You can pay a federal court filing fee three ways: online through Pay.gov, by mailing a check or money order to the clerk’s office, or in person at the courthouse counter. Online payment through Pay.gov is now the default for most filings, and attorneys filing electronically are routed there automatically. If you genuinely cannot afford the fee, you can ask the court to waive prepayment instead.
Paying Online Through Pay.gov
Pay.gov is a secure federal payment portal operated by the Bureau of the Fiscal Service within the U.S. Department of the Treasury.1Bureau of the Fiscal Service. Pay.gov It accepts bank account transfers (ACH) and credit or debit cards. Some Pay.gov forms also accept PayPal, but availability varies by court.
Attorneys and other registered filers using the Case Management/Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF) system don’t handle payment as a separate step. When you submit a document that requires a fee, CM/ECF redirects you to Pay.gov and links the payment to your case automatically. Most federal courts now require attorneys to file electronically, with paper filings allowed only by court permission.
If you’re paying for something outside the CM/ECF workflow, such as criminal debt, copy fees, or other miscellaneous charges, check your court’s website under the Clerk’s Office or Fees section. Many courts post direct Pay.gov links for those payments.
Paying by Mail
Send a check or money order along with the document you’re filing. Make it payable to the Clerk of Court for the specific court (for example, “Clerk, U.S. District Court”). Write the case number on the check if one has been assigned.
Don’t send cash through the mail. There’s no paper trail, and if it goes missing, the court has no obligation to credit a payment it never received.
Mail takes time to process, and your filing isn’t complete until the clerk receives and matches the fee to your case. If you’re near a deadline, pay online instead.
Paying in Person
Clerk’s offices accept checks, money orders, and cash at the counter during business hours. If you pay cash, bring the exact amount. Most clerk’s offices are not set up to make change, and a short payment won’t be accepted.
The advantage of paying in person is immediate confirmation: the clerk can receipt your payment on the spot and stamp your documents as filed. Business hours vary by courthouse, so call ahead or check the court’s website.
What You’ll Owe
Fee amounts are set nationally by statute and the Judicial Conference of the United States, and current schedules are posted at uscourts.gov. A few common figures:
- Filing a new civil case in a U.S. District Court costs $405.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1914 – District Court Filing and Miscellaneous Fees
- Docketing an appeal in a federal Court of Appeals costs $605. Each party filing a separate notice of appeal pays individually; parties filing jointly pay once.3United States Courts. Court of Appeals Miscellaneous Fee Schedule
- Bankruptcy filing fees vary by chapter, from $278 for Chapter 12 to $1,738 for a non-railroad Chapter 11.4United States Courts. Bankruptcy Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule
- Smaller service charges apply for things like certifying a document ($12).5United States Courts. District Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule
If a Payment Bounces
A check that bounces or a card payment that gets reversed will cost you an additional $53 on top of the original fee.5United States Courts. District Court Miscellaneous Fee Schedule Your bank may add its own insufficient-funds charge. The court treats an unpaid filing as incomplete, so if you don’t resolve the balance quickly, your case may not proceed. Some courts also restrict attorneys with bounced checks to certified funds for future payments.
If You Don’t Pay
Federal courts won’t process a filing without the required fee or an approved waiver. If you file a complaint or notice of appeal without paying, the clerk’s office will send a deficiency notice. Fail to resolve it and the court can dismiss your case; in the appellate context, an unpaid docketing fee is grounds for dismissal of the appeal. Your filing deadline doesn’t pause while you sort out payment, so treat the fee as part of the filing.
Asking the Court to Waive the Fee
If you cannot afford the fee, you can ask to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP) under federal statute.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1915 – Proceedings in Forma Pauperis You file Form AO 239, “Application to Proceed in District Court Without Prepaying Fees or Costs,” which requires a detailed disclosure of your income, assets, debts, and monthly expenses.7United States Courts. Application to Proceed in District Court Without Prepaying Fees or Costs (Long Form) A judge reviews the application, and your case cannot move forward until it’s either approved or you pay. Vague or incomplete disclosures get denied.
One boundary: incarcerated filers are never fully excused. Even with IFP status, a prisoner must pay the full filing fee through installments deducted from the prison commissary account under the Prison Litigation Reform Act.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1915 – Proceedings in Forma Pauperis