The government is to press ahead with proposed increases to Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) fees.

In its delayed response to a consultation exercise which finished in May, the Ministry of Justice said it will increase the application to register fees for a lasting power of attorney and enduring power of attorney by £10 to £130.

Other changes include: a new resubmission fee of £65 each time an LPA is resubmitted to OPG within three months of an invalid application being returned; and discontinuing the production of LPA office copies by the OPG, except in ‘extreme and limited’ circumstances and for a £50 fee. Certain supervision fees and administration fees are also being adjusted.

The OPG is also to be allowed to vary the levels of fees payable, one possible example being a new discounted fee for any LPA applications that are submitted together.

Full details can be found on the Justice site. The changes will be implemented by statutory instrument.

‘While the level of support for some of these proposals has not been as high as we would have liked, in the current economic climate, difficult decisions need to be made,’ the MoJ said. ‘We believe the overall package of measures is the fairest and most equitable way of ensuring that the OPG can fund its business [and] undergo the necessary transformation to deal with increasing workload.’