All non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) with trust authority have been ordered by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to pay an annual supervision fee (ASF) for the central bank’s periodic assessments of these institutions’ trust business.

Approved in December 2025, the BSP’s first circular of 2026 amended the Manual of Regulations for NBFIs (MOR-NBFI) to provide guidelines on the ASF for non-banks with trust departments. The fee helps cover the cost of maintaining the BSP’s supervisory resources.

According to the BSP, the mandated supervision fee will be equivalent to 0.0357 percent of the NBFI’s assets under management (AUM) in the prior year. The rate is similar to that paid on the AUM of banks with trust departments.

Notably, remittances to the BSP, “including but not limited to supervisory fees, shall be exempt from national internal revenue taxes,” the circular read. As such, “NBFIs with trust authority no longer need to withhold tax on their payment of ASF” to the BSP.

Trust and investment activities of NBFIs that do not perform quasi-banking functions—except trust corporations—must follow the same rules as NBFIs with quasi-banking functions, as well as other regulations for trust entities.

Covered periods for the annual fee begin with 2025, which must be settled before May 31 this year, and the same pattern applies to succeeding years.

“Non-payment of the supervision fee within the prescribed period shall subject the concerned NBFI with trust authority to administrative sanctions,” the BSP warned.

Moreover, corporations that commit violations may face permanent shutdown. “If the offender is a director or officer of the trust entity, the Monetary Board (MB) may also suspend or remove such director or officer,” it said.

Non-banks receiving the central bank’s ASF billing are advised to review it carefully and report any discrepancies, along with supporting documents, at least 10 banking days before the payment deadline.

The BSP noted that exceptions submitted late or without proper documentation will be accounted for only in the ASF calculation for the following year.

As of November 2025, the number of non-banks reached 17,589, rising by 2.4 percent from November 2024’s 17,183.

As of end-September 2025, total assets of non-banks with quasi-banking functions (NBQBs) inched up to ₱181.9 billion from ₱181.2 billion as of end-June 2025, driven by the expanding loan portfolio of financing firms.