2023 Bermuda Monetary Authority Fees

Summary

This is the Bermuda Monetary Authority's published fee schedule for 2023, setting out application, licensing, annual and transaction fees payable by entities regulated under Bermuda's various financial services statutes, effective 1 January 2023. It does not create new regulatory requirements beyond payment obligations, but it fixes the amounts and due dates for fees tied to existing licences and registrations.

• General rules: Annual fees cover the calendar year 1 January to 31 December 2023; entities holding more than one licence pay a separate annual fee for each licence held; statutory penalty fees apply automatically if an annual fee is not paid by its statutory due date.
• Banks and deposit companies: Annual fees under the Banks and Deposit Companies Act 1999 are due on or before 31 March, tiered by consolidated gross assets; fees under the Banks and Deposit Companies (Fees) Act 1975 are due on or before 31 January.
• Insurance sector: Application and modification fees are due upon application; annual fees are billed based on tier/class as of 1 January 2023, with re-billing if classification changes and a pro-rata refund available only if deregistration is effective before 31 March.
• Other licensed sectors: Annual fees for Corporate Service Provider Business Act 2012 licensees, Credit Unions Act 2010 licensees, Digital Assets Business Act 2018 licensees, Fund Administration Provider Business Act 2019 licensees, Money Service Business Act 2016 licensees, Proceeds of Crime (AML/ATF) Act 2008 registrants, and Trusts (Regulation of Trust Business) Act 2001 licensees are due on or before 31 March.
• Digital assets and issuance: Digital Assets Business Act 2018 fees are calculated by licence class and, for larger activities, by a formula based on estimated or actual client receipts; Digital Asset Issuance Act 2020 authorisation fees scale with the size of the offering.
• Payments: Cheques are no longer accepted; entities must pay via specified domestic online banking payment streams (HSBC or Butterfield) or international wire transfer, quoting the entity name or registration number.

The document is administrative in nature: it tells regulated entities how much they owe and when, rather than imposing new conduct requirements. Entities should confirm which statute and licence category applies to them to identify the correct fee amount and due date.

Key obligations

• Regulated entities must pay their applicable annual business fee by the statutory due date to avoid statutory penalty fees.
• Entities holding more than one licence must pay a separate annual business fee for each licence held.
• Dual licensees applying for a modification must pay the fee applicable to the higher-fee licence.
• Banks and deposit companies must pay annual fees under the Banks and Deposit Companies Act 1999 on or before 31 March, tiered by consolidated gross assets.
• Banks must pay annual fees under the Banks and Deposit Companies (Fees) Act 1975 on or before 31 January.
• Corporate service providers, credit unions, digital asset businesses, fund administration providers, money service businesses, Proceeds of Crime Act registrants, and trust licensees must pay their annual fees on or before 31 March.
• Insurers and insurance intermediaries must pay application, registration and modification fees upon application, per the fee schedule.
• Insurers seeking a pro-rata refund on cancellation of registration must have an effective deregistration date before 31 March to qualify.
• Payments must be made via the designated online banking payment streams or international wire transfer, quoting the entity name or registration number, as cheques are no longer accepted.

Applies to

banks, deposit companies, insurers, insurance managers, brokers and agents, insurance salesmen, trust companies (trust business licensees), investment business licensees, investment funds and fund administrators, credit unions, corporate service providers, money service businesses, digital asset business (DABA) licensees, digital asset issuers, entities registered under the Proceeds of Crime (Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Terrorist Financing) Act 2008

Deadlines

• 1 January 2023: Effective date of the 2023 BMA fee schedule; annual fee period runs 1 January to 31 December 2023.
• on or before 31 January: Annual fees due under the Banks and Deposit Companies (Fees) Act 1975.
• on or before 31 March: Annual fees due under the Banks and Deposit Companies Act 1999, Innovation Hub, Corporate Service Provider Business Act 2012, Credit Unions Act 2010, Digital Assets Business Act 2018 (annual fee), Fund Administration Provider Business Act 2019, Money Service Business Act 2016, Proceeds of Crime (AML/ATF) Act 2008, and Trusts (Regulation of Trust Business) Act 2001.
• upon application: Fees under the Insurance Act 1978 (applications for registration, variations, exemptions, extensions, etc.) are due at the time of application.
• prior to 31 March: Deadline for the effective date of deregistration under the Insurance Act 1978 for an entity to be eligible for a pro-rata refund of annual fees.