MAURITIUS Law and Practice Contributed by: Johanne Hague, Ashwin Mudhoo, Medina Torabally and Yushrah Bayjou, CMS Prism – in association with CMS
• was not improperly induced by the trustee. The competent court may also relieve a trustee whol - ly or partly of liability for a breach of trust, where it appears to such court that the trustee has acted hon - estly and reasonably and ought fairly to be excused (i) for the breach of trust; and (ii) for omitting to obtain the directions of such court in the matter in which the breach arose. In circumstances where a trustee commits a breach of trust at the instigation of, at the request of or with the concurrence of a beneficiary, the court may, whether or not the beneficiary is a minor or a person under legal disability: • order the defaulting beneficiary to indemnify the trustee in respect of the consequences of the breach of trust; and • order the trustee to appropriate any part of the interest accruing to the beneficiary for that pur - pose. Additionally, trustees may limit their liability through exclusion clauses in the trust deed, save for breach of trust and the exclusions set out above. Trustee exemption clauses are designed to give trustees pro - tection against actions for breach of trust. 6.3 Fiduciary Regulation Fiduciaries have the discretion as to how they invest the funds they control. As long as the powers of investment conferred by the terms of a trust do not derogate from the duties imposed on trustees under the Trusts Act 2001, trustees may invest trust property in securities and investments with or without condi - tions or restrictions as per the terms of the trust. The administration of assets under the Foundations Act 2012 is undertaken by the foundation council. Assets transferred to a foundation become the assets of the foundation. They cease to be the assets of the founder, and they are not the assets of the beneficiary unless and until they are distributed to the beneficiary. 6.4 Fiduciary Investment There is no particular investment approach that trus - tees or a foundation council are required to take in
the investment of assets. Both trusts and foundations may be used as commercial vehicles, and there are no legal limitations on such use. 7. Citizenship and Residency 7.1 Requirements for Domicile, Residency and Citizenship Domicile By virtue of the Code, the domicile of every Mauritian citizen lies where they have their principal establish - ment. Case law has expanded on the definition of “domicile”, in particular in the context of succession laws. Tax Residency In terms of tax residency, an individual is resident in an income year if: • they have their domicile in Mauritius, unless their permanent place of abode is outside Mauritius; • they have been present in Mauritius in that income year, for a period of, or for an aggregate period of, 183 days or more; or • they have been present in Mauritius in that income year and the two preceding income years, for an aggregate period of 270 days or more. Application for Residency The following paragraphs deal with residency for immi - gration law purposes (as opposed to tax purposes). In Mauritius, residency applications are governed by the Immigration Act 2022 and the Economic Devel - opment Board Act 2017. Citizenship applications are governed by the Mauritius Citizenship Act 1968, the Code and the Civil Status Act 1981. No provision is made for applications for domicile. Permits Under the Immigration Act 2022, a person may make an application for:
• an occupation permit; • a residence permit; and • a residence permit as a retired non-citizen.
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