Corporate tax · Guernsey
Find a corporate tax lawyer in Guernsey
Guernsey is a Crown Dependency with its own legislature, its own courts and its own body of law, so company and trust questions here need a practitioner admitted in the Bailiwick. Tell us what you are facing and we match you, free of charge, with a corporate tax lawyer in Guernsey who works on these matters.
- Advocates admitted by the Royal Court
- Company, trust, fund and fiduciary structures
- Free matching, no obligation, no legal advice
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Why Guernsey is different
Corporate tax work in a jurisdiction that is not part of the United Kingdom
Guernsey is not part of the United Kingdom. It is a Crown Dependency with its own legislature, its own courts and its own body of law, and its economy is built on banking, investment funds, trusts and private client work. For a company, a fund or a trustee, that means corporate tax questions sit inside a framework that is neither English nor French but distinctly Guernsey. Our service is free: you describe the matter, and we match you with a corporate tax lawyer in Guernsey who handles this kind of work, whether that is structuring, a cross-border question or a dispute. You stay in control, there is no cost to be matched, and there is no obligation to proceed.
Guernsey in practice
How corporate and trust matters actually run in the Bailiwick
The Bailiwick of Guernsey comprises Guernsey, Alderney and Sark, with the States of Deliberation legislating for all three while Alderney and Sark keep their own first-instance courts. Guernsey’s private law is a mixed system: Norman customary law forms its core, with English common law and English-style statute grafted on for well over a century, and Guernsey legislation drafted in English.
Where company and finance disputes are heard
The Royal Court’s Ordinary Court exercises the general civil jurisdiction, covering commercial, trust, company, insolvency, property and public law. It sits with a judge and, where facts are in issue, at least two Jurats, usually three. The judge decides law and procedure and determines costs, while the Jurats are the judges of fact in civil cases.
Advocates, not solicitors and barristers
Advocacy in Guernsey is a fused profession: an Advocate of the Royal Court acts both as instructing lawyer and as court advocate. Admission is by the Full Court and Advocates take their oath in French. Lawyers who are not Advocates may practise Guernsey law while employed or supervised by a firm of Advocates, but must not hold themselves out as Advocates and must state the jurisdiction in which they are qualified.
Prescription rather than limitation
Guernsey has no direct equivalent of the English law of limitation. Guernsey law applies prescription, which does not merely bar the remedy but extinguishes the right of action, and it is treated as a matter of substantive law rather than procedure. English case law is persuasive in Guernsey but not binding, so English authorities are argued rather than applied automatically.
A financial-services economy with dense international practice
Banking, investment funds, trusts and private client work dominate the Guernsey economy, which gives the island an unusually large concentration of corporate, finance, trust and fiduciary litigation relative to its size, alongside domestic property, employment, criminal and family work. Trust disputes are particularly significant, and the prescription period for breach of trust is a recurring feature of that practice.
Costs, funding and what is recoverable
Advocates bill their clients by hourly rates, while the recoverable rates are capped by Guernsey’s Costs and Fees Rules. Costs follow the event in the English manner, either on the recoverable basis or on the indemnity basis as a sanction for litigation conduct. Contingency or success fee arrangements and damages-based agreements are prohibited under the Guernsey Bar Rules, although third-party litigation funding is permitted.
Enforcement and the prescription of judgments
Enforcement of money claims is carried out by HM Sheriff as the executive officer of the Court once judgment has been obtained, using methods such as an arrest of wages. Enforcement against Guernsey real property follows the customary procedure known as saisie, dealt with by the Royal Court sitting en Plaids d’Heritage. Judgments themselves prescribe, so delay is costly.
The country information on this page is drawn from official Guernsey sources — the Royal Court of Guernsey, The Guernsey Bar and States of Guernsey publications — together with published practitioner guidance, current at the date of writing.
Common problems
Why a Guernsey matter often needs a Guernsey practitioner
Three situations we see most often when companies and trustees look for corporate tax advice in the Bailiwick.
The rules are neither English nor French
Guernsey’s private law is a mixed system: Norman customary law forms its core, with English common law grafted on. English case law is persuasive but not binding, and the English law of limitation has no direct equivalent, because Guernsey applies prescription instead.
Your usual adviser may not have rights of audience
Only Advocates of the Royal Court have full rights of audience in the Bailiwick. Lawyers who are not Advocates may practise Guernsey law while employed or supervised by a firm of Advocates, but they must not hold themselves out as Advocates.
A tax question rarely stands alone
Company, trust, insolvency, property and public law matters all fall within the Ordinary Court of the Royal Court. A structuring question can sit alongside a trust dispute or an enforcement step, so the adviser needs breadth as well as tax knowledge.
How our matching works
A free introduction to the right Guernsey practice
You explain the matter once; we identify practitioners whose work covers it and put you in contact.
Verified practice categories
We organise practitioners by area of work, so a corporate, trust or fiduciary question is routed to those who handle that category rather than to a generalist.
Advocates of the Royal Court
Guernsey advocacy is a fused profession: Advocates act both as instructing lawyer and as court advocate, and are admitted by the Full Court and registered by HM Greffier.
Free, with no obligation
Being matched costs you nothing. You decide whether to instruct, and the practitioner confirms fees and scope directly with you before any work begins.
Guernsey-specific context
We set out how the Bailiwick’s courts, prescription rules, costs regime and professional rules actually work, so you can judge what kind of support your matter needs.
Where our clients come from
Cross-border matters touching Guernsey
Corporate and trust questions involving Guernsey frequently involve advisers and counterparties elsewhere in Europe and in the neighbouring Crown Dependencies.
Questions and answers
Corporate tax and Bailiwick law: what clients ask
Do I need a corporate tax lawyer in Guernsey, or can my existing adviser handle it?
Guernsey is a Crown Dependency and not part of the United Kingdom, with its own legislature, courts and body of law. Only Advocates of the Royal Court have full rights of audience. Other lawyers may practise Guernsey law while employed or supervised by a firm of Advocates, but must not hold themselves out as Advocates.
Which Guernsey courts would handle a company or trust dispute?
General civil jurisdiction, including commercial, trust, company, insolvency, property and public law, lies with the Ordinary Court of the Royal Court, sitting with a judge and, where facts are in issue, at least two Jurats. Appeals go to the Guernsey Court of Appeal and, ultimately, to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
How long do I have to bring a claim in Guernsey?
Guernsey applies prescription rather than the English law of limitation, and prescription extinguishes the right of action rather than merely barring the remedy. Contractual and tort claims generally prescribe after 6 years, and breach of trust claims 3 years from the date the claimant first had knowledge of the breach.
Can legal costs be recovered in Guernsey proceedings?
Costs follow the event in the English manner. The recoverable rates are capped by Guernsey’s Costs and Fees Rules, so a successful party typically recovers around 60% to 70% of its actual legal spend. If a paying party disputes a bill, it may apply to the Royal Court for taxation within one month of being served.
Can a company obtain legal aid in Guernsey?
No. The Guernsey Legal Aid Service provides free or reduced-cost advice and representation to private individuals who cannot otherwise afford an Advocate, and legal aid is not available to companies or to groups of people. It also requires both a financial means test and a legal merits test to be satisfied.
Are contingency fee arrangements available in Guernsey?
No. Under the Guernsey Bar Rules, contingency or success fee arrangements and damages-based agreements are prohibited. Third-party litigation funding, by contrast, is permitted, and Advocates bill their clients on hourly rates fixed by agreement within the framework of the Costs and Fees Rules.
Next step
Tell us about your Guernsey matter
Describe your company, trust or fund question in a few lines. We will match you, free of charge, with a corporate tax lawyer in Guernsey whose practice covers it, and you decide whether to instruct.