Guernsey's Fiduciary Framework: The 2025 Context
Guernsey-licensed fiduciaries — including trust and company service providers operating under a fiduciary licence from the GFSC — have long operated under one of the more robust regulatory frameworks in the offshore world. The Regulation of Fiduciaries, Administration Businesses and Company Directors, etc (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law 2020 replaced the previous legislative framework and established the current regime under which the GFSC supervises fiduciary businesses.
The 2025 amendments are primarily delivered through updated rules and guidance issued under the 2020 Law rather than primary legislation. This approach — using subsidiary instruments to update requirements — allows the GFSC to respond to FATF recommendations and peer review findings more quickly than if each change required full legislative process. The 2025 round of changes was triggered in part by the GFSC's thematic review of governance standards in fiduciary businesses conducted in late 2024, which identified specific areas where industry practice fell below regulatory expectation.
Key 2025 Changes: Continuing Professional Development
The most operationally significant change for many Guernsey fiduciary businesses is the introduction of formalised CPD requirements for licensed individuals — those who hold a personal fiduciary licence and are named as designated representatives on a firm's corporate licence. Previously, the GFSC's expectation around professional competence was principle-based without a specific CPD framework. The 2025 rules introduce a minimum of 20 hours of CPD per calendar year, with specific requirements that at least 5 hours relate to AML/CFT topics and at least 5 hours relate to fiduciary-specific technical content.
CSPs must implement a system for tracking CPD completion by all licensed individuals on their team, maintaining records of CPD activities completed, and being able to demonstrate compliance in a GFSC inspection. The regulator has made clear that CPD records will be reviewed as part of its standard inspection protocol from 2026 onwards.
Revised Fit and Proper Standards
The 2025 guidance updates the GFSC's interpretation of the fit and proper requirements that apply to controllers, directors, and designated representatives of Guernsey fiduciary businesses. The key changes are:
- Enhanced disclosure obligations: Licensed individuals must now notify the GFSC of a broader range of events — including civil judgments, adverse regulatory findings in other jurisdictions, and significant changes in financial position — within 14 days of the event occurring. The previous notification requirement was limited to criminal matters and regulatory sanctions.
- Periodic re-assessment: The GFSC will conduct formal reassessment of fit and proper status for all designated representatives as part of its routine examination programme, rather than relying solely on self-notification. For most businesses, this means that a GFSC examination will now explicitly assess individuals, not just the firm.
- International connections: The GFSC has sharpened its assessment of individuals with significant connections to higher-risk jurisdictions, including closer scrutiny of whether those connections create conflicts of interest or reputational risk for the licensed business.
"The GFSC's 2025 changes signal that personal accountability in fiduciary businesses is being raised. The era of 'the firm is licensed so individuals don't face direct scrutiny' is ending."
Governance Requirements: The New Expectations
The 2025 thematic review found that governance documentation in a significant proportion of surveyed fiduciary businesses was insufficient — policies existed but were not regularly reviewed, risk committees met infrequently, and board-level oversight of compliance matters was inconsistent. The 2025 rules respond to this by introducing explicit governance documentation requirements:
- Fiduciary businesses must maintain a documented business risk assessment, reviewed at least annually, that covers the AML and regulatory risks specific to their client portfolio and service offering.
- The risk assessment must be approved by senior management and its conclusions must be reflected in the firm's policies and procedures.
- Businesses with assets under administration above a specified threshold must maintain formal governance structures including documented board or management committee minutes.
The GFSC has signalled that its 2026 examination programme will prioritise three areas: CPD compliance, beneficial ownership register accuracy, and technology risk management (particularly cybersecurity for businesses using cloud-based platforms). Guernsey fiduciaries should ensure all three areas are addressed in their 2026 compliance plans.
Practical Actions for Guernsey CSPs
The immediate actions required by Guernsey-licensed fiduciary businesses in response to the 2025 changes are:
- Establish a CPD tracking system for all licensed individuals, with records of 2025 CPD activities if not already maintained, and a plan for 2026 CPD delivery.
- Review and update your firm's business risk assessment to ensure it meets the 2025 documentation standard.
- Brief all designated representatives on the enhanced notification obligations — particularly the new categories of events that require GFSC notification.
- Review governance meeting cadence and minute-keeping to ensure they meet the 2025 expectations.
- Begin preparing for the 2026 GFSC examination focus areas, particularly if you have not recently reviewed your cybersecurity posture or beneficial ownership register accuracy.