Under a new Government scheme, those who paid a registration fee for a Lasting Power of Attorney in England or Wales, between 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2017, can apply for a partial refund as they were charged more than was necessary.

Why is the money being refunded?

When you register a Power of Attorney, you're charged an application fee, set by the Ministry of Justice and paid to the Office of the Public Guardian.

Between 2013 and 2017, the operating costs of the Office of the Public Guardian decreased, but the application fee stayed the same, at £110. As the fee is supposed to cover operating costs, the Government's now repaying the difference between what applicants paid and what they should have paid, plus interest.

On 1 April 2017, the application fee for registering a Power of Attorney was reduced from £110 to £82. If you applied after that date, you can't reclaim.

How much can I reclaim?

How much you can reclaim depends on when you paid for the Power of Attorney, and whether you paid the full registration fee or the half-price fee, which is offered to those with an income of less than £12,000 a year or who are on certain benefits:

Refund for each Power of Attorney

The Government says the refund figures above include 0.5% annual interest, which is HM Revenue & Customs' standard rate when repaying overpaid tax. Some people on certain means-tested benefits will not have paid to register a Power of Attorney and so will not be eligible for the refund.

How to claim a refund

You can make a claim if you were the donor (the person who made the Power of Attorney) or the attorney (the person appointed by the donor) – but the refund will be paid to the donor. You can claim a refund even if the Power of Attorney has been used, and there's currently no deadline by which you must apply.

To apply, you can claim a refund online or phone the Office of the Public Guardian's helpline on 0300 456 0300 and select option six. You don't need the Power of Attorney document itself, but you will need:

• The donor's name, address and date of birth
• Their UK bank account number and sort code
• The name of one of the attorneys on the Power of Attorney

Here are the other need-to-knows:

• You only need to make one claim for each donor – even if you've made multiple Powers of Attorney.
• It can take up to 12 weeks for your claim to be processed and paid.
• If your claim is refused and you want to appeal the decision you can call the refunds helpline.
• If the donor doesn't have a UK bank account or you're a court-appointed deputy, you'll have to apply by phone.
• You can also claim for an Enduring Power of Attorney if you registered it in the relevant period. The Lasting Power of Attorney replaced the Enduring Power of Attorney on 1 October 2007, but it's possible someone could have drafted the latter before the cut-off date and registered it during the refund period – and so would be eligible.
• You can claim even if the donor has died. The Ministry of Justice wasn't able to tell us where the money goes if this has happened, but says you'll need to apply by phone and you'll be advised of what will happen when you do.