Families rarely live according to a fixed plan. Circumstances change, priorities shift, and no trust deed can account for every possibility. When uncertainty arises, trustees must interpret what the settlor intended and apply judgment that reflects both the law and the family’s values.
A letter of wishes helps bridge that gap. It allows the settlor to express intent in plain terms, giving trustees context for decisions that involve education, support, or long-term preservation of wealth. The document carries influence without altering the deed itself, serving as a private record of what the settlor would have said if present.
In trust planning, the letter of wishes has become a practical companion to the deed. It transforms abstract legal authority into guidance shaped by experience, family history, and the priorities of the person who created the trust.
What Is a Letter of Wishes
A trust is a legal arrangement in which assets are transferred to a trustee, who manages them for the benefit of others. The person who creates the trust is known as the settlor. While the trust deed sets out the legal framework, it cannot always account for personal values, family dynamics, or future uncertainties. To bridge that gap, many people include a letter of wishes.
Purpose and Nature
A letter of wishes is a non-binding document written by the settlor to express how they would like the trustee to handle matters such as distributions, investments, or support for beneficiaries. It acts as a practical reference that helps the trustee interpret the settlor’s broader intentions.
In practice, a letter of wishes might include:
- Guidance on using trust income or capital to support education, such as school fees or university expenses for children and grandchildren.
- Requests to assist with housing, healthcare, or other needs that promote financial stability and quality of life for family members.
- Preferences regarding the trust’s investment approach, including the desired level of risk or focus on long-term preservation and growth.
- Instructions on charitable giving, such as maintaining family donation traditions or contributing to specific causes.
- Suggestions for responding to unexpected events, including illness, incapacity, or changes in family circumstances.
By outlining these themes, the settlor gives the trustee a clear understanding of personal priorities and values. This guidance helps the trustee apply discretion with confidence, ensuring the trust is administered in a manner consistent with the settlor’s overall purpose.
Role in Trust Planning
A letter of wishes gives a trust a degree of continuity that legal documents alone cannot achieve. It captures the personal logic behind the structure, why certain beneficiaries were included, why assets were arranged in a particular way, and what long-term outcomes the settlor hoped to achieve. This context helps trustees make informed decisions that reflect the original purpose of the trust, even when circumstances evolve or the people involved change.
In professional planning, the letter also serves as a communication tool. It allows the settlor to express goals and sensitivities that would not belong in the deed, such as family dynamics, priorities between beneficiaries, or preferred methods of financial support. This insight helps trustees, advisers, and sometimes future generations understand the intent behind complex arrangements.
Used thoughtfully, a letter of wishes strengthens the trust’s design. It connects legal structure with human intent, making the arrangement more adaptable to future realities while still anchored in the founder’s reasoning and values.
Letter of Wishes vs Trust Deed
The trust deed and the letter of wishes perform different but complementary roles. The deed is a binding legal document that defines the trust’s structure, powers, and obligations. It determines what trustees are permitted or required to do and provides the framework for how the trust operates under law.
The letter of wishes, on the other hand, carries no legal force. It expresses the settlor’s personal views and preferences, offering practical direction for how the trustee should use discretion within the boundaries of the deed. Trustees must always follow the deed first, but they often treat the letter as a meaningful expression of intent, especially when its contents are consistent with the trust’s purpose.
For example, a trust deed may grant the trustee full discretion to invest trust assets in any lawful venture. The letter of wishes could express the settlor’s preference for conservative investments focused on long-term preservation of capital, with an additional request to avoid industries such as alcohol or gambling that do not reflect the family’s values. The trustee remains legally free to make investment decisions under the deed, but the letter helps interpret how those powers should be used in a way that respects the settlor’s principles.
Why Settlors Use Letters of Wishes
Families and wealth evolve, often in ways no legal document can fully predict. A settlor may want future trustees to understand the reasoning behind certain choices, or the values that guided the trust’s creation. A letter of wishes provides that missing context. It allows the settlor to express judgment, priorities, and hopes in a personal way that a deed, by design, cannot capture.
Both documents serve distinct purposes in planning. The table below shows how each contributes to common objectives.
| Purpose | Trust Deed | Letter of Wishes |
| Family Continuity | Defines who qualifies as a beneficiary and sets clear terms for how distributions may be made. | Explains the reasoning behind those choices and how the settlor hopes future generations will be supported. |
| Flexibility Over Time | Provides a stable legal framework that can be modified through formal amendment when structural changes are needed. | Can be rewritten at any time to reflect new family, tax, or financial circumstances. |
| Succession and Transitions | Outlines the appointment of successor trustees and maintains continuity of administration. | Shares expectations about trustee roles, succession, and maintaining cooperation between family branches. |
| Managing Discretion | Grants trustees discretionary powers while requiring them to act impartially and in the best interests of beneficiaries. | Offers insight into the settlor’s priorities so discretion is exercised in a way that feels consistent with the trust’s intent. |
| Avoiding Conflict | Applies objective terms and fiduciary standards to promote consistency in trustee decisions. | Explains intentions in plain language, helping beneficiaries understand decisions and reducing potential disputes. |
| Philanthropy and Legacy | Permits charitable giving in accordance with the trust’s powers and applicable law. | Outlines the settlor’s approach to giving, preferred causes, and the values that should guide future philanthropy. |
| Confidentiality and Sensitivity | Recorded as a formal legal document, accessible as required for proper administration. | Kept private, allowing the settlor to discuss matters like family relationships or personal values more openly. |
How to Write a Letter of Wishes
A good letter of wishes reads as if the settlor is speaking directly to the trustee with clarity, respect, and realism. It should help the trustee make sound judgments rather than attempt to control them. The aim is to communicate the settlor’s reasoning and values in a way that supports the trust’s administration over time.
Step 1: Clarify the Purpose
Before writing, consider what the trustee needs from the letter. Identify the main objectives of the trust, the types of decisions the trustee will face, and the values you want reflected in those decisions. A few sentences explaining why the trust was created, such as preserving family stability, supporting education, or encouraging financial independence, provides valuable context for every future action.
Step 2: Define Core Themes
Decide which areas the letter should cover. Most include guidance on:
- Distributions: when and how support should be given, such as for education, housing, or healthcare.
- Investment approach: the general risk tolerance or long-term vision for preserving assets.
- Beneficiary support: how to balance fairness and need among beneficiaries, or how to assist those who may require additional oversight.
- Philanthropy: preferred causes or the role of charitable giving in the family’s broader plan.
- Personal assets: wishes regarding items with sentimental or symbolic value.
Each theme should be expressed in general terms. The goal is to guide decisions, not to prescribe them.
Step 3: Use Plain and Flexible Language
Write naturally, as if explaining your reasoning to a trusted adviser. Avoid language that sounds like an instruction or creates fixed rights.
For example:
Instead of “The trustee must pay for each grandchild’s education,” write “I would like the trustee to consider assisting with education where it promotes opportunity and responsibility.”
Simple language avoids ambiguity and prevents the letter from reading like a second trust deed.
Step 4: Address Sensitive Topics Thoughtfully
If certain beneficiaries face challenges such as financial immaturity, disability, or dependency, describe your hopes, not restrictions. Suggest how support should be managed, for instance through staged distributions, oversight by a protector, or matched contributions to encourage initiative. Explain the principle behind your guidance so trustees understand both the rule and the reasoning.
Step 5: Review and Update Regularly
Circumstances change. The letter should be revisited after major life events such as marriages, births, or significant asset shifts. Review it every few years to confirm that it still represents your views. Each version should clearly state the date and replace earlier letters to prevent confusion.
International Context
For families with cross-border ties, a well-drafted letter provides a steady reference for trustees managing assets or beneficiaries in multiple jurisdictions. It cannot override local succession laws, but it can record intent clearly enough to guide trustees through competing legal systems. This consistency is particularly valuable where forced heirship or different inheritance regimes may otherwise complicate administration.
Application Across Jurisdictions
The treatment of letters of wishes varies across jurisdictions, depending on the level of discretion granted to trustees and how each system regards informal guidance. In some jurisdictions, especially those influenced by civil law, a trustee’s powers may be narrowly defined, and a letter of wishes may carry little or no practical weight. In others, such as common law systems, trustees have broader authority to exercise judgment, which makes the letter a valuable reference in day-to-day administration.
For international families, these differences affect both strategy and outcome, as a trust governed by civil law may face limits on how assets are distributed or how discretion is applied, while one formed in a common law jurisdiction retains greater freedom to follow the settlor’s intent. This distinction explains why many planners favor jurisdictions that preserve discretion and confidentiality, such as Nevis.
Nevis Legal Framework
Nevis follows the common law approach but strengthens it through the Nevis International Exempt Trust Ordinance. The Ordinance gives trustees wide discretion in managing and distributing assets while maintaining strict confidentiality and protection from foreign interference. This combination allows a letter of wishes to serve its intended function, providing private and practical guidance that reflects the settlor’s intent without limiting trustee independence.
In Nevis trusts, the letter of wishes is often treated as part of the trust’s ongoing administration rather than a one-time statement. Trustees may refer to it when considering distributions or reviewing the balance between capital preservation and beneficiary support. When a new letter replaces an older one, the trustee typically records the update and keeps the previous version for internal reference. This continuity gives the trust a traceable record of the settlor’s evolving perspective while keeping the document private and advisory.
Trust Nevis and Family Continuity
Trust Nevis provides a practical framework for international families who value stability, privacy, and long-term control. Our work centers on trust structures that reflect intent and adapt over time, supported by a deep understanding of Nevis law and how it functions in real scenarios.
Through Trust Nevis, clients gain a framework that remains reliable in operation. We focus on long-term continuity, private administration, and clear documentation such as letters of wishes that help trustees carry out their responsibilities with confidence.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a letter of wishes needed for a trust?
A letter of wishes is not legally required to create or administer a trust. However, it is widely used because it gives trustees valuable insight into the settlor’s preferences and reasoning. Without it, trustees must rely only on the trust deed, which may not capture the personal considerations that shaped the settlor’s decisions.
What is the purpose of a letter of wishes in a trust?
The purpose of a letter of wishes is to provide trustees with informal guidance on how to manage the trust in line with the settlor’s intent. It can explain priorities among beneficiaries, desired investment attitudes, or the general philosophy behind the trust. The letter helps ensure decisions reflect both the legal framework and the personal values behind it.
Is a letter of wishes legally binding?
No. A letter of wishes has no binding effect on the trustee. It serves as persuasive guidance that trustees should consider when exercising discretion. Trustees are still required to follow the terms of the deed and their fiduciary duties, but they usually give significant weight to the settlor’s written wishes when those wishes are reasonable and consistent with the trust.
When should a letter of wishes be prepared?
It is best prepared at the time the trust is established, but it can also be added later. Many settlors update it after key life events such as births, marriages, or major financial changes. Writing it early and revisiting it periodically keeps it relevant as circumstances evolve.
Can a letter of wishes be changed or replaced?
Yes. Because it is not legally binding, a letter of wishes can be changed at any time. Settlors often issue new versions when family or financial situations change. The latest version should be dated and clearly marked as replacing all previous versions to avoid confusion for trustees.
How detailed should a letter of wishes be?
It should be specific enough to guide the trustee but not so detailed that it reads like a set of instructions. Trustees need flexibility to respond to circumstances. A clear summary of the settlor’s guiding principles, along with examples or priorities, is usually most effective.
Does a letter of wishes need to be witnessed or notarized?
No. A letter of wishes is a private document and does not need witnessing or notarization. Signing and dating it is enough to confirm authorship and timeline. Some trustees ask for a signed copy to keep in their records, but formal execution is unnecessary.
Should beneficiaries be allowed to see the letter of wishes?
That depends on the trustee’s judgment. In most cases, the letter is treated as confidential and shared only if disclosure would help resolve a specific issue. Trustees may show relevant parts to beneficiaries if it supports transparency or clarifies intent, but the decision rests entirely with them.
How is a letter of wishes used by trustees in practice?
Trustees refer to it when making discretionary decisions about distributions, investments, or family support. It helps them interpret what the settlor would have wanted, especially when the deed allows broad discretion. Trustees may also use it to document the reasoning behind decisions, showing that they acted consistently with the settlor’s intent.
Are trustees required to follow a letter of wishes?
Trustees must consider it but are not bound by it. They have a legal duty to act in the best interests of all beneficiaries and may depart from the letter if doing so is justified. Courts generally respect trustees who can show that they considered the letter carefully before deciding.
What happens if a letter of wishes conflicts with the trust deed?
The trust deed always takes priority. If there is a conflict, the trustee must follow the deed. A well-drafted letter should avoid any wording that appears to override the deed’s terms. Most practitioners recommend stating explicitly that the letter is advisory, not directive.
Is a letter of wishes private?
Yes. It is typically kept between the settlor, the trustee, and any authorized advisors. It is not part of the public record and does not need to be disclosed to beneficiaries unless the trustee believes it would serve the trust’s administration.
Are letters of wishes confidential under Nevis law?
Yes. Nevis law protects the confidentiality of all trust-related documents. Trustees are prohibited from disclosing information about the trust, its parties, or its records unless required for lawful administration. This includes the letter of wishes, which remains private and outside public filings.
Can a letter of wishes be used in other jurisdictions besides Nevis?
Yes. Letters of wishes are common in most common law jurisdictions, though their effect depends on local trust law. In civil law jurisdictions, where trusts are less common or statutory succession rules apply, the letter may carry little practical influence.
Why is a letter of wishes especially valuable in cross-border trust planning?
Cross-border families often have beneficiaries and assets in multiple jurisdictions, each with its own legal rules. A letter of wishes gives trustees consistent guidance across those borders, helping them apply a unified approach to distributions, investments, and family priorities even when laws differ.
Can a letter of wishes influence an offshore trustee?
Yes, when written clearly and reasonably. Offshore trustees generally give serious attention to letters of wishes because they express the settlor’s intent in a discretionary framework. While the trustee retains independent judgment, the letter helps maintain continuity with the settlor’s goals.
How often should a settlor review or update a letter of wishes?
Every few years or after significant life or financial changes. Regular review ensures that the letter continues to reflect the settlor’s current priorities and relationships. Outdated letters can create confusion, so it is best to update them promptly when circumstances change.
Does a letter of wishes replace a will?
No. A letter of wishes cannot distribute assets held in the settlor’s personal name or replace formal testamentary instructions. A will governs assets outside the trust. The two documents can complement each other, but they serve different legal purposes.
