17/08/2026
ICO: a legal obligation for companies in 2026
All companies that process personal data must pay the annual ICO fee, and the government has confirmed that the current tariffs remain unchanged.ICO confirms that the data protection fee continues to be mandatory for companies. Official information shows that most businesses in the UK, including micro‑enterprises and firms with a single employee, must be registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and pay the annual data protection fee. The fee is imposed under the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Data Protection (Charges and Information) Regulations 2018, and authorities have confirmed that tariffs have not increased in 2026.
The fees are set across three tiers, depending on the size of the company:
1.Tier 1 – £52 (micro‑companies)
2.Tier 2 – £78 (small and medium‑sized companies)
3.Tier 3 – £3,763 (large companies)If payment is made by direct debit, a £5 discount applies.
The government considered a potential increase in fees but did not introduce any additional changes in 2026, keeping the current structure in place.
ICO may issue:fines of up to £4,350official noticespublication of the company as non‑compliant on the ICO register
Sources:
https://ico.org.uk/fee
https://www.gov.uk/data-protection-register-notify-ico-personal-data
Pay the data protection fee to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) and update your details on the data protection register