Increase in Court Fees from 30 September 2021
On 22nd March 2021, the Government launched a consultation on ‘Increasing selected court fees and Help with Fees income thresholds by inflation’. The consultation closed on 17th May and the response has now been published. Following the consultation court fees have increased as of 30th September 2021. The reasoning behind the increase is that fees are only being uplifted by inflation. So what does this mean for you?
Court of Protection Fee Increase
Fees for the Court of Protection will now be as follows:
- Application fee – £371: this is payable on making an application to start court proceedings or on making an application for permission to start proceedings (an increase from £365)
- Appeal fee – £234: payable on filing an appellants notice appealing a court decision or seeking permission to appeal a court decision (an increase from £230)
- Hearing fee – £494: payable where the court has held a hearing to decide the application and has made a final order, declaration or decision (an increase from £485)
Family Court Fee Increase – Divorce and Financial Proceedings
If you are seeking a decree of divorce or nullity of a marriage or for the dissolution or nullity of a civil partnership, the application fee will be £593 (previously £550). For a financial order the cost will be £275 other than by consent (an increase from £255) and £54 for a financial order by consent or a decree of judicial separation (an increase from £50).
Children issues
An application for any of the following orders will be increasing from £215 to £232.
- £232 for financial provision for a child (an increase from £215)
- £232 for an application relating to child arrangements, parental responsibility, changing a child’s surname, removing a child from jurisdiction or guardianship (an increase from £215)
Probate application fees are suspected to increase to a flat fee of £273 for both professionals and non-professionals next year. Currently £215 for a non-professional and £155 for professionals.
For further information or if you require expert legal advice on probate or family law, please contact us to arrange an initial appointment.