Refund Policy

Last updated: 22 July 2026

This policy explains when refunds apply to orders placed with Apply-Assist. It should be read together with our Terms & Conditions, which set out who you are contracting with.

The two parts of your payment

Your payment is made up of two parts:

  1. the official fee charged by the register office (passed on at cost, with no markup); and
  2. our Advisory & application handling service fee.

Our service fee

Our service fee pays for the work we do: checking eligibility, validating your information, preparing and submitting your application and keeping you informed. This work is provided regardless of the register office’s decision.

  • Before we begin: if you cancel before we have started work, you receive a full refund.
  • After we have begun but before submission: you may cancel but must pay for the work already carried out (see Terms, clause 4).
  • After submission: the service has been fully performed and the service fee is non-refundable, even if the register office is unable to locate the record or declines the application. This is because our fee pays for the work, not for the certificate.

The official fee

The official fee is money we pay to the register office on your behalf as your agent.

  • If the register office cannot locate the record and does not charge (or refunds) the fee, we refund you the official fee that was not consumed.
  • Some register offices retain a non-refundable search fee even when no record is found (for example the GRO in England & Wales). Where the register office retains part of the fee, we can only refund the amount they refund to us; the retained search fee is not recoverable. Your total is shown before you pay.

Incorrect certificates

If a certificate is issued incorrectly because of an error on our part, we will correct the application and cover the cost of re-ordering. If the error results from inaccurate information you provided, a new order and official fee will be required.

How to request a refund

Email support@apply-assist.co.uk with your order number. We aim to respond within 2 working days and to process approved refunds within 14 days, usually sooner, to the same payment method you used.

Your statutory rights

As a consumer you have a statutory right to cancel within 14 days of placing your order under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013. This is a right given to you by law, not a special offer from us. Because you ask us at checkout to begin work straight away, you lose the right to cancel once the service has been fully performed, that is, once your application has been prepared and submitted to the register office. If you cancel after we have started but before submission, you pay for the work carried out up to that point. The official register fee cannot be recovered once your application has been submitted, except where the register office refunds it as described above.

To cancel, email support@apply-assist.co.uk with your order number and a clear statement that you wish to cancel. You may use the model cancellation form in clause 4 of our Terms & Conditions, but you do not have to. Nothing in this policy affects your statutory rights as a consumer, including under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.