St Vincent and the Grenadines trust cost: what you pay for
Four things drive St Vincent and the Grenadines trust cost: the people involved, the assets held, the drafting needed and the trustee's yearly work. Our quote shows each line on its own, so you can see what you pay for.
The set-up fee for a St Vincent and the Grenadines trust is shown under the key facts. The other groups of cost depend on the structure and are quoted after we review your case.
A protector cannot also be the trustee of the same trust[1]
Trustee requirement
Applications go through a trustee that the authority recognises[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 St Vincent and the Grenadines: 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 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.
Set-up covers every step from your first message to a funded trust. The steps are handled by different parties, and each charges its own way.
Law firm. Drafting the deed and your letter of wishes, and advising on the structure.
Trustee. Client acceptance, onboarding and its acceptance of office.
Trust application. The application to the Financial Services Authority (FSA), which the trustee makes with the deed attached.
Our coordination. Identity checks, document collection and the checklist we run.
We publish the set-up fee for a standard trust; the rest is quoted after we review your case. Until the parties, the assets and the drafting are known, any other figure would only mislead.
Third-party figures come from the written terms of each provider, and we forward those terms exactly as received.
Ongoing trustee and administration costs
The bill that follows signing is the one people miss. A trustee must hold meetings, record decisions, keep accounts and prepare filings, and it charges for the work.
The mix of assets changes the charge. Cash is cheap to look after; shares in a private company or a house take longer.
The work is also uneven. The early period is heaviest while accounts open and assets move in.
The work rises again when a beneficiary comes of age, when someone moves to a country with new reporting duties, or when the trust is brought to an end.
Ask the trustee how and when it revises its charges and what warning it gives. Ask too what it would charge if you moved the trust to a different trustee.
Such points belong in the written terms, so we ask for them before you sign.
Set the yearly lines of each estimate beside its set-up line. A low entry cost can sit on top of a high annual one.
Third-party costs
Some costs come from outside parties and are shown line by line. The typical ones are:
Fees for the trust application, which the trustee and the law firm set out in writing.
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.
Registry or stamp duty, where the islands charge one; your lawyer confirms.
Reporting work, where it applies, done by the trustee or your adviser.
Your own lawyer and tax adviser bill you themselves. We ask both for a fee estimate early, so you can plan for them.
What changes the total
The four drivers named at the top of this page push the total up or down, and you hold most of the controls.
People involved. Each settlor, beneficiary and protector adds identity checks and records.
Assets held. Cash is simple; private shares, property and art need valuations. A holding company under the trust adds formation, agent fees and its own accounts.
Drafting needed. Every extra role, power or special clause adds drafting time and later administration.
The trustee’s yearly work. Meetings, resolutions, records and reporting recur every year, so this line grows in weight over time.
A simpler structure usually costs less to set up and to run. Your lawyer can tell you whether it still serves your purpose.
Do not let price pick the structure. A cheap deed that fails under challenge becomes far more costly than a careful one.
Imagine two trusts with equal assets. One holds cash and listed shares with a single trustee. The other holds a private company, a property and a loan to a relative.
That second trust calls for valuations, extra drafting and more yearly work, and each item is priced on its own line.
Give every provider one list of assets and roles to price. Otherwise, you cannot compare what comes back.
How to get a quote
A quote carries no obligation. It becomes firm once the trustee and the law firm have seen your papers and set out their terms in writing. The quote also covers the trust application.
An application to the authority is made through a trustee that the authority recognises in St Vincent and the Grenadines, as the Financial Services Authority page describes. Your lawyer confirms the exact term for your case.
To start, send us three things:
The assets you expect to transfer, in broad terms.
The people involved and where each of them lives.
Whether a holding company is likely.
We send a written estimate with every line shown separately.
What do I pay for when I set up a trust in St Vincent?
You pay for the law firm that drafts the deed, the trustee's acceptance and onboarding work, the trust application the trustee makes, and our coordination. Holding companies and bank accounts add lines. Each item appears separately in a written estimate, so you can compare providers.
Are there ongoing costs for a trust in St Vincent?
Yes. Each year the trustee bills for holding meetings, passing resolutions and keeping the books. Any holding company and the bank add their own charges. Over the life of the trust these can add up to more than the set-up, so compare the yearly lines as closely as the first one.
How do I get a quote for a trust in St Vincent?
Send us the assets you expect to transfer, the number of people involved and whether a holding company sits under the trust. A written estimate follows, and it becomes firm after the trustee and the law firm have both signed off.
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
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