Divorce court fees to rise by a third

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Couple arguingImage source, Science Photo Library

The cost of getting divorced is to rise by about a third after the government announced increased court fees.

From later this year, husbands or wives who want to end their marriage will pay £550 for a civil court hearing in England and Wales, a rise of £140.

Ministers also plan to double fees for asylum and immigration cases.

The Ministry of Justice said the fee increases, while not popular, were necessary and would ensure the rich, not the vulnerable, paid more.

The measures are outlined in a letter to Chairman of the Justice Select Committee Robert Neill from courts minister Shailesh Vara.

In 2013, the Ministry of Justice first announced plans to increase divorce fees from £410 to £750, a hike of more than 80%. However, after "carefully considering" concerns raised in a consultation, that increase was reduced to a third.

Other fee increases include:

  • Issuing a possession claim in the county court, normally used to evict tenants, from £280 to £355 (a rise of £75)

  • General applications in civil proceedings from £50 to £100

  • Contested applications in civil proceedings from £155 to £255 (this rise will not apply to extensions of injunctions for protection from harassment or violence)

These measures, including the divorce fees, are expected to raise an extra £60m a year.

However, Mr Vara said the drive to reduce costs was ongoing and outlined more proposed fee rises, which are to be consulted on over the next two months., external These, he said, could generate a further £48m.

They include:

  • The maximum fee for money claims to rise from £10,000 to at least £20,000. This is only expected to affect claims of £200,000 or more, which are likely to involve big businesses or wealthy individuals. Personal injury and clinical negligence claims will be excluded from this higher cap

  • Doubling fees in the Immigration and Asylum Chamber, with exemptions for the most vulnerable

  • Introducing fees to property and tax chambers

  • 10% hike in other civil proceedings fees

Mr Vara said the fee increases would not be popular but were necessary to fix the economy.

"At every stage we have sought to protect the most vulnerable by ensuring they will not have to pay new and higher fees," he said.

The remission scheme, which waives fees for those who have difficulty paying, would also be more generous, he said.

The rich and large corporations would make a bigger contribution and every pound collected would be spent on providing efficient and effective courts, he added.

Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) cost £1bn a year more to run than it received in income, Mr Vara said.

Last week the Ministry of Justice announced dozens of courts were facing closure as Justice Secretary Michael Gove presses ahead with a shake-up of the system.

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