Respond to the consultation on civil legal aid fees
We are holding a series of virtual roundtable discussions to support the consultation on proposed changes to civil legal aid, including an increase in fees for immigration and housing work.
The proposals include:
- raising rates to a minimum of £65 per hour for non-London work and £69 per hour for London-based work, or providing a 10% uplift—whichever is higher
- investing £20 million more a year in civil legal aid, resulting in a 30% fee increase for work in immigration and asylum and a 24% fee increase for work in housing and debt
- allowing civil legal aid providers to see more clients remotely and reducing the requirement to operate from permanent offices
The consultation will be open from 24 January to 21 March.
Join a roundtable
The roundtables will be run online from 4 to 5:30pm in late February and early March.
There will be four 90-minute sessions. Two will be focused on the proposed fee increases for housing and immigration work. Two will discuss proposals related to service delivery, including remote work and office requirements.
- 24 February – immigration fee proposals
- 27 February – housing fee proposals
- 3 and 4 March – service delivery (general discussion on fees and focus on remote working and office requirements)
Representatives from the Ministry of Justice will be at the sessions to hear feedback from solicitors on:
- how the proposed rates will affect the sustainability of housing and immigration legal aid
- whether the fee system should be simplified and how it would work
- the impact of face-to-face and office requirements on providers, as well as how any changes could impact clients
All roundtables will be open to all civil legal aid providers.
To join to a roundtable, complete our online sign up form.
Respond to the consultation
If you can’t attend a roundtable, we still encourage you to provide feedback to the UK government on the proposed changes before 21 March 2025.
You can respond online or via email to civillegalaidreform@justice.gov.uk.
You can also send a response by post to:
Civil Legal Aid Reform Policy Team
Ministry of Justice Eligibility, Civil and Family Legal Aid Policy
102 Petty France
London SW1H 9AJ
Next steps
A paper summarising the responses to this consultation will be published in Spring 2025.
Find out more
To join to a roundtable, complete our online sign up form.
You and your fellow solicitors play a central role in the justice system. We know it’s important to you that access to justice and the rules of fair play are protected. This will safeguard confidence in the system at home and internationally.
Explore the Frontier Economics report on the sustainability of civil legal aid.