Witness Expenses and Allowances
Overview
The CPS is responsible for paying allowances and expenses to witnesses who are called to give evidence in prosecutions conducted by the Service.
The CPS aims to pay 100% of correctly completed witness expense claims within 10 working days of receipt of a valid claim. Claims will be checked for auditing and verification purposes.
This webpage covers the process for paying allowances and expenses for attending court in England and Wales.
To start a claim using the digital form, please visit the claim witness expenses page.
There’s a different process for claiming expenses for attending court in Scotland and claiming expenses for attending court in Northern Ireland.
Guidance
The Regulations
Allowances and expenses payable to prosecution witnesses attending court are governed by Regulations made by the Attorney General (the Regulations) (The Crown Prosecution Service (Witnesses' etc. Allowances) Regulations 1985), as amended from time to time.
Classes of Witnesses
There are four classes of witnesses:
- Ordinary
- Professional
- Expert
- Interpreter
Allowances and expenses governed by the Regulations are:
- Those payable to ordinary and professional witnesses
- Overnight allowances and travelling expenses payable to expert witnesses and interpreters.
- Those payable to people who have been requested to attend court, but not as witnesses, for example, parents/carers of child witnesses, people assisting witnesses with disabilities, members of a victim's family.
Allowances, expenses and fees not governed by the Regulations are:
- Fees for expert witnesses
- Fees and expenses for interpreters
In these circumstances, CPS Areas have discretion with regard to the suitability of payments.
People who cannot be paid
No allowances, expenses or fees can be paid to:
- Police officers (from Forces in England and Wales) attending in their official capacity
- Prison officers attending in their official capacity
- Prisoner witnesses brought to court in custody (from within the jurisdiction)
- Witnesses who attend court but refuse to give evidence
Giving Evidence
Witnesses who attend to give evidence will be paid whether or not they actually give evidence. There is only one exception. A witness who attends but refuses to give evidence is not entitled to be paid.
Estimating Expense Claims
Crown Prosecutors and Paralegal Officers should use the ‘Current rates – WEF1B’ when advising witnesses what they are entitled to claim.
For current rates (allowances), see:
Ordinary Witnesses
An ‘ordinary witness’ is a witness to fact - a witness who is neither a professional nor expert and who gives evidence based on their first-hand knowledge of events relevant to the case.
Ordinary witnesses include:
- witnesses who attend a court hearing to read a Victim Personal Statement
- witnesses who visit court for familiarisation purposes (including where these visits are facilitated by witness support services)
- adult victims of rape or another serious sexual offence who attend a CPS Pre-Trial meeting with members of the prosecution team
- victims of crime who attend meetings offered by the CPS as part of the Bereaved Families Scheme, the Victim Communication and Liaison scheme or the Victims’ Right to Review Scheme.
Ordinary witnesses may receive compensation towards:
- Travelling expenses
- Money spent on refreshments and meals
- Overnight subsistence
- Financial loss (e.g. loss of earnings)
- Other expense incurred (e.g. childcare)
There are limits on the amounts payable:
- Bus and train fares (standard fare) should normally repaid in full
- Travel by motor vehicle is paid at a rate per mile
- Childcare will normally be reimbursed within a maximum daily amount. However, discretion should be applied where childcare cost exceeds the rate. An official receipt from a registered child carer must be provided.
- Taxi fares are allowed in exceptional circumstances. Discretion should be applied for incidents such as:
- Where this was the only form of transport available
- If a witness is registered disabled or infirm
- If the witness is vulnerable.
This should normally be agreed in advance and receipts must be provided.
- Set limits apply to refreshments and meals
- Maximum daily amounts apply to loss of earnings and other financial losses.
Expenses for people accompanying or supporting ordinary witnesses
Other people, in certain circumstances, may receive allowances just like ordinary witnesses. This is at the discretion of Areas where it is believed that it would assist the witness in giving best evidence (including visiting court for familiarisation purposes) or accessing meetings offered by the CPS. This should be agreed in advance of attendance.
Examples include but are not limited to the following:
- Parents accompanying child witnesses
- People accompanying elderly witnesses
- People assisting disabled witnesses
Police officers, prison officers and prisoners in custody will not receive allowances.
Other than interpreters (see “Interpreters” section below) and Registered Intermediaries (see the Ministry of Justice’s Registered Intermediary Procedural Guidance Manual 2024), people accompanying witnesses while working in a professional capacity (e.g. Independent Sexual Violence Advisers) will not receive allowances from the CPS.
Overnight subsistence
The CPS will normally arrange the hotel accommodation for ordinary witnesses and pay for it. The overnight allowance covers an absence of 24 hours. Where the witness has had to arrange their own overnight accommodation the CPS will reimburse actual rates up to the maximum overnight rate, where receipts are provided.
Where a meal is also included, ordinary witnesses will be entitled to a fixed Personal Incidental Allowance. If no evening meal is included ordinary witnesses are additionally entitled to a Night Subsistence Allowance. This is a fixed amount towards the cost of meals, refreshments and other expenses where a witness has had to stay away from home.
Witnesses who stay with family or friends in place of the above will receive a single fixed payment. See ‘Current rates’ for Ordinary and Professional witnesses.
Professional Witnesses
A ‘professional witness’ is defined by The Crown Prosecution Service (Witnesses' etc. Allowances) Regulations 1988 at section 3 as ‘a witness practising as a member of the legal or medical profession or as an accountant, dentist or veterinary surgeon.’
Only professionals defined in the regulation may be reimbursed as a professional witness and this is to compensate them for leaving their practice to attend court.
Accordingly, a Doctor who gives evidence in a professional capacity (e.g. regarding the extent of injuries suffered by their patient) is giving professional evidence. Whereas, if they give evidence as an ordinary witness of fact (e.g. as a witness to an assault on the way home) they can only be reimbursed as an Ordinary witness.
These witnesses may receive:
- either a compensatory allowance
- or a sum to reimburse the cost of employing a locum.
Both have upper limits.
Subsistence allowance is not payable, except when an overnight stay is necessary. Travelling expenses are payable.
Where a locum costs more than the stated allowance, the professional witness should provide written evidence of actual costs incurred and consideration will be given to exceed the maximum allowance.
This section does not apply to an expert giving expert evidence.
Expert Witnesses
An ‘expert witness’ is a witness whose level of specialised knowledge or skill in a particular field qualifies them to present their opinion about the facts of a case. An expert may give an opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience.
The Regulations do not set allowances for expert witnesses, except for overnight subsistence and travelling allowances. Expert witness fees are discretionary but should be proposed and agreed with reference to the ‘Scales of guidance’.
Expert witness fees must be agreed between the Area and the instructed expert before attendance at court.
Document Evidence Ltd (DEL) and Eurofins Forensics Services (Eurofins)
Expert witness fees are agreed centrally with the major providers of expert witness services, namely the Document Evidence Limited and Eurofins Forensics Services. Rates for these expert witness providers do not need to be agreed locally.
Other expert witnesses
In assessing the fees for other expert witnesses, consider:
- the nature and difficulty of the case
- the complexity of the evidence
- the work necessarily involved
- the choice of experts available
- the market rate otherwise being applied
- the amount of travelling time involved
Scales of Guidance
These provide a starting point to assist in assessing appropriate fees. Discretion should be used in assessing the level of fees. The scales assume a normal court day and local travel. Adjust them to reflect longer journeys and significantly longer court sittings.
Responsibility for payment
Experts' work usually falls into two parts:
- Tasks completed as part of the investigation (e.g. post mortems, scientific tests, reports on findings).
- Attendance at court to give evidence, including preparatory work (e.g. revision and further research) and sometimes conference with counsel.
The investigating authority (usually the police) is responsible for the payment of costs relevant to the investigation and gathering of evidence throughout the case. The CPS is responsible for the payment of costs relevant to the presentation of the case at court. Notice should be taken to not reimburse for the same work already paid for, or likely to be paid for, by the investigating authority.
Preparation
The preparation fees will normally relate to the investigative process e.g. the provision of an expert report, and should therefore be paid by the investigating authority. The CPS will not normally pay experts for preparation, unless it relates to refreshing the memory from notes or the preparation of jury exhibits by the expert. This should be agreed in advance.
Where the preparatory work for an attendance is one hour or less, it is usual to agree and pay an attendance fee which includes it. If preparation exceeds one hour, payment may be split. A fee can be agreed and paid for preparation, in addition to the attendance fee.
Court attendance fee and travel and waiting time
For court attendance, a daily fee and half-day fee should be agreed, wherever possible. That fee should include an element for travel time. Some experts may insist on being paid an hourly rate for court attendance. In these circumstances it should be made clear that travel time will only be paid at half the rate payable for time at court.
Subsistence and travelling expenses
Day subsistence is not payable to expert witnesses. The attendance fee includes this. Overnight allowance may be paid where attendance necessarily involves overnight absence. Standard mileage rate is payable for journeys by private motor vehicle.
Cancellation fees
When agreeing expert fees, consideration should be given to agreeing a cancellation fee. An expert may already have terms for cancellation for attendance at court and this should be requested to establish the position at the outset.
Attendance at court
The following good practice applies when an expert witness is required to attend court:
- Courts should be requested to give fixed dates to trials where expert witnesses are being called to give live evidence
- Engage in a timely and proactive manner with the defence regarding the potential for agreeing the expert evidence
- Have clear confirmation from the defence that the expert witness is required to attend court
- Agree a ‘batting order’ and a specific time for the expert witness to attend court. Typically, this will not be as the first witness and, preferably, not on the first day of the trial
- If possible, arrange for the expert to remain at their office, contactable by telephone, until after the case has started and his/her attendance is confirmed as being necessary
- The length of time experts are in attendance at court must be kept to a minimum
- Stand the expert down by telephone if the trial is ineffective or cracks or the expert evidence becomes agreed
- Release the expert from court as soon as possible after giving evidence.
Only those with the requisite financial delegation should authorise the instruction of an expert witness.
All fees should be negotiated within guidance rates, wherever possible.
The expert instruction form should be completed and this should be sent to the expert in advance of attendance at court.
The guideline figures, handed down by the Attorney General’s office, relate to the payment of court attendance fees and preparation.
Interpreters
It is for the police or other appropriate investigating agency to arrange the attendance of an interpreter when interviewing a suspect or witnesses in the course of their enquiries.
The defence is responsible for the interpreting and translating needs of all defence witnesses both during the preparation of the case and whilst giving evidence in court.
The CPS will arrange and pay for interpreters for witnesses who attend court to give evidence. In addition, witnesses can be assisted by an interpreter for other pre court meetings, such as a court familiarisation visit, if it is necessary.
It should be noted that whilst some witnesses may need an interpreter for the purpose of giving evidence they may not need one for a court visit, which is less formal. This should be assessed on a case by case basis.
Interpreters will receive a fee based on a fixed hourly rate.
Subsistence allowance is not payable, except when an overnight stay is necessary.
Travelling expenses are payable.
Expenses for people accompanying or supporting witnesses
Other people, in certain circumstances, may receive allowances just like ordinary witnesses. This is at the discretion of Areas where it is believed that it would assist the witness in giving best evidence (including visiting court for familiarisation purposes) or accessing meeting offered by the CPS. This should be agreed in advance of attendance.
Examples include but are not limited to the following:
- Parents accompanying child witnesses
- People accompanying elderly witnesses
- People assisting disabled witnesses.
Police officers, prison officers and prisoners in custody will not receive allowances.
Other than interpreters (see “Interpreters” section) and Registered Intermediaries (see the Ministry of Justice’s Registered Intermediary Procedural Guidance Manual 2024), people accompanying witnesses while working in a professional capacity (e.g. Independent Sexual Violence Advisers) will not receive allowances from the CPS.
Procedure
Digital claim form
Prosecution witnesses can find the claim form by visiting GOV.UK or searching 'claim witness expenses' online.
If claimants are not able to access the digital claim witness expenses service on GOV.UK, there is also a telephone helpline available and those who need help to claim can call 01924 205200. Waiting times are typically less than a minute. The helpline is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 2pm and is closed on bank holidays.
The previous method of claiming by filling in a blue paper form by hand has been completely replaced by the online service and witnesses will no longer be asked to complete a paper form.
Discretion to Exceed Allowances
There is discretion, under the Regulations, to pay more than the entitlement. Regulation 4(1) provides that more than the entitlements under the Regulations may be allowed. This should only be used in exceptional circumstances. Authority of FBSW, Chief Crown Prosecutor/Area Business Manager or designated officer for this purpose, with the necessary delegated financial authority must be obtained before such a payment is made. A record of all such transactions is to be maintained and reasons for making the payment are to be kept with the claim.
It is not possible to catalogue every possible circumstance in which it may be appropriate to exceed the normal allowances and in cases of doubt advice may be sought from the Head of Court Business Unit.
Provision of Pre-Booked Travel and/or Accommodation
Pre-booked Travel and/or Accommodation for Witnesses attending court is available, this is usually limited to Ordinary Witnesses. If you are a Witness attending court and require this please contact your Witness Care Officer.
Every CPS Area has shared an Area-specific Travel and Accommodation Request Form with the Witness Care Units in their Area. Witness Care Units can use this form to request that the CPS books travel and/or accommodation for witnesses. The form includes local booking procedure information and contact details.
Bookings will be made 10 working days in advance of the date of attendance and within the guidelines detailed in the policy governing Witness Expenses wherever possible.