Technical article

What a Trust Costs Each Year to Keep in Nevis, Wyoming or Nevada, in Government Fees

A trust registered under the Nevis International Exempt Trust Ordinance pays US$300 to register and US$300 each year to renew.

By Neil Solomon · 3 min read

Imagine a retired couple comparing three places to run a family trust: Nevis, Nevada and Wyoming. Before they ask a lawyer, they want one number for each place. What does the government charge each year, just for the trust to be there?

The sources give a number for each, though they are not charges on the same thing. That is worth seeing first.

Nevis. A trust registered under the Nevis International Exempt Trust Ordinance pays US$300 to register and US$300 each year to renew. A late renewal costs US$400. The renewal is also stated in Eastern Caribbean dollars as EC$810. A registered office or agent is required. The fee schedule is an official order amending the ordinance, tier A.

Nevada. A licensed Nevada family trust company pays US$1,500 each year to the Division of Financial Institutions, due on or before 1 April. If a new designated relative is named, an extra renewal fee set by the Commissioner applies. This charge is on the company that serves a family, and the trust it serves is a separate matter. The source is the state statute, tier A.

Wyoming. A chartered trust company pays a yearly supervisory fee: US$7,500 if its assets are under US$3 million, and US$12,500 if they are over. It is due 31 January. A public or family trust company charter application costs US$15,000, and an examination is billed at US$75 per examiner hour plus travel. The schedule on the banking division's site carries a 2021 footer, so the amounts are from that date.

So the three numbers answer three questions. Nevis charges for the trust. Nevada and Wyoming charge for the company that holds trusts. A family that uses an outside trust company, and not its own, may never see these fees on a bill. They would sit inside whatever the company charges.

Two other places have figures. In the Cook Islands, one trustee's published page puts the trustee fee at about US$5,000 a year, or about US$7,000 flat. That includes registration renewals and regulator filings. It is a tier C figure, one trustee's own. In Belize, a 2007 schedule shows a registration fee of US$100 and no annual fee listed. It is an official order, but dated.

You might say: "US$300 a year is small next to the rest of the bill." It is, and the government charge is only one line of that bill. Trustee fees, legal work and the home country's tax filings come on top.

You could ask each place three things. Is the charge on the trust or on a company? Is it paid once or every year? What is the date of the schedule? A schedule from 2007 or 2021 may have been replaced.

This touches the settlor who pays, the trustee who collects the cost from the trust, and the heirs who bear it later through lower balances. It touches the papers too, since a missed renewal date carries a higher fee in Nevis.

Where have you seen a yearly trust cost that surprised you, and what was it for? Share it here. Someone adding up the same bill may find your line helpful.

Figures are estimates for planning, based on public data. Date read: October 2026.