The Insolvency Service is a government agency that provides services to those affected by financial distress or failure. The Insolvency Service operates as an executive agency of the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
The Insolvency Service has announced changes to the deposits paid to initiate creditor bankruptcies and compulsory liquidations.
The petition deposit, the amount that needs to be paid up-front to seek an order, will be increasing in all cases where a petition is filed at court on or after 1 November 2022. The current fees have been in place since April 2016.
| Changes being made to deposits | Current Fee | Fee from 1 November 2022 |
| Creditors’ bankruptcy petition deposit | £990 | £1,500 |
| Company liquidation petition deposit | £1,600 | £2,600 |
The deposit contributes to the Official Receiver’s administration costs, with the remainder of their costs recovered through fees charged against assets realised during the bankruptcy or liquidation proceedings.
If there are sufficient assets to recover all the fees and costs, then the deposit is returned to the party who initiated the insolvency.
There are no changes to the adjudicator petition deposit where the individual applies for their own bankruptcy.