Guidance

Apply for a charging order

Updated 22 May 2024

Before applying

Before applying for an order you must first read what to do if you have a judgment but the defendant has not paid. You can find out:

• what help is available to get your money after judgment – this is called ‘enforcing your judgment’ 
• which method of enforcing your judgment is best for your situation

If you have a legal issue you must ask for help from an advice agency, law centre or a solicitor.

If you receive any payments from the defendant (debtor) during enforcement proceedings, you must let the court know immediately. This is especially important if payment is made before a hearing is due to take place.

Charging order

A charging order is when the court places a ‘charge’ on the debtor’s property, such as a house or piece of land. The charge will be the amount you are owed. The charging order does not normally mean you get your money straight away, but it may protect your money for the future. If the debtor owns stocks or shares, or has a fund or money in court, the court can also put a charge on these. 

If the property is sold, the charge is usually paid before any of the proceeds of the sale can be given to the debtor. However, a charging order does not mean the debtor has to sell the property.  

If there are already charges on the property when your charge is registered, for example a mortgage, then those charges will be paid first.

When to apply

You can apply after you have a judgment. The judge will only make an order if: 

• the debtor has failed to pay the amount of the judgment when it was due 
• instalments are being paid under the terms of the judgment

If instalments are being paid under the terms of the judgment, you can still apply for a charging order even though there has been no default payment – the judge will take this into account.

How to apply

You must complete form N379.  

If you are making a charging order against stocks and shares, or a fund or money in court, you must complete form N380. 

If there is a land or property registration, you must attach an official copy of the entry to your application. To do this, you can search for land and property information – there may be a fee for this.

Charging order fees

There is a court fee that must be paid when you apply. The court will add the fee to the amount the defendant already owes, however they cannot refund the fee if your application is not successful. You can find out about civil and family court fees.

You can pay the fee either by:

• a debit or credit card payment – you can call the help desk at the Civil National Business Centre
• cheque or postal order – this must be made payable to ‘HM Courts and Tribunals Service’

If you pay the fee by cheque or postal order, you must send it to:

Civil National Business Centre  
St. Katharine’s House 
21 to 27 St. Katharine’s Street 
Northampton 
NN1 2LH

If you cannot afford the fee, you may not have to pay it in full. You can find out how to apply for help with fees.

Where to send the application form

If you are applying for a charging order over interest from a fund or money in court, you must send your application to the county court hearing centre where the order or judgment was made. 

For all other charging order applications made in the county court, you must send your application to:

Civil National Business Centre  
St. Katharine's House 
21 to 27 St. Katharine's Street 
Northampton 
NN1 2LH

Register an interim charging order

You must register the interim charging order at HM Land Registry after you have a judgment. This will make sure the order is effective immediately.

To find out more information about registering your interim charging order, you can contact HM Land Registry.

Court staff cannot give advice or register the order for you.

Final charging order hearing in the Civil National Business Centre

If the interim charging order has been made in the Civil National Business Centre, the debtor or any other person served with the order can request for the decision to be reconsidered by a district judge. A request must be received by the court within 14 days of the order being served. A district judge will review the request without a hearing. There is no fee for this.

If the debtor or any other person served with the order wants to object to the making of a final order, they must do so in writing within 28 days of the order being served. There is no fee for this.

If the court does not receive any objection, they will consider making the final charging order after 49 days (starting from the date when the interim charging order was made).

If a final charging order has been made by a legal adviser, the debtor or any other person served with the order can request for the decision to be reconsidered by a district judge. They must do so in writing within 14 days of the order being served. A request must include:

• a summary of the issue
• an explanation of why they want the order to be reconsidered

A district judge will review the request without a hearing. There is no fee for this.

Final charging order hearing in a county court

If the interim charging order has been made in a county court, the debtor or any other person served with the order can object. They have 7 days before the hearing to file and serve any objection to the making of a final charging order. This must be in writing and include the grounds of the objection.

The judge will consider your application and any evidence from the debtor or any other person served with the order. 

If there are objections the judge will either deal with them or give ‘directions’ for a later hearing. Directions tell you what you must do to prepare for a hearing. If the judge agrees with the objections, your application may be dismissed. If this happens, you may not get back the application fee and you may have to pay costs for the person that objected.  

If your application is successful, any fees paid are usually recoverable from the debtor by being added to the judgment. You and any other party will be sent a copy of the order.

After the final charging order hearing

You must contact HM Land Registry to make them aware of a final charging order. You must also contact them if your application is dismissed so the interim charging order is removed.