Changes to insolvency fees
The fees charged to apply for bankruptcy and company insolvency are changing from 21 July 2016.
In 2014, the Insolvency Service agreed with officials at HM Treasury that they would carry out a review of its funding regime with a view to designing a new, more resilient, transparent fee structure that would accord with Managing Public Money principles and place the agency on a more sustainable financial platform.
This review has now concluded and a new fee structure is planned to come into force. The changes will be subject to Parliamentary scrutiny before coming into force on 21 July 2016.
As with the current structure, the deposit and administration fee will remain, and a new official receiver’s General Fee will be introduced. This will replace the current Secretary of State fee, which will no longer apply to cases where orders are made on or following the commencement date.
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The General Fee will be charged on all cases and will be at a fixed level; allowing those accessing our services to know the likely costs from the outset
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The Trustee/liquidator fee will be charged on assets realised by the official receiver when carrying out the duties of trustee or liquidator
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There are also two new fees related directly to the activities they fund. These are the dismissed/withdrawn petition fee and the Income Payments Agreement/Order set up fee
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The distribution fee charged when a distribution is made to creditors by the official receiver, when acting as trustee / liquidator, will remain the same
The fees are as follows:
| Deposit / Fee rate | Current amount | New Amount | Difference | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bankruptcy deposit (debtors case) | £525 | £550 | £25 | Not changed since 2011 |
| Bankruptcy deposit (creditors case) | £825 | £990 | £165 | |
| Company winding up deposit | £1,350 | £1,600 | £250 | |
| Bankruptcy administration fee (debtors case) | £1,990 | £1,990 | No change | |
| Bankruptcy administration fee (creditors case) | £1,990 | £2,775 | £785 | |
| Company administration fee | £2,520 | £5,000 | £2,480 | |
| General fee | Up to £80,000 - Varies from case to case, charged on a sliding scale on realisation of all assets in the case | £6,000 | Up to -£74,000 | Effectively replaces the Secretary of State fee but charged at the start of the case and one fixed fee |
| Trustee/liquidator Fee | - | 15% of assets realised | New fee | New fee |
| Fee for setting up an Income payments agreement/order | - | £150 | New fee | New fee |
| Dismissed petitions fee | - | £50 | New fee | New fee |
The new fee structure has been designed to achieve as close to full cost recovery as possible and will work on the principle of matching revenue to work carried out. This will allow those that are using the Insolvency Service to know what the options available to them will cost from the outset; allowing service users to make informed choices.
More information about these changes and an impact assessment are available.