As we approach 30 June 2025, I wanted to remind you of a few important year-end trust matters that may require your attention:

1. Trustee Resolutions Must Be Made by 30 June 2025

To ensure trust distributions are effective for the 2024–25 financial year, trustee resolutions must be documented on or before 30 June. Late or undocumented resolutions could result in the trustee being taxed at the top marginal rate.

The ATO has published a helpful checklist for trustees, which you can read here:
🔗 ATO EOFY Checklist for Trustees

If you need help preparing your trustee resolution, please let me know—I’m happy to assist.

2. Update on Trust Beneficiaries

Please also let me know if there have been any changes to your trust’s beneficiaries, such as:

• A child turning 18 during the financial year
• A new adult joining the family group

These changes may require updates to the trust documentation and notification to the ATO.

3. Update on the Bendel Case – Company Loans to Trusts

You may have heard about the recent Bendel case, which could impact how loans from private companies to trusts are treated for tax purposes.

Historically, if a private company with retained earnings lends money to a trust (particularly within the same family group), the ATO has taken the position that the loan is subject to Division 7A under section 109D—requiring the loan to be on compliant terms or treated as a deemed dividend. However, the Tribunal in the Bendel case found that these kinds of loans may not fall under Division 7A at all. This could apply to situations where:

• A trust receives a loan from a related private company
• The trust is a shareholder or associate of that company
• There are unpaid present entitlements (UPEs) or cash movements between entities in your group

That said, the ATO has been granted leave to appeal this decision to the High Court. We aren’t expecting a resolution of the case til the end of this calendar year now, so this position may change again

If your structure includes trusts and private companies with inter-entity loans or UPEs, and you’re not sure whether this case affects you, please reach out and I’ll be happy to discuss it with you.

If you need any assistance with documentation or have questions about your trust or company structure, feel free to get in touch.