A Certificate of Trust contains the “highlights” of the Trust document itself.
The certificate is prepared to provide the basic information concerning the Trust without containing potentially personal details that the grantor does not wish to share with any third party.
The Certificate should be used in place of the agreement itself whenever proof of the existence of the trust is required.
A Certificate can be (but does not need to be) created at the same time as the Trust, and can be prepared by the grantor and/or trustee as needed. (For example, a bank or financial institution may require such a certificate when opening accounts or lending money, or when property is transferred.)
The Certificate should be changed when the Trust document itself is changed or amended; for example, if an amendment to the Trust is made naming a new Successor Trustee, the certificate would be re-drafted listing the new Trustee.