The Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service has announced that, following a public consultation, a number of changes to court fees will come into effect on the 1 April 2026 including:
- An inflationary uplift of 5% to the majority of current court fees;
- Fee bands for money judgment enforcement applications to be updated with an increased minimum fee of £50 to be applied; and
- The introduction of two new fees in the small claims court, namely:
- For claims over £3,000, a fee of £244 will be applied; and
- For applications to set aside a default decree, a fee of £25 will be applied.
To access the Department of Justice webpage detailing the court fees applicable from 1 April 2026 click here).
Further increases to come?
At present, the county court in Northern Ireland hears general civil claims valued at up to £30,000 with district judges handling claims valued at up to £10,000. It has been announced that these figures, which have remained unchanged for more than a decade, are to be increased to £60,000 and £20,000 respectively.
It is expected that these changes are likely to come into force in Autumn 2026 and we anticipate that these changes will result in further amendments to court fees.
For more information of advice, please contact one of our experts in our Strategic Advisory Team.
