Payment of costs certificates
We help with the payment of costs certificates issued by federal courts under the Federal Proceedings (Costs) Act 1981.
How to apply
To apply for the payment of a costs certificate, you will need:
- a copy of the costs certificate, marked with the court's seal
- a copy of the court orders which granted the costs certificate
- copies of itemised accounts for any legal fees recoverable under the costs certificate
- copies of receipts for any expenses recoverable under the costs certificate.
If you are the recipient of a payment and registered for GST, you must also send a tax invoice addressed to the Attorney-General's Department.
- Download and complete the Application Form – Costs Act.
- If you are applying for a costs certificate under section 6, 7 or 9 of the Act, download and complete a Template Statement to confirm that there has been no appeal from the court order that granted the costs certificate.
- Email completed forms and required documents to finass@ag.gov.au.
How much we can pay
A cap applies to costs certificates issued under sections 6, 7, 7A, 8, 9 and 10A of the Act.
This cap is the maximum amount we can pay.
The capped amounts, inclusive of GST where applicable, are as follows:
- Administrative Appeals Tribunal: $2,000
- Federal Circuit and Family Court: $4,000
- Federal Court: $6,000
- High Court: $10,000.
The capped amounts are set out in the Federal Proceedings (Costs) Regulations 2018.
For section 8 costs certificates, costs relating to a retrial will include the cost of settling a matter without trial.
All costs claimed are assessed against the 'scale of costs' for the court that heard the matter, at the time the matter was heard.
Section 10 costs certificates
No cap applies to costs certificates issued under section 10 of the Act.
Payment will be paid in such part as the Attorney-General considers appropriate of any costs incurred by that party in relation to the proceedings (subsection 10(4) of the Act).
We interpret ‘appropriate costs’ to mean the costs thrown away as a result of the event that led to the certificate being granted, but not the costs of a new hearing.
Assessment timeframes
We will assess complete applications within 28 days. If your application is incomplete, we will notify you and request the missing information. We will not assess incomplete applications.
Find out more
To contact the Legal Financial Assistance Casework team, email finass@ag.gov.au.
If you need an alternative way to contact us, you can leave a message for the team with our department’s switchboard at 02 6141 6666 (or +61 2 6141 6666 for overseas callers).
If you are deaf or have a hearing or speech impairment, contact the department through the National Relay Service and give 02 6141 6666 as the number you would like to call.