In Focus: ICSID Fees and Services

ICSID offers a cost-effective and transparent fee structure for its dispute resolution services in arbitration, mediation, conciliation, and fact-finding proceedings.

Full Administration

In ICSID Convention and Additional Facility arbitration and conciliation cases—and fully administered cases under UNCITRAL and other non-ICSID rules—each party is charged a flat fee of $21,000 per year. This fee covers the services of the Tribunal Secretary (outside of hearing attendance) and dedicated case team, access to ICSID’s hearing facilities in Washington, D.C. and Paris, the hosting of remote hearings and sessions, logistical support in the organization of hearings and sessions, and management of the case finances. The result is that parties benefit from the complete range of ICSID’s expertise, administrative services, and facilities.

Tailored Solutions

In addition to its full administration services, ICSID provides tailored services under the UNCITRAL and other non-ICSID rules, to ad hoc cases, as well as to State-to-State disputes. The most common are serving as appointing authority, deciding challenges, and hosting hearings (in person and remote).

The Secretary-General of ICSID is available to be designated as appointing authority. This designation may be made by contract, law, treaty, or by agreement of the parties to the dispute. Similarly, the Secretary-General of ICSID may be designated as the authority to decide a proposal to disqualify an arbitrator. For both appointments and challenges, ICSID charges a fee of $10,000. If ICSID serves as the appointing authority, and the parties subsequently decide to have ICSID administer the case, the $10,000 is credited to the administration fee.

ICSID also hosts investor-State and State-to-State hearings at its dedicated hearing centre in Washington D.C., in remote hearings, and in hybrid hearings that connect groups in different locations.

Opened in 2019, ICSID’s full-service hearing centre in Washington, D.C. has three large hearing rooms and six breakout and deliberation rooms. ICSID charges $4000 per day for use of a hearing room and breakout/deliberation rooms, and will assist in procuring service providers—such as interpreters and court reporters—at competitive rates.

ICSID also has extensive experience with remote hearings using all of the most common video-conferencing platforms. ICSID charges $2500 per day for the hosting of remote hearings.

For any questions related to ICSID’s fees and services, contact the ICSID Secretariat at icsidsecretariat@worldbank.org