DBS Fees Are Reducing From 5th October 2026 – What This Means for Digital Background Customers
We have some good news for organisations carrying out DBS checks: the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is reducing its fees from 5 October 2026.
The reduction means that employers, organisations and other customers will pay less for DBS checks, with the biggest saving applying to Enhanced DBS checks.
At Digital Background, we’re committed to passing this saving on to our customers. From 5 October 2026, we will reduce the DBS fee charged to you in line with the new official DBS fees.
What are the new DBS fees?
The DBS has announced that its fees will reduce from Monday 5 October 2026.
The new fees will be:
| DBS service | Current fee | New fee from 5 October 2026 | Saving |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard DBS check | £21.50 | £20.00 | £1.50 |
| Enhanced DBS check | £49.50 | £41.00 | £8.50 |
| Update Service | £16.00 per year | £15.00 per year | £1.00 |
Volunteer DBS checks will continue to be free of charge, subject to the usual eligibility requirements.
The DBS has confirmed that the fee reduction will not affect the quality, standard or rigour of DBS checks.
How will this save you money?
The DBS fee is the amount charged by the Disclosure and Barring Service for processing the check. This is separate from any administration fee charged by a Registered Body or DBS checking provider.
At Digital Background, we keep our administration fees competitive and transparent. For organisations carrying out 1–50 checks per year, our administration fee is currently £7 + VAT per check, with no subscription fee.
From 5 October 2026, we’ll continue to charge the same £7 + VAT administration fee, but the DBS element of the price will reduce.
This means the full cost of a check will come down automatically.
Example: 1–50 checks per year
Let’s look at an organisation carrying out between 1 and 50 checks each year.
Standard DBS check
Current price:
- DBS fee: £21.50
- Digital Background administration fee: £7.00
- VAT on administration fee: £1.40
- Total: £29.90
From 5 October 2026:
- DBS fee: £20.00
- Digital Background administration fee: £7.00
- VAT on administration fee: £1.40
- Total: £28.40
That’s a saving of £1.50 per Standard DBS check.
If your organisation processes 50 Standard DBS checks during the year, that could mean a total saving of £75.
Enhanced DBS check
The saving is even greater for Enhanced DBS checks.
Current price:
- DBS fee: £49.50
- Digital Background administration fee: £7.00
- VAT on administration fee: £1.40
- Total: £57.90
From 5 October 2026:
- DBS fee: £41.00
- Digital Background administration fee: £7.00
- VAT on administration fee: £1.40
- Total: £49.40
That’s a saving of £8.50 per Enhanced DBS check.
For an organisation carrying out 50 Enhanced DBS checks, this represents a potential annual saving of £425.
Digital Background will pass the DBS reduction on to you
We believe that when the DBS reduces its fees, our customers should benefit from that reduction.
That’s why from 5 October 2026, we will reduce the DBS fee included in our prices to match the new official DBS charges.
We won’t increase our administration fee to offset the reduction. For customers in the 1–50 checks category, our administration fee remains £7 + VAT.
So, if you’re already using Digital Background, you’ll automatically benefit from the lower DBS fee on checks submitted at the new rate.
If you’re considering switching DBS providers, this could also be a good time to look at how much you could save.
Why choose Digital Background for your DBS checks?
Keeping the cost of DBS checks down is important, but so is having a straightforward and reliable process.
Digital Background provides an online DBS checking service designed to make the process simple for both organisations and applicants.
There are no monthly subscription fees – you simply pay for the checks you process. We also offer applicant-driven ID checking, applicant tracking and the option to use your own branding on applicant forms and emails.
Our pricing is designed to offer excellent value whether you’re carrying out a small number of checks or managing a much larger volume.
Ready to start saving on your DBS checks?
With the DBS fee reduction coming into effect on 5 October 2026, organisations carrying out DBS checks will benefit from lower costs, particularly those requiring Enhanced DBS checks.
At Digital Background, we’ll be passing the DBS reduction directly through to our customers, while keeping our administration fees unchanged.
If you’re looking for a cost-effective, easy-to-use DBS checking service, sign up with Digital Background today and take advantage of our competitive pricing.
For our latest prices, visit our DBS Pricing page.