The Mortgage Code Compliance Board has significantly reduced the fees that intermediaries and lenders will pay for their final period of registration before statutory regulation starts.

There will no longer be a registration fee for intermediary firms and the staff fee will be less than half of the fee payable in 2003/04.

The renewal fee for a sole trader will be £40, a firm with eight sales staff will pay £320 and firms with 12 salespeople will pay £420. An intermediary firm with 1,200 sales staff will pay £18,000.

The MCCB says the fee income generated from the final renewal exercise will enable it to operate effectively until statutory regulation starts.

New applications will be processed at lower fee levels than last year. The MCCB will accept new applications until September.

Firms will be asked to renew their membership in late February for the period of May 1 until October 31.

The FSA says firms in good standing with the MCCB will get due credit when their application for authorisation is pro-cessed. The MCCB says firms which resign their registration will be subject to additional FSA scrutiny.

MCCB chief executive Luke March says: “We are pleased that the board&#39s careful financial management has enabled us to reduce fees for lenders and intermediaries. A seamless transition to the FSA on Mortgage Day has always been the goal of the Treasury, the FSA and the MCCB, with the full support of the industry.

“As well as ensuring that the industry&#39s reputation is maintained through continuity of consumer protection arrangements, a full renewal will allow all firms in good standing to receive due credit tow-ards FSA authorisation.”