Regulators today confirmed they will not change next year’s fee structure for solicitors. However the actual level of fees will not be set until later this year.

The existing settings for practising fees were set at a board meeting of the Solicitors Regulation Authority last week, the SRA announced today. The 60/40 firm/individual split of practising fees will be retained in the year from October 2012, along with a 50/50 split for compensation fund contributions.

The maternity leave discount on practising certificates will also be maintained.

Mike Jeacock, the SRA’s chief operating officer, said the board’s decision to retain the structure for a second year in a row would allow firms time to plan for next year’s budget.

The actual level of fees will be confirmed after a budget-setting process taking place later this year.

The setting of fees by the SRA is based on eight principles, which it says include being fair to payers, being stable, and taking account of ability to pay. The SRA has also confirmed next year’s fees are due to be paid in November, following a review of the previous year’s practising certificate renewal period.

The deadline for PC renewal, through a new online system, was put back to 2 March after technical problems delayed the process.

This year's fees can be worked out with the SRA's online calculator.