Who this guide is for

This do-it-yourself guide is for people who can't afford to pay court fees.

About court fees

You're required to pay fees to file documents in the Supreme Court of BC. You'll need to pay court fees for:

• hearings and trials that last longer than three days,
• swearing affidavits,
• searching some court records,
• photocopying, and
• issuing certain documents (for example, a certificate of judgment).

There are also fees for filing and responding to an application for a divorce or to get or change custody, access, guardianship, or support.

For a list of all court fees, see Appendix C of the Supreme Court Family Rules.

If you can't afford to pay court fees

This guide tells you how to apply for a court order that allows you to begin or respond to an application without paying court fees. This court order is called an indigency order. ("Indigency" is pronounced "IN-di-jen-see.")

In this guide, you'll find:

• a list of steps explaining how to apply for an indigency order,
• links to the blank forms you'll need, and
• information about what will happen when you go to court.

Click "List of steps" below to see a list of step-by-step instructions.