(a) In a small claims case, the clerk of the court shall charge and collect only those fees authorized under this chapter.
§ 116.230.Fees for filing and service by mail
Title 1. Organization and Jurisdiction · Chapter 5.5. Small Claims Court · Article 2. Small Claims Court · Last amended 2008 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 116.230 sets tiered small claims filing fees of $30, $50, or $75 based on the amount demanded for a filer with twelve or fewer prior claims in the past year, a flat $100 fee for a more frequent filer, and added fees for amending a claim into a higher tier.
Full Text of § 116.230
(b) If the party filing a claim has filed 12 or fewer small claims in the state within the previous 12 months, the filing fee is the following:
(1) Thirty dollars ($30) if the amount of the demand is one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) or less.
(2) Fifty dollars ($50) if the amount of the demand is more than one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) but less than or equal to five thousand dollars ($5,000).
(3) Seventy-five dollars ($75) if the amount of the demand is more than five thousand dollars ($5,000).
(c) If the party has filed more than 12 other small claims in the state within the previous 12 months, the filing fee is one hundred dollars ($100).
(1) If, after having filed a claim and paid the required fee under paragraph (1) of subdivision (b), a party files an amended claim or amendment to a claim that raises the amount of the demand so that the filing fee under paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) would be charged, the filing fee for the amended claim or amendment is twenty dollars ($20).
(2) If, after having filed a claim and paid the required fee under paragraph (2) of subdivision (b), a party files an amended claim or amendment to a claim that raises the amount of the demand so that the filing fee under paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) would be charged, the filing fee for the amended claim or amendment is twenty-five dollars ($25).
(3) If, after having filed a claim and paid the required fee under paragraph (1) of subdivision (b), a party files an amended claim or amendment to a claim that raises the amount of the demand so that the filing fee under paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) would be charged, the filing fee for the amended claim or amendment is forty-five dollars ($45).
(4) The additional fees paid under this subdivision are due upon filing. The court shall not reimburse a party if the party’s claim is amended to demand a lower amount that falls within the range for a filing fee lower than that originally paid.
(e) Each party filing a claim shall file a declaration with the claim stating whether that party has filed more than 12 other small claims in the state within the last 12 months
(f) The clerk of the court shall deposit fees collected under this section into a bank account established for this purpose by the Administrative Office of the Courts and maintained under rules adopted by or trial court financial policies and procedures authorized by the Judicial council under subdivision (a) of Section 77206 of the Government Code. The deposits shall be made as required under Section 68085.1 of the Government Code and trial court financial policies and procedures authorized by the Judicial Council.
(1) The Administrative Office of the Courts shall distribute six dollars ($6) of each thirty-dollar ($30) fee, eight dollars ($8) of each fifty-dollar ($50) fee, ten dollars ($10) of each seventy-five-dollar ($75) fee, and fourteen dollars ($14) of each one hundred-dollar ($100) fee collected under subdivision (b) or (c) to a special account in the county in which the court is located to be used for the small claims advisory services described in Section 116.940, or, if the small claims advisory services are administered by the court, to the court. The Administrative Office of the Courts shall also distribute two dollars ($2) of each seventy-five-dollar ($75) fee collected under subdivision (b) to the law library fund in the county in which the court is located.
(2) From the fees collected under subdivision (d), the Administrative Office of the Courts shall distribute two dollars ($2) to the law library fund in the county in which the court is located, and three dollars ($3) to the small claims advisory services described in Section 116.940, or, if the small claims advisory services are administered by the court, to the court.
(3) Records of these moneys shall be available from the Administrative Office of the Courts for inspection by the public on request.
(4) Nothing in this section precludes the court or county from contracting with a third party to provide small claims advisory services as described in Section 116.940.
(h) The remainder of the fees collected under subdivisions (b), (c) and (d) shall be transmitted monthly to the Controller for deposit in the Trial Court Trust Fund.
(i) All money distributed under this section to be used for small claims advisory services shall be used only for providing those services as described in Section 116.940. Nothing in this section shall preclude the county or the court from procuring other funding to comply with the requirements of Section 116.940.
Plain-English Summary
Section 116.230(b) ties the filing fee to how much the plaintiff is demanding: $30 for a claim of $1,500 or less, $50 for a claim above $1,500 up to $5,000, and $75 for a claim above $5,000. Those tiers apply to a party who has filed twelve or fewer other small claims actions anywhere in California within the previous twelve months. A party who has filed more than twelve pays a flat $100 fee instead, under subdivision (c) — a higher, non-tiered rate aimed at frequent filers.
Subdivision (d) covers what happens when a pending claim gets amended to raise the demand into a higher fee tier: the added fee is $20, $25, or $45 depending on which tier the claim moves from and to. Those additional fees are due when the amendment is filed, and the court does not refund the difference if a claim is later amended down into a lower tier.
Every party filing a claim must also file a declaration stating whether they have filed more than twelve other small claims actions statewide in the past twelve months, which is how the court knows which fee applies. The fees collected are not kept by the court alone: portions fund small claims advisory services and the local law library fund, and the remainder goes to the state’s Trial Court Trust Fund.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to file a small claims case in California?
Section 116.230(b) sets the fee at $30 for a claim of $1,500 or less, $50 for a claim over $1,500 up to $5,000, and $75 for a claim over $5,000, for a filer who has brought twelve or fewer small claims cases statewide in the past year.
Is there a higher filing fee for someone who files a lot of small claims cases?
Yes. Section 116.230(c) charges a flat $100 fee to a party who has filed more than twelve other small claims actions anywhere in California within the previous twelve months, regardless of the amount demanded.
What happens to the fee if I raise the amount of my claim after filing?
Section 116.230(d) charges an added fee — $20, $25, or $45 depending on which fee tier the amended demand falls into — due when the amendment is filed. The court does not refund the difference if the claim is later reduced into a lower tier.
Where does the small claims filing fee money go?
Section 116.230(f) through (i) directs portions of the fee to small claims advisory services and the county law library fund, with the remainder transmitted to the state’s Trial Court Trust Fund.
Amendment History
Added Stats 2005 ch 75 § 19 (AB 145), effective July 19, 2005, operative January 1, 2006. Amended Stats 2005 ch 706 § 3 (AB 1742); Stats 2007 ch 738 § 3 (AB 1248), effective January 1, 2008.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
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