STEP met HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) this week to discuss the backlog of applications and continued disruption to the Probate Service. HMCTS representatives explained its old database needed to be upgraded, which had prompted the decision to move to digital software. The new system was scheduled to go live in January but was… Read More STEP meets HMCTS to discuss EW probate delays
Update 18 July: The probate fees order has not been scheduled for debate in the week commencing 22 July. As this will be the final week before the UK Parliament rises for its summer recess, and the end of the parliamentary session, the order cannot now be debated or passed until parliament returns on 3… Read More What’s happening with the EW probate fees order?
The UK Treasury has published a consultation paper on the transposition of the EU’s Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive (5AMLD), which expands upon the scope of registration for trusts and widens the accessibility provisions to the beneficial ownership records. The 5AMLD Directive provides for public access, but it is up to each Member State to decide… Read More 5AMLD consultation: STEP’s view
HMRC has identified the most common errors made by financial institutions (FIs) when filing their Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) returns, which include Common Reporting Standard (CRS) and Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) reportable information. 1. The FI misunderstands what constitutes an undocumented account FIs are wrongly reporting accounts as ‘undocumented’ on the basis… Read More HMRC’s five traps to avoid with CRS/FATCA reporting
Entries are open for the 2019/20 STEP Private Client Awards until 30 April. The Awards are widely acknowledged as being the premier event in the private client industry calendar. Winning an Award is a very clear and recognised hallmark of excellence. How then, do you go about winning an Award? John Barnett TEP, Chair of… Read More How to win a STEP Private Client Award 2019/20
This Blog will be updated with developments on the Non-Contentious Probate Fees Order 2018 as they occur. Background and details on the proposals, including the fee structure, can be found here. 10 May 2019: What’s happening with the Probate Fees order? 7 February 2019: A House of Commons Delegated Legislation Committee has voted 9 to… Read More England & Wales probate fees: an update
STEP’s GDPR working group recently hosted a roundtable event that enabled representatives from professional bodies, including the Law Society, ICAEW and CIOT, to update each other on their progress in relation to GDPR implementation. It is widely felt by the private client industry that when the legislation was drafted it was not designed with trust… Read More GDPR Roundtable
As I come to the end of my term as Chair of STEP’s England and Wales Regional Committee, I wanted to reflect on some of the developments since I took on the role in January 2017. Raising our profile Internally at STEP, much of the emphasis over my time as Chair has been on raising… Read More What’s happening in England and Wales?
STEP took part in the EC-HCCH Joint Conference on the Cross-Border Protection of Vulnerable Adults last week in Brussels, to discuss the ratification of the Hague Convention of 13 January 2000 on the International Protection of Adults (the Hague Convention) at EU and global level and the possible future EU legislative initiatives in this field.… Read More Cross-border protection of vulnerable adults in Europe under discussion
UPDATE 07/12/2018 The Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments’ full report (PDF) has now been published and includes the following conclusion: The Committee draws the special attention of both Houses to this draft Order on the grounds that, if it is approved and made, there will be a doubt whether it is intra vires, and that… Read More Committee draws probate fees legislation to UK parliament’s special attention
The STEP Blog 