South African trusts and payouts

[Nicola3819]

Hi 

we are still struggling. As per SA trust law we need a neutral trustee . Everyone uses their accountant normally.

airBnB now wants the trust need of my Accountanting firm as well as their partners showing their percentage splits.

Is their anyone from AirBnB that understands SOUTH AFRICAN TRUST LAW.

who can I phone locally? I keep getting people from Ireland 

warm regards 

Dave

[Shelley159]

Hi @Nicola3819 

I doubt that a large number of hosts operate an Airbnb inside a trust. Trusts are difficult to begin with (FICA, high taxes, etc.), and the fact that it's not a mainstream way to do business with Airbnb is probably making it even harder for you to tick all of Airbnb's boxes. I'm not sure how your struggles began, but if there's any way that this may be a recurring (annual?) problem between you and Airbnb, it may be good to find an easier solution. Can't you just host in your own name on Airbnb (as a straightforward natural person) and set up a contract (between yourself and the trust) that you will transfer all of the Airbnb income to the trust?

[Nicola3819]

Hi @Shelley159,

Thanks for your response, but I have to say this situation with Airbnb has been incredibly frustrating. While I understand that operating through a trust might not be the most common setup, trusts in South Africa offer significant benefits like asset protection, estate planning advantages, and reduced estate duties. These are exactly why I’ve chosen this structure for my hosting business, and it has worked perfectly fine on Airbnb for over five years—with the same bank account—without a single issue until now.

The fact that Airbnb has been withholding money owed to me for over two months is completely unacceptable, especially since they’ve had no issues with my setup in the past. Suggesting I host in my personal name and transfer income to the trust might seem like a simpler solution, but it defeats the purpose of having the trust manage the property directly and could create unnecessary complications and tax implications.

This is not just an inconvenience; it’s a serious disruption to my income and the trust’s operations. How do I pay my staff?? Airbnb needs to resolve this urgently to prevent further hardship for hosts who use trusts as a legitimate and beneficial structure. I am at my wits end here… desperate is an understatement! And nobody is helping me… it’s just a runaround from one person to the next, and nobody can help me. 

[Nicola3819]

Shelley , this is a huge problem affecting tons of guest houses.

in South Africa registering property in trust for tax purposes, capital gains , death duties etc is a very common practice 

read this thread 

https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Help-with-your-business/Payouts-suspended-as-KYC-for-a-South-Afr...

just one of many, we’ve hosted for 7 years and NOW suddenly we are not getting payments ?

[Paula]

Hello @Nicola3819 👋

Thank you so much for joining our community!

I’m glad to see that Shelley, one of our experienced hosts, has shared her advice. Have you had a chance to read her comment?

Please keep us posted!

[Nicola3819]

@Paula - this isn’t a unique problem. Here’s a thread where countless others are experiencing the same thing!!! https://community.withairbnb.com/t5/Help-with-your-business/Payouts-suspended-as-KYC-for-a-South-Afr...

[Frances3408]

@Nicola3819. Hi Dave, sorry I'm not a SA host but cant you supply the Beneficary Schedule part of your trust deed and any relevant definition sections to show who the actual beneficiaries are? I'd be suprised if its your accountants because that would hardly be "neutral".

[Nicola3819]

Hi @Frances3408 

Thanks for your suggestion. I’ve already supplied Airbnb with the Beneficiary Schedule from the trust deed, more than once, along with the relevant definition sections to clearly outline the beneficiaries. Despite this, they seem to be dragging their feet and refusing to release the payouts owed to me.

To clarify, the beneficiaries are not my accountants—that would indeed be far from “neutral”! The trust is set up correctly, and all documentation provided aligns with Airbnb’s requirements. The issue here seems less about compliance and more about Airbnb’s lack of responsiveness and accountability in resolving the matter.

It’s incredibly frustrating, especially considering this setup has worked without issues for over five years. I really appreciate your input, though, and any further advice is welcome.

[Frances3408]

@Nicola3819 . Dave, yes, I understand your accountants wouldnt be the beneficiaries but clearly Airbnb admin doesnt! I think this is at the heart of the problem, not your paperwork.

@Shelley159 raised some very valid points. Perhaps its easier to set it up under your personal host name, add the specific bank details for the listing owned by the trust and manage the payment splits (if you have multiple listings). I assume you are a principal beneficiary and therefore entitled to authorise yourself to be a host for the listed property? Maybe a letter/trustee minutes to that effect might help?

As you have been running 5 years I assume in any close/ re open listing action you might lose these reviews with a different host name so avoiding this drastic option?

FYI I cant tell much about your listing as you are posting under your Nicola's guest profile.  You should fix this as well.

@Paula can you escalate? This clearly isnt an isolated problem.