Court fees from 13th July 2026
On 13 July 2026, a wide range of court and tribunal fees were increased or amended across England and Wales following changes introduced by the Ministry of Justice and HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS). The Government has stated that the increases are intended to strengthen cost recovery, account for inflation and support the continued operation of the court system.
Why Have Court Fees Increased?
The Government has increased 170 court and tribunal fees by 2.6% in line with inflation. A further 27 fees have risen by an average of 34%, whilst four fees have been reduced to better reflect their underlying administrative costs. The changes take effect on 13 July 2026, subject to parliamentary approval.
Your Solicitor will advise if a Court fee is applicable to your matter and provide you with the cost of this disbursement.
The increases in Court fees that may affect our clients are:
Probate
- An increase to the probate application fee to £526. This Ministry of Justice advises that it is recovering the cost of an ever-improving service, and the new cost accounts for rising inflation as well as investment in delivering an efficient and modern service.
- Creating a separate, reduced fee for when someone requests copies of probate documents concurrently with their probate application, so that, instead of £16, the fee will only be £2. This will better reflect the cost of that service.
Court of Protection
| Type of Application | Current | New |
| Application to start proceedings or application for permission to start proceedings | £421 | £432 |
| Filling an appeal | £265 | £272 |
| Hearing fees | £259 | £266 |
| Copy of a document fee | £5 | £8 |
Family Proceedings
|
Current | New | |
| Originating proceedings where no other fee is specified | £279 | £286 | |
| Filing an application for a divorce, nullity, or civil partnership dissolution | £612 | £628 | |
| Assessment of costs application | £57 | £58 | |
| Care and supervision proceedings under section 31 Children Act 1989 | £2515 | £2580 | |
| Placement Order Application | £556 | £570 | |
| Application without notice or by consent | £60 | £62 | |
| Application for parental order | £263 | £270 | |
| Application Notice | £190 | £195 | |
| Parental responsibility (s4ZA(1)(c) or (6) Children Act 1989) | £263 | £270 | |
| Guardians (s5(1) or 6(7) Children Act 1989) | £263 | £270 | |
| Guardians (s5(1) or 6(7) Children Act 1989) | £263 | £270 | |
| Section 8 orders (s10(1) or (2) Children Act 1989) | £263 | £270 | |
| Application for a financial order | £313 | £321 |
Applications for injunctions – family homes and domestic violence
| Type of application | Court Fee |
| Application for a non-molestation order | No Fee |
| Application for an occupation order | No Fee |
| Application for Domestic Abuse Protection Order | No Fee |
The full list of fee changes can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/court-and-tribunal-fees-updates-from-july-2026
Family fee information can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fees-in-the-civil-and-family-courts-main-fees-ex50/family-court-fees-ex50
Any process received by HM Courts and Tribunals Service on or after 13 July 2026 will be dealt with under the new fee order. If a valid process was received before 13 July 2026 in a fit state to issue, then the old fee will apply, even if it is actioned after the fee increase. Any process received before 13 July 2026 but returned because there was an error and then subsequently resubmitted after 13 July 2026, will attract the new fee.
Help With Fees
The Help with Fees remissions scheme remains available for those with lower financial means who are unable to afford a court or tribunal fee.
More information on the scheme can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/get-help-with-court-fees
Our clients can contact us by emailing info@hannayslaw.co.uk if you wish to check the costs of a Court fee .
