
    • Onshore contracting for new builds
    • Access to banking facilities
    • Cost effective administration, reporting and controls
    • Separation of owning structure and crew employer  
    • Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) compliant advice
    • Management of employer tax and social security liabilities
    • All seafarers are screened 
    • Seafarer handbook provided covering all employer / employee policies and procedures

    Crewing services

    • Dedicated employer owing duty of care
    • Direct access to crew manager / employer
    • Multi-currency and split payment functionality
    • Assistance with opening offshore bank accounts
    • Full reporting of salary payments
    • Provision of length of service documentation
    • Crew pensions
       
  • International Pensions Plans and Employee Benefits

    International employee benefit schemes are a key consideration for employers who wish to retain and attract the best talent, ensuring a loyal and dedicated workforce.

    Most employees now expect global pension plans and end of service benefits as a vital part of their overall compensation package.

    Equiom has considerable experience in this area and offers a number of options when it comes to trustee services for pension arrangements, from employee benefits schemes and pensions to savings and share plans for expatriates and employers.

    Our range of services are offered in a number of jurisdictions around the world and include:

    • End of Service Benefit Plans
    • International Pension Plans 
    • Employee Benefit Trusts 
    • Employee Ownership Trusts 

    End of Service Benefit Plans

    End of service gratuity is a statutory obligation for companies across many Middle Eastern jurisdictions and is designed to help fund employees’ future retirement needs. The requirement for a company to pay End of Service Benefits (ESBs) is well known in this region and a frequently talked about subject. Equiom are the market leading trustee in the Middle East with over 20 years of experience and hold the prestigious role of Master Trustee to the DIFC Workplace Savings Plan (DEWS).

    International Pension Plans

    An International Pension Plan (IPP) involves a defined contribution plan that combines investment, administration and trust services which can be tailored to your company’s specific needs.

    IPPs are particularly popular with companies who have employees who work abroad on international assignments or are employed on a globally mobile basis.

    IPPs enable organisations to offer an advantageous pension scheme as part of an employee’s remuneration package - essential for attracting and retaining talent for multinational corporations.

    Employers have been utilising IPP arrangements over the years as an ideal solution for employees that either:

    • Move from their home country and are not able to remain in their home country pension scheme
    • Are employed in a country that has insufficient or no pension availability
    • Require a ‘top up’ to the local pension provision

    IPPs provide flexibility in several areas such as:

    • Contribution percentages for both employers and employees 
    • Currency and type of investment 
    • Vesting scales for employer contributions
    • Number of countries and employer linked entities included in the IPP
    • Benefit distribution options – lump sum, annuity, drawdown
    • Portability of the members' pension pot

    Employee Benefit Trusts

    Employee Benefit Trusts (EBTs) have been established for several years to encourage employee share participation, acting as an important incentive for staff loyalty and productivity.

    The term EBT is applied to a number of different types of trust. In general, an employer sets up an EBT as a vehicle to reward, motivate and incentivise employees. The benefits provided may be a share of profits, shares in the employer company, cash distributions or other employee incentives.

    The features of EBTs include:

    • A discretionary trust holding assets on behalf of a class of beneficiaries
    • The trust is funded by the employer company
    • The trustees provide employee benefits in recognition of performance and other related factors
    • It is at the decision of the trustees only as to whom may benefit from the trust assets and the extent of such benefit

    Benefits of EBTs:

    • Share warehousing removes complex and costly UK share buyback provisions
    • Private equity - allowing the company to buy back shares of a departing executive
    • EBTs have been used as a market maker for the sale and purchase of shares in the employer company
    • Tax considerations including capital gains tax and corporation tax

    Employee Ownership Trusts 

    An Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) is a form of trust which holds the shares in a trading company for the benefit of employees. Unlike a conventional employee benefit trust, any benefit it confers on employees must include all of them (although a qualifying period of up to 12 months is allowed) on the same terms. EOTs allow shareholders of trading companies to sell some or all of their shares, while allowing those companies to continue under the same stewardship, creating a platform for continued growth and success.

    Benefits of EOTs:

    • Shareholders can sell their shares for full market value (based on an independent valuation)
    • The directors and senior management can remain in place and continue to run the company
    • No capital gains, income or inheritance tax liabilities should arise on the disposal of a controlling interest in a company to an EOT (or on the subsequent receipt of the purchase price by the former shareholders)
    • Companies controlled by EOTs are also able to pay to employees cash bonuses of up to £3,600 each year without any income tax liability, provided that these are paid to all qualifying employees on the same terms

     

    For more information regarding any of the above plans, please get in touch with Chris CainMary Craven, Graham Marsh.

     
    Equiom Fiduciary Services (Middle East) Limited is the Master Trustee and Operator of DEWS and is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA). 
    This material is intended only for Professional Clients and Market Counterparties as defined by the DFSA, and no other person should act upon it. However all employers and employees participating in an Employee Money Purchase Scheme will be treated as Retail Clients under the DFSA requirements.
    Any underlying investment options which may be selected in the structure can carry investment risk, whereby the value of the underlying investments can go down as well as up.
  • Registered Office Services

    Equiom can provide registered office services to your Jersey incorporated company should you wish to manage the company yourself. 

    Our registered office only services include:

    • Registered office
    • Application for company name
    • Formation documentation and registration of a company
    • Inaugural board meeting minutes and associated documents
    • Company Secretary, if required
    • Custody and maintenance of the registers of directors and secretary
    • Custody and maintenance of the register of members
    • Provision of statutory books and corporate seal
    • Filing and providing documents and information to the company as required by Jersey Law
    • Review of annual financial statements
    • Annual Data Protection registration
    • Preparation and submission of regulatory tax filing
  • Structure Set Up & Support Services

    Our corporate insight gives you valuable foresight

    In addition to services to trusts, we have extensive corporate management capabilities and provide professional directors to company boards on either a fully managed basis, or in certain circumstances, a mixed board scenario.

    We pride ourselves on our corporate governance standards, ensuring that robust records are maintained, any relevant substance requirements are met, and that mind, management and control can be clearly demonstrated.

    We take our board positions seriously, matching the appropriate experience to the boards we represent.  We can provide both personal and corporate directors but, in each case, we carry out our duties in line with the personal responsibility which is attached to such fiduciary positions and are regularly involved in strategy discussions, commercial decision making with in relation to the operations of the assets within the company and of course managing any creditors.

    Our experience in managing corporate structures ranges from simple investment holding companies to the ownership and operation of multimillion pound shopping centres, business parks, and offices where we are involved in the daily decision making for entry into and delivery of contractual obligations relating to matters such as (but not limited to) tenancies, financing, insurance and dispute resolution.

    Our structure set up & support services in Jersey include:

    • Company incorporation and registration
    • Key personnel, including company directors, nominee shareholders and company secretarial services
    • Registered office facilities 
    • Provision of fiduciary and legal requirements
    • Registered agent facilities
    • Corporate strategy and objectives
    • Escrow services
    • Redomiciliation
  • Trustee & Fiduciary Services

    Trust is something that is earned

    We are proud to have an enviable reputation as leading professional trustees in Jersey formed from years of experience in the industry and are dedicated to maintaining the prosperity of our clients.

    Operating throughout the world’s most stable and reputable jurisdictions, our international fiduciary specialists identify the most appropriate structures to protect and enhance your private wealth or corporate assets.

    We aim to give you more control over your assets today, and more confidence about your holdings tomorrow – helping ensure that your family, employees, or favoured charities are well looked after for years to come.

    Our experienced teams operate in both common law and civil law jurisdictions. We guide you through the complexities of local laws and regulations to find the right solution for you, arranging the initial establishment of a trust or foundation and administering it carefully to maximise the benefits. We ensure its legal and tax status is maintained and provide regular accounting and financial reporting.

    Our fiduciary services in Jersey include:

    • Establishment and administration of trusts and foundations, which can hold a variety of financial and non-financial assets
    • Dedicated accounting and financial reporting
    • Estate planning
    • The establishment and maintenance of banking relationships

    We can also assist with:

    • Private trust companies
    • Managed trust companies
    • Employee benefit trusts
    • Employee ownership trusts
    • Charitable trusts
    • Property unit trusts
    • Purpose trusts
    • Will trusts / pilot trusts
    • Executor services
    • Pre-IPO trusts

Jersey Team

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