What is changing
The Police Act 1997 (Criminal Records) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/985) cut the fees the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) charges for Basic, Standard and Enhanced criminal record certificates and for its Update Service. The new fees apply from 5 October 2026.
The instrument amends the Police Act 1997 (Criminal Records) Regulations 2002 (SI 2002/233), which set the fees for England and Wales. It changes the fees and nothing else. The fee waiver for volunteers stays in place.
- New fees apply from
- 5 October 2026
- Enhanced check
- £49.50 to £41.00
- Standard check
- £21.50 to £20.00
- Basic check
- £21.50 to £20.00
- Update Service subscription
- £16.00 to £15.00 a year
- Where it applies
- England and Wales
Who pays and who does not
If you ask a candidate or worker to get a DBS check, you either pay the fee yourself or pass the cost on under your own policy. The cut applies either way.
- Standard and Enhanced checks are only for roles that are eligible for them, such as roles listed in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975. Applications go through a DBS registered body or an umbrella body.
- Basic checks can be used for any role. Any employer can ask to see one.
- Volunteers keep the existing fee waiver on Standard and Enhanced checks. Charities and voluntary bodies that rely on it will see little change.
- Paid Update Service subscribers pay £15.00 a year instead of £16.00, which lets them keep a certificate current and lets you check it online with their consent. Qualifying volunteer subscriptions stay free.
The biggest saving is on Enhanced checks, at £8.50 each. If you recruit for childcare, care or other roles working with children or adults at risk, that adds up across a year of hiring.
What to do now
- Time non-urgent checks sensibly. The lower fees apply from 5 October 2026. If a batch of routine re-checks can wait a few days, it may cost less. Never delay a check you need before someone starts in a safeguarding role.
- Watch for the DBS announcement. The DBS will tell customers about the reductions through its website and other channels. Check there how it treats applications already in progress on 5 October.
- Update your own documents. Change any internal recharge policy, offer letter, job advert or staff handbook that quotes the old fee.
- Check umbrella body charges. If you use an umbrella body, any administration charge it adds is its own. That charge is separate from the DBS fee and this instrument does not change it.
- Review Update Service renewals. Staff who pay their own subscription, or whose subscription you reimburse, will pay the lower rate from 5 October 2026.
Why the fees are falling
The DBS must set fees to recover its costs without making a profit or a loss. Fees last changed in December 2024, when they went up. Delays to a technology replacement programme then meant lower spending than expected, and the DBS built up a surplus of £32.1 million in 2025/26.
The reductions return that surplus to the people who pay for checks. The Home Office expects the change to transfer about £86 million from the DBS to fee payers over a three-year period. The DBS reviews its fees every year, so they may change again.