Can an irrevocable trust be changed in Hong Kong?

No. A company is a separate legal person with shareholders and directors. A trust is a relationship: the trustee owns the assets for the beneficiaries under the deed. Trusts often hold companies, such as a holding company over a family business.

A Hong Kong trustee holds the assets as legal owner and manages them for the beneficiaries under the deed, the common law and the Trustee Ordinance (Cap. 29). It keeps records, accounts and minutes, takes the decisions the deed gives it, runs identity checks and files reporting returns with the Inland Revenue Department where required.

A conversation about the family, the assets and the aim, so we can say which structure fits. We reply with the questions that matter for your case, and the identity checks start once you decide to go ahead. The stages after that, and the documents for each, are in the step-by-step set-up guide.

Read the step-by-step set-up guide

No. Settlors who live outside Hong Kong can use a Hong Kong trustee. The trustee must be able to verify who you are, where the assets came from and who the beneficiaries are. Your home-country adviser reviews your own tax position.

Often, yes. The usual route is a deed of retirement and appointment: the current trustee retires and a Hong Kong trustee is appointed. The trust's deed and governing law decide whether that works. We can also administer a trust alongside its trustee.

Yes. Holding shares in a family company is a common reason to set up a trust, usually through a holding company. Moving Hong Kong shares can involve stamp duty under the Stamp Duty Ordinance (Cap. 117), so the law firm checks this when the structure is designed.

Sometimes. It depends on the deed and the governing law. Many deeds let the trustee or a protector change administrative terms or add beneficiaries. Where the deed gives no such power, your lawyer advises whether any other route exists before a change is attempted.

Often, if the deed allows it. You can keep investment decisions yourself or appoint a professional manager. How far a reservation works depends on the deed's wording and the governing law. The trustee still holds the assets and keeps the records.

Usually your hopes for how the trustee uses its discretion: who should benefit, when children should receive money, and how a family company or other key assets should be handled. For a Hong Kong trust the letter guides the trustee but does not bind it, and you can update it whenever circumstances change.

Usually, if the deed gives someone that power. Many deeds let the trustee add or exclude beneficiaries, often with the protector's consent. The power and its steps are written in at the start, so think ahead about children and marriages.

The trust continues under its deed. For assets already placed in the trust, the trustee keeps following the deed and any letter of wishes; your lawyer confirms this for assets in other countries. Other assets follow the will or intestacy rules.

A trust sets out who benefits and when, under a deed that stays in force after the settlor's death. A will, powers of attorney and the trust work together, and your lawyer designs the set. Advisers check the tax effects.

We cannot say, and we do not promise any tax result. The effect depends on where you, your beneficiaries and your assets are, and how the trust is built and run. Your tax advisers confirm the position before you sign.

Yes. Book a call to talk through your family, your assets and the aim of the trust. We explain how the structure works and what we need, and you bring in your own advisers when ready. You can also request a quote first.

The purpose of the trust, a rough list of assets and where they sit, the people you want to benefit, and the names of your lawyer and tax adviser if you have them. None of it needs to be final.

Ask how the trustee verifies identity, who handles your trust day to day, how decisions and records are kept, how reporting is handled, and how fees are quoted. Ask for the answers in writing and compare them with your lawyer's view.