Consultation on proposal to increase insurance fees (No. 8 2022)

Summary

This is a JFSC consultation paper proposing a 12.9 percent increase in fees charged under the Insurance Business (Jersey) Law 1996, comprising a 7.9 percent RPI-linked increase and an additional 5 percent contribution to the JFSC's financial resilience objectives. It applies to any person applying for, or already holding, a permit to carry on insurance business in Jersey, and includes a draft Insurance Business Fees Notice setting out the proposed new fee structure.

• Application fees: Proposed revised fees for Category A and Category B permits (including cell companies and cells), varying by whether the permit covers long-term or general business.
• Annual fees: Proposed revised annual fees mirroring the application fee structure, payable by permit holders on 1 October each year with payment due by 31 October.
• Registration change fees: Fees of £2,460 or £2,340 proposed for changes between limited company/LLP registration and cell company/cell registration.
• Transfer of insurance business fee: A proposed fee of £9,870 payable when a permit holder undergoes a transfer of insurance business, due when draft documentation is submitted ahead of the Direction Hearing.
• Late payment and late filing fees: Proposed late payment fee of 5 percent of unpaid principal per month, and late filing fee of £100 per month or part month for undelivered documents, unless late filing has been agreed in writing in advance.

The proposals are set out as a draft fees notice in Appendix B, with a proposed commencement date of 1 October 2022, and the JFSC is seeking feedback before finalising the fee rates. Comments were invited via Jersey Finance Limited or directly to the JFSC by 25 September 2022, after which the JFSC intended to publish feedback and final fee notices in September 2022.

Key obligations

• Comments on the proposed fee increase should have been submitted to Jersey Finance Limited or the JFSC by 25 September 2022 (consultation response deadline, now passed).
• Under the draft notice, permit holders would be required to pay an annual fee on 1 October each year, due by 31 October the same year.
• Under the draft notice, a permit holder failing to file or deliver a required document by its due date would be liable for a £100 fee per complete month or part month of delay, unless prior written agreement for late filing has been obtained.
• Under the draft notice, unpaid annual fees would incur an additional late payment fee of 5 percent of the unpaid amount, applied on the day after the due date and on the first day of each following month.
• A fee of £9,870 would be payable at the time of submitting draft transfer documentation for a transfer of insurance business, ahead of the Direction Hearing.

Applies to

insurance permit applicants, insurance permit holders (Category A), insurance permit holders (Category B), cell companies and cells carrying on insurance business, limited liability partnerships carrying on insurance business

Deadlines

• 25 September 2022: Deadline for interested parties to submit comments on the proposed 12.9 percent fee increase, to Jersey Finance Limited or directly to the JFSC.
• 1 October 2022: Proposed commencement date for the fees set out in the draft Insurance Business Fees Notice; also the date on which the annual fee becomes payable by permit holders each year.
• 31 October (annually): Proposed due date each year for payment of the annual fee under the draft notice.