Court Fees Increase 2021
Court fees increased on 30 September 2021, for the first time in 5 years. The court fees affected are:
- All County Court actions
- County Court – Family Proceedings
- Senior Courts of England & Wales
- Supreme Court of the UK
- Tribunals and Inquiries
The increases come on the back of a government consultation launched on 22 March 2021.The consultation outlined the Ministry of Justice’s plans to increase court fees in line with historic inflation going back to 2016 when court fees were last reviewed.
61% of respondents disagreed with the proposal, with most feeling that the economic impact of Covid-19 made it an inappropriate time to increase fees. However, the MoJ argued that the increase reflected inflation, was not, therefore, a rise in real terms and would help with running costs.
The key court fee increases to note are:
Small Claims Court Hearing Fees:
- Claims up to £300 – £27 (up from £25)
- Claims of £300-£500 – £59 (up from £55)
- Claims of £500-£1,000 – £85 (up from £80)
- Claims of £1,000-£1,500 – £123 (up from £115)
- Claims of £1,500-£3,000 – £181 (up from £170)
- Claims over £3,000 – £346 (up from £335)
Enforcement:
- £119 for enforcement via county court bailiff (up from £110)
- £71 for high court enforcement (up from £66)
Family Court fees:
- Filing an application for a divorce, nullity or civil partnership dissolution – £593 (up from £550)
- Applications under the Children Act 1989, for example child arrangements orders, prohibited steps order, specific issue order or special guardianship order, and enforcement orders – £232 (up from £215)
- Applications to revoke, amend, extend or take action following the breach of an existing Children Act enforcement order – £102 (up from £95)
- Applications within proceedings without notice or by consent (for example applications to adjourn a hearing) – £53 (up from £50)
- Applications within proceedings, with notice – £167 (up from £155)
- Applications for a financial remedy – £275 (up from £255)
Oliver Kew
Published on 04/10/2021
