Companies will have to pay increased annual regulatory fees to be registered in Bermuda under legislation passed in the House of Assembly.

David Burt said that the hikes — which are expected to net the Government $6 million each year — were prompted by an increasing workload of the Registrar of Companies, which had resulted in the need for more staff.

Under the Registrar of Companies (Annual Corporate Regulatory Fees) Act No 1 and No 2, international companies will have to pay $500 annually, while local businesses will pay $150.

Speaking in the House on Friday, the Premier said: “The expansion of the roll performed by the Registrar of Companies in recent years has resulted in the need to hire additional numbers of skilled personnel.

“With the changing landscape of the International Business arena and the impact of external pressures from a variety of sources, the Registrar of Companies now has responsibility for the implementation of anti-money laundering.”

Mr Burt, who is also the Minister of Finance, said it was essential for the island to have a regulatory regime that “stood up to the rigour of international scrutiny”.

Scott Pearman, for the One Bermuda Alliance, said that the Opposition understood the need for extra funding.

He said: “If you’re going to have the RoC perform a quasi-regulatory or fully regulatory function, it is quite right that it will need money to do so.

“That begs the question whether or not the RoC should be a regulator in the first place.”

But Mr Pearman said that the fees were in effect a new tax, which undermined the Government’s claim that it had produced a balanced budget this year without the need to raise taxes.

He said: “New regulatory fees — I would say that’s a polite expression for taxes. These are taxes and they are also new taxes.

“I say that politically because I have a vague recollection of it being said that this Budget was being balanced without raising taxes.

“That was wrong twice. Firstly, because this Budget is not a balanced budget and possibly never will be. Secondly, it is wrong because these new fees are new taxes.”

Mr Burt then raised a point of order, arguing that Mr Pearman’s claim was “factually incorrect”.

Mr Pearman hit back, saying: “One man’s fees are another man’s taxes.”

“These are charges on business and these are charges on local companies, and when you have additional fees or taxes — call them what you will — this impacts on jobs, because if it’s more expensive to do business here, it means it may cause some to leave or close.

“If the Government wants to increase the cost of doing business, don’t be surprised if business reacts.”

Mr Pearman also questioned why the new fees were being applied retroactively to February 9.

Hesaid: “As a general rule, retroactive taxation is regarded as an unfair thing.

“Here we are, on March 8, telling people that this Parliament is passing a law retroactively. That is not generally the best way to behave.“

Mr Burt described that criticism as “completely disingenuous”.

He said that the increases were first announced last February, and a government notice was issued in October.