Company Registration in Australia for Trading and Trustee Companies
Set up a trading company, corporate trustee, family trust, or SMSF, with ownership and registrations confirmed before lodgement.
Company Registration Handled From Start to Finish
Registering a company creates more than an Australian Company Number. It establishes ownership, control, shareholding, and the rules governing its operation.
Those decisions should reflect what the company will actually do. A trading company, an SMSF trustee, and a company holding assets for a family trust serve different purposes. Coleman Financial Group helps you identify the appropriate set-up before preparing the company registration and related applications.
Choose the Structure That Matches Your Plans
The right set-up depends on whether the company will conduct business, act as a trustee, or form part of a broader ownership structure. Each option creates a different relationship between the company, its directors, its shareholders, and any associated trust.
Regular Trading Company
A trading company conducts business in its own right. It can enter contracts, employ staff, invoice customers, hold business assets, and earn income. Its directors manage its operations, while its shareholders own the company through their shares. The constitution, share structure, and registrations should reflect how the business will operate.
Family Trust With a Corporate Trustee
A family trust is an arrangement under which a trustee holds and manages property for beneficiaries according to the trust deed. The trustee can be an individual or a company. When a company fills this role, it becomes the corporate trustee. It manages the trust’s affairs and holds trust property in its capacity as trustee.
SMSF With a Corporate Trustee
An SMSF can have individual trustees or a corporate trustee. Under a corporate trustee structure, fund members are generally also directors of the trustee company. A special-purpose SMSF trustee company exists only to act as trustee of the fund. It does not conduct an unrelated trading business, keeping its role clearly defined.
Trading Company Owned Through a Family Trust
A trading company can be owned through a family trust with a separate corporate trustee. This arrangement involves two companies and one trust, each with a different role. The trading company operates the business. The corporate trustee manages the trust and is recorded as holding the trading company shares on the trust’s behalf.
We Streamline Your Complete Corporate Setup Process
Company registration involves confirming the company’s purpose, ownership, management, and governing rules before the application reaches ASIC. We coordinate these decisions as part of a single company setup process.
Structure and Ownership Review
We first confirm whether the company will trade, act as trustee, or hold another role within a group structure. Where a trust is involved, we also establish how the company and trust will relate to each other.
ASIC Registration
The company application is prepared and lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. Once approved, ASIC issues the company’s Australian Company Number and certificate of registration.
Company Constitution
The company constitution sets out the rules governing its operation. It is prepared for the company’s intended purpose, whether it will operate as a trading company, corporate trustee, or special-purpose SMSF trustee.
Share Structure
The share classes, number of shares, and ownership interests are confirmed before registration. The application also identifies whether each shareholder holds the shares beneficially or on behalf of another party.
Director and Shareholder Details
The required details for the company’s directors and shareholders are recorded accurately. We also confirm that each proposed director has provided consent and obtained a director identification number before appointment.
Business and Tax Registrations
Your policy reflects the remuneration your business has actually paid, with declarations and actual wages reporting prepared on your behalf.
Company Registers and Records
Your policy reflects the remuneration your business has actually paid, with declarations and actual wages reporting prepared on your behalf.
Transparent Pricing for Your Corporate Structure
The total set-up cost depends on how many companies and trusts are required. The table below shows each available structure and how we calculate its price.
Structure | What Is Established | Fee Breakdown | Total |
Regular Trading Company | One company that conducts the entire business | Trading company registration: $1,210 | $1,210 |
Family Trust With a Corporate Trustee | One trustee company and one family trust | Trustee company registration: $1,210 Family trust setup: $440 | $1,650 |
SMSF With a Corporate Trustee | One corporate trustee company and one SMSF | Corporate trustee registration: $1,210 SMSF setup: $440 | $1,650 |
Trading Company Owned Through a Family Trust | One trading company, one corporate trustee company, and one family trust | Trading company registration: $1,210 Trustee company registration: $1,210 Family trust setup: $440 | $2,860 |
The $440 family trust and SMSF setup components include GST.
How Our Company Registration Process Works
We lodge the ASIC application only after confirming the company’s purpose and ownership. This reduces the risk of registering one entity when the intended arrangement requires a company, trust, or combination of both.
Our setup process covers four key stages:
Stage 1: Confirm the company’s purposeWe identify whether the company will trade, act as a trustee, or form part of a wider ownership arrangement. | Stage 2: Map the ownership structureWe confirm who will hold the shares and whether those shares will be held personally or on behalf of a trust. | Stage 3: Collect the required detailsDirector, shareholder, address, consent, and identification information were gathered before the preparation began. | Stage 4: Prepare and lodge the applicationsThe company documents and applicable business and tax registrations are completed using the agreed structure. |
Start With the Right Structure Already in Place
Company registration in Australia should begin with a clear decision about what the company will do and who should own it. Establishing those details before lodgement can prevent avoidable changes once the company begins operating.
Coleman Financial Group can establish a trading company, a family trust, or an SMSF with a corporate trustee, or a trading company owned through a family trust. Our business accounting team can review the proposed arrangement, with ongoing support available through our family trust accounting and SMSF compliance services.
Frequently Asked Questions
A corporate trustee can make membership changes easier because the company remains the legal owner of the fund’s assets when directors change. SMSF members are generally also required to be directors of the trustee company.
It is a company established only to act as trustee of a regulated superannuation fund. Its constitution limits it to that purpose, so it cannot run an unrelated trading business.
Sometimes, but combining the roles can make the company’s assets, records, and responsibilities harder to separate. A special-purpose SMSF trustee company cannot operate an unrelated business. Review the intended activities before deciding whether you need separate companies.
You will need a proposed company name, business and registered office addresses, and details of the directors and shareholders. You will also need to confirm the share structure, beneficial ownership, director IDs, and the required consents.
No. If the company trades under a name other than its registered company name, it usually needs to register that business name separately.
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