Jersey regulator to levy higher fees

Chris Hamblin

8 November 2017

The JFSC's latest management accounts indicate that it will fall just short of collecting the £2.56 million planned for 2017. This figure is planned to rise to £2.66 million (€3 million) in 2018. As a consequence, it proposes (and will certainly be allowed to) levy the following changes for trust company businesses in 2018:

an increase in fee rates (including application fees) across the board by 4.5% rounded to the nearest £;
the removal of the cap which ensures that no charge is levied for any 'trust company business employees' above the first 200. Given that there is a general fee 'cap' that applies at firm level, it seems to the regulator that it is inappropriate to also have a secondary cap at employee level. It wants the fee rate that applies for employees 101–200 to apply above 200 also;
an increase in the rate at which the firm fee 'cap' applies to be the greater of the 2017 level plus 4.5% (rounded to the nearest £10) or 80% of the fee that would otherwise apply (currently 75%);
an amendment of the definition of 'trust company business employee' to match what the regulator asked firms for in its data-collection exercise (which had the aim of pinpointing the employees who ought to be included, which is not the case with the current definition); and
new rules to apply to the late payment of fees to have the effect that: (i) fees are due to be paid by 31 January 2018 and interest will start to accrue immediately if the amount due has not been paid in full; and (ii) if information to calculate fees has not been supplied by 31 January 2018, a flat rate charge will be levied and then made again every month if the information remains outstanding. This charge will operate in addition to the interest due on overdue payments.

For registered persons subject to the Proceeds of Crime (Supervisory Bodies) (Jersey) Law 2008 - an entirely separate matter - the JFSC proposes to raise its fees (and the level of the fee cap) by a staggering 27.1% for 2018. This is due to the phased withdrawal of a current contribution the JFSC receives from the Jersey Government. Since 2011, the Government has paid £248,965 per annum to the JFSC to help it enforce the Law. Article 20 of the Law allows the commission to charge fees to persons subject to the Law. The sole trader fee will rise from £227 to £289. The fee cap will increase from £11,360 to £14,440 (rounded to the nearest £10). Fees for this purpose will rise again next year and the year after.

Fees are also rising for auditors. A new fee of £100 fee will be levied on any firm that registers with the JFSC and firms will lose the option of paying in installments if the fee in question is less than £1,000.