Barbados trust cost follows the stages of the work, and each stage has its own bill: drafting, funding and the trustee's yearly work. We publish the set-up fee for a standard trust in Barbados on this page; annual administration, event-based work and third-party charges are quoted after we review your case.
The set-up fee for a Barbados trust is shown under the key facts. The other groups of cost depend on the structure and are quoted after we review your case.
Set-up
Structure design and onboarding checks
Trust deed drafting by the law firm
Trustee acceptance and account opening
Ongoing
Annual trustee fee
Accounting, minutes and records
Reporting to authorities
Third party
Bank and custodian charges
Tax and legal advice in other countries
Registry or stamp duty where it applies
Key facts
Trust structure
International Trusts Act, Cap. 245, is still listed[1]
Governing law
Trusts (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2018-49 and Trustee Act Cap. 250[1]
Numbers in brackets point to the Sources list at the end of this page.
Set-up fee
Standard trust
USD 9,000
Trust set-up in Barbados: the fee is fixed for the standard scope listed below.
Includes
Client onboarding, KYC and due diligence
Structure design
Trust deed drafted through a partner law firm
Acceptance of trusteeship by a licensed local partner trustee, coordinated by One Pacific Trust
Filing of any registration the law requires
Excludes
Government fees, initial and annual (passed through at cost)
Stamp duty
Holding or underlying companies
Bank account opening
Tax advice in other countries
Annual trustee, administration and event fees (quoted separately)
VAT or GST where applicable
This fee includes the local partner trustee's acceptance fee as agreed with One Pacific Trust.
Set-up fees shown are One Pacific Trust fees in US dollars for the standard scope described, before government, registry, bank and other third-party charges, which are passed through at cost or billed to you directly.
Annual administration, event-based work and anything outside the standard scope are quoted after we review your case.
A published fee is not an offer and is not tax or legal advice; the terms that apply are those set out in writing when you engage us.
Set-up costs: what they cover
Illustration, not a real client.
Think of set-up as everything that happens before the first asset is in the trust. Several parties take part, and each one sends a separate bill.
Law firm. Drafts the deed and gives counsel’s note on which Act governs it.
Trustee. A Barbados trust company.
Filing. Any filing your lawyer confirms is required.
Our coordination. Identity papers, a list of the legal points your lawyer settles, and chasing each answer.
The set-up fee shown on this page covers the standard scope. Ongoing administration, work tied to events and outside charges are quoted once we review your case.
Until we know who the parties are, what goes in and how the deed is drafted, any other figure would mislead you.
Every number in a quote comes from the trustee and the law firm, and we hand those terms to you unchanged.
Ongoing trustee and administration costs
After signing, the cost that people overlook is the yearly one. Someone must keep the accounts, record decisions, hold meetings and prepare filings, and that someone charges.
What the trust owns shapes that charge. A portfolio of listed shares is quick to report on, while a family company or a house calls for much more attention.
The load is uneven across the years. Expect more work early, while accounts are opened and assets are moved across.
Further peaks follow: a beneficiary reaches adulthood, a relative relocates to a country with different reporting duties, or the trustees begin closing the trust.
Put two questions to every trustee: how often are its charges reviewed, and how much notice comes before a change? Add a third about the cost of leaving for another trustee.
Good answers appear in the trustee’s terms, so we request them for you before anything is signed.
Line up each provider’s yearly items next to its set-up figure. A trust that looks cheap to start can become the dearest one to keep.
Third-party costs
Other organisations set some charges themselves. Each shows up as a separate line, and the usual ones are:
Government filing charges, if any apply, set by the authorities in Barbados, not by us.
Fees of the corporate services firm for any holding company.
Bank or brokerage account charges in the trustee’s name.
Accounting or audit fees for companies under the trust, where required.
Translation and certification of documents, if your papers are not in English.
Your own lawyer and tax adviser send their bills to you. Ask each for a rough estimate at the start, so the total holds no surprises.
What changes the total
Four choices move the total more than anything else, and most of them are yours to make.
Legal points. Counsel’s time on the governing Act and on whether a filing applies is a line of its own.
Trustee terms. Trust companies set their own terms, so compare the written offers side by side.
Kind of assets. Cash is simple. A private company or a property needs valuations and longer drafting.
Roles in the deed. A protector or a special power adds drafting time and later administration.
Fewer moving parts generally mean a lower bill. Whether a lean design still serves your aim is for your lawyer to judge.
Price should not decide the design. A deed that fails under challenge is far costlier than one drafted with care.
Compare a plain cash trust with one that holds a company and a property. Counsel’s work on the governing Act is common to both.
Valuations and longer drafting fall only on the second, and the quote shows them separately.
Hand every provider the same list of assets and roles.
How to get a quote
A quote is a working figure, not a binding offer. It firms up once the trustee and the law firm have reviewed your papers and confirmed their terms in writing.
Three details let us start:
Where you live and pay tax.
The assets you expect to transfer, in broad terms.
Whether you would wait for counsel’s view on the governing Act before drafting starts.
You receive a quote that lists each cost on its own line.
What do I pay for when I set up a trust in Barbados?
You pay for the law firm that drafts the deed and advises which Act governs it, the trustee's acceptance and onboarding, any filing your lawyer advises, and our coordination. A holding company or a bank account adds lines, and counsel's work on the governing Act is priced separately.
Are there ongoing costs for a trust in Barbados?
Yes. The trustee charges for its yearly work: meetings, resolutions, records and reporting. Any required filing renewals, any holding company and the bank add their own charges. Your lawyer confirms whether a filing is required, so ask for the yearly lines to be shown with and without it.
How do I get a quote for a trust in Barbados?
Send us a short description of the assets, the people involved, any company under the trust and your home country. Say too if your lawyer has confirmed which Act governs a new trust. Our quote stays non-binding until the trustee and the law firm confirm it.
Pick a question for a short answer from our FAQ. Nothing you choose here is sent anywhere. This is a scripted guide from our FAQ, not live chat and not advice.
Setting up, the law and tax
What happens, step by step, when you set up an offshore trust?
First agree the purpose and who should benefit. Your lawyer drafts the deed under the chosen law while the trustee checks identity and the source of the assets. After signing, the assets move into the trustee’s name and are recorded. The guide shows each stage in more detail.
Usually the owner transfers the shares or membership interest to the trustee under the deed, after checking the company’s own documents and any consent a lender or partner must give. The trustee then holds the interest and the company carries on. Company, tax and local law checks come first, so involve your lawyer.
Yes, in the places whose law provides for them. A trust needs a lawful purpose, a valid deed under its governing law, and taxes and reporting dealt with where the people involved live. It cannot be used to hide assets, defeat existing creditors or evade tax. A trustee will refuse a trust whose purpose or funding it cannot confirm.
It depends on where the settlor, the beneficiaries, the trustee and the assets are, and on the law that governs the trust. Many countries tax trust income or distributions in the hands of the people they treat as owners or recipients, and exchange account data under international reporting rules. We do not give tax advice, so ask your own adviser before you sign.
How long does it take to appoint a Hong Kong trustee?
Time depends mostly on how quickly documents arrive and on checks by banks and registries outside our control, so we do not promise a date. Once you apply, the client portal shows each step and what is outstanding, and a 30-minute call sets out what to prepare first.
The cost depends on the structure, the places and assets involved, how many parties the trustee must check, and how much work the trust needs each year. We publish the set-up fee for each place; annual administration and event-based work are quoted after we review your case. Banking, legal and registry charges outside our control can add to it.
A trustee can borrow only if the deed and the governing law allow it. A lender will usually ask to see the deed, the trustee’s authority and the purpose of the loan. Some deeds limit borrowing or need a protector’s consent. Ask a lawyer before approaching a lender.
What is asset management, and is it what a trustee does?
Asset management means running investments for a client, usually under a licence. A trustee does something different: it holds the assets, checks instructions against the deed, approves distributions and keeps the record. A bank or licensed manager that the deed allows for can run the investments.
Hong Kong
Singapore
BVI
Jersey
