Paying Office of Public Guardian
The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) charges a fee of £82 for each lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) application. This means it costs £164 to register both a property and financial affairs LPA (P&F) and a health and welfare LPA (H&W). Fee remissions or exemptions are available based on the donor’s financial circumstances. The fee is for the application only and does not guarantee registration. If your application is incorrectly written, it may need to be resubmitted, potentially requiring a new fee payment. Therefore, it is usually best to have an LPA professionally written.
We provide an all-inclusive service that includes covering all OPG fees, postage, and correspondence. Some clients may prefer to pay the OPG fees themselves. This article is designed to support all our Power of Attorney clients.
THE APPLICATION
Section 14 of your application lists two payment options: card or cheque. Providing mobile phone details enables OPG to send a text message.
PAY BY CARD
Payments can be made by credit or debit card. Once OPG receives your documents, they should contact you within 4-8 weeks. If you provide a landline number, you will receive a letter for each LPA. If you provide a mobile number, the OPG will send a text message and a letter for each LPA. This will include a link to the GOV.UK payment page and the reference number.
The letter is usually dated two days before the text to ensure they arrive around the same time. You will receive one letter and one text for each LPA application. The texts are sent together for both LPAs so that they may look like a single message.
The letter
The letters look almost identical, so you may think they are duplicates. It would help if you kept both. Please retain the letter so that Fern Wills and LPAs can conduct enquiries on your behalf with the OPG.
The text
The Secure link contains details of;
- The address (www.gov.uk)
- The subject (Payments/opg/lpa-fee)
- Your 12-digit reference number, e.g. (xxxx-xxxx-xxxx)
- Amount =8200 (£82)
The secure link
This page is accessed by clicking on the link in the text or following the directions for online payment in the letter.
Enter your payment card details as instructed.
FERN TOP TIP: The site does not allow spaces in your postcode.
FERN TOP TIP: The system allows you to scan your card with the camera on your phone. Always check the details because occasionally, clients have reported that the software has read expiry dates, etc., wrong.
Once completed, you will receive confirmation as below.
You will then be notified that the session has ended due to timeout or successful payment. Check your email for a notification for each payment made. Your application will continue to be processed over the next 16- 20 weeks.
PAY BY PHONE
You can also make payments over the phone. OPG's emails, texts, and letters will tell you how to do this and include a contact number for the card payments team and your reference number.
PAY BY CHEQUE
You can pay by check by including it with the paper-based application form. The donor's (person giving the LPA) name must be written on the back of each check that covers their LPA application.
You can pay with a cheque of £82 for a single LPA. To cover both LPAs, the payment is £164 or 2 x £82. For both LPAs for Mr. and Mrs., you will need two cheques of £164 or four cheques of £82.
PAY BY BANK TRANSFER
This option is available to Fern Wills & LPAs clients, who receive a home visit. You can request that the OPG payments be added to your invoice, and Fern Wills & LPAs will pay the OPG Fees on your behalf. Some clients choose this option to keep the process as simple as possible.
REMISSIONS OR EXEMPTIONS
Fee remissions or exemptions are based on the donor’s financial circumstances. If the person making an LPA (the donor) earns less than £12,000 a year before tax, they may be entitled to a 50% reduction. An exemption occurs when a person making an LPA receives certain qualifying means-tested benefits. This means they aren’t required to meet the cost of registering an LPA application.
See the OPG Remissions and Exemptions Video by Clicking on the Play icon in the image below.
FOUR WEEK LETTER
Within four weeks of posting the application to the Office of Public Guardian, you will receive a letter stating that all documents have been received. It will also give a reference number and an indicative timescale for when the applicant should receive the LPA. It also confirms that they have formally notified everyone who they need to inform.
You will recieve one for each LPA applied for. Keep the copies for your reference. Sometimes, the letters arrive within a few days of each other. No action is required, though notifying Fern Wills is appreciated.
Contact us for help professionally drafting and paying for your Lasting Power of Attorney because you are doing it for them.....
