APP-015-INFO - Information Sheet on Waiver of Appellate Court Fees—Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Appellate Division

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Information Sheet on Waiver of Appellate Court Fees—Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Appellate Division

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Form ID: APP-015-INFO
Title: Information Sheet on Waiver of Appellate Court Fees—Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Appellate Division
Effective Date: 2026-03-01
Mandatory Form: yes
Languages: 汉语, 한국어, español, Tiếng Việt
Info Page: https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/jcc-form/APP-015-INFO
Primary Download URL: https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/app015info.pdf
Alternate Download URLs: https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/app015infoc.pdf, https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/app015infok.pdf, https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/app015infos.pdf, https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/app015infov.pdf
Form Detail Page:
Information Sheet on Waiver of Appellate Court Fees—Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Appellate Division
(APP-015-INFO)
Explains how to ask for a decision (order) that you do not have to pay court fees and costs (a fee waiver) in a civil case in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, or Superior Court Appellate Division because your income is too low.
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Effective: March 1, 2026
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Judicial Council of California  
courts.ca.gov 
Rev. March 1, 2026
Information Sheet on Waiver of Appellate Court Fees— 
Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Appellate Division
APP-015/FW-015-INFO 
INFORMATION SHEET ON WAIVER OF APPELLATE COURT FEES— 
SUPREME COURT, COURT OF APPEAL, APPELLATE DIVISION 
If you file an appeal, a petition for a writ, or a petition for review in a civil case, such as a family law case or a case in 
which you sued someone or someone sued you, you must generally pay a filing fee to the court. If you are a party other 
than the party who filed the appeal or the petition, you must also generally pay a fee when you file your first document in 
a case in the Court of Appeal or Supreme Court. You and the other parties in the case may also have to pay other court 
fees in these proceedings, such as fees to prepare or get a copy of a clerk’s transcript in an appeal. However, if you cannot 
afford to pay these court fees and costs, you may ask the court to issue an order saying you do not have to pay these fees 
(this is called “waiving” these fees).  
1.  Who can get their court fees waived? The court will waive your court fees and costs if: 
You are getting public assistance, such as Medi-Cal; Food Stamps; Supplemental Security Income (not Social 
Security); State Supplemental Payment; County Relief/General Assistance; In-Home Supportive Services; 
CalWORKS; Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families; Cash Assistance Program for Aged, Blind, and 
Disabled; Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC Program); or 
unemployment compensation. 
You have a low income level. Under the law you are considered a low-income person if the gross monthly income 
(before deductions for taxes) of your household is less than the amount listed below: 
Family Size Family Income Family Size Family Income Family Size Family Income 
1 $2,660.00 3 $4,553.33 5 $6,446.67
2 $3,606.67 4 $5,500.00 6 $7,393.33
If more than 6 people at  
home, add $946.67 for  
each extra person. 
You do not have enough income to pay for your household’s basic needs and your court fees. 
2.  What fees and costs will the court waive? If you qualify for a fee waiver, the Supreme Court, Court 
of Appeal, or Appellate Division will waive the filing fee for the notice of appeal, a petition for a writ, a petition for 
review, or the first document filed by a party other than the party who filed the appeal or petition, and any court fee for 
participating in oral argument by telephone. The trial court will also waive costs related to the clerk’s transcript on appeal, 
the fee for the court to hold in trust the deposit for a reporter's transcript on appeal under rule 8.130(b) or rule 8.834(b) of 
the California Rules of Court, and the fees for making a transcript or copy of an official electronic recording under rule 
8.835. If you are the appellant (the person who is appealing the trial court decision), the fees waived include the deposit 
required under Government Code section 68926.1 and the costs for preparing and certifying the clerk’s transcript and 
sending the original to the reviewing court and one copy to you. If you are the respondent (a party other than the appellant 
in a case that is being appealed), the fees waived include the costs for sending you a copy of the clerk’s transcript. You 
can also ask the trial court to waive other necessary court fees and costs.  
The court cannot waive the fees for preparing a reporter’s transcript in a civil case. A special fund, called the Transcript 
Reimbursement Fund, may help pay for the transcript. (See www.courtreportersboard.ca.gov/trf/index.shtml and Business 
and Professions Code sections 8030.2 and following for more information about this fund.) If you are unable to pay the 
cost of a reporter’s transcript, a record of the oral proceedings can be prepared in other ways, by preparing an agreed 
statement or, in some circumstances, a statement on appeal or settled statement.  
3.  How do I ask the court to waive my fees? 
Appeal in Limited Civil Case (civil case in which the amount of money claimed is $35,000 or less). In a limited 
civil case, if the trial court already issued an order waiving your court fees and that fee waiver has not ended (fee 
waivers automatically end 60 days after the judgment), the fees and costs identified in item 2 above are already waived; 
just give the court a copy of your current fee waiver. If you do not already have an order waiving your fees or you had 
a fee waiver but it has ended, you must complete and file a Request to Waive Court Fees (form FW-001). If you are the 
appellant (the party who is appealing), you should check both boxes in item 4 on FW-001 and file the completed form 
with your notice of appeal. If you are the respondent (a party other than the appellant in a case that is being appealed), 
the completed form should be filed in the court when the fees you are requesting to be waived, such as the fee for the 
clerk’s transcript or telephonic oral argument, are due.
APP-015/FW-015-INFO 
Page 1 of 2

Rev. March 1, 2026 Information Sheet on Waiver of Appellate Court Fees— 
Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Appellate Division
Writ Proceeding in Limited Civil Case (civil case in which the amount of money claimed is $35,000 or less). If 
you want the Superior Court to waive the fees in a writ proceeding in a limited civil case, you must complete a Request 
to Waive Court Fees (form FW-001). In item 4 on FW-001, check the second box. The completed form should be filed 
with your petition for a writ.  
If You Are a Guardian or Conservator. If you are a guardian or conservator or a petitioner for the appointment of a 
guardian or conservator, special rules apply to your request for a fee waiver on an appeal from an order in the 
guardianship or conservatorship proceeding or in a civil action in which you are a party acting on behalf of your ward 
or conservatee. Complete and submit a Request to Waive Court Fees (Ward or Conservatee) (form FW-001-GC) to 
request a fee waiver. See California Rules of Court, rule 7.5.
Appeal in Other Civil Cases.  If you want the court to waive fees and costs in an appeal in a civil case other than a 
limited civil case, such as a family law case or an unlimited civil case (a civil case in which the amount of money 
claimed is more than $35,000), you must complete a Request to Waive Court Fees (form  FW-001). In item 4 on 
FW-001, check the second box to ask the Court of Appeal to waive the fee for filing the notice of appeal or, if you are a 
respondent (a party other than the one who filed the appeal), the fee for the first document you file in the Court of 
Appeal. Check both boxes if you also want the trial court to waive your costs for the clerk’s transcript (if the trial court 
already issued an order waiving your fees and that fee waiver has not ended, you do not need to check the first box; the 
fees and costs identified in item 2 above are already waived, just give the court a copy of your current fee waiver). If 
you are the appellant, the completed form should be submitted with your notice of appeal (if you check both boxes in 
item 4, the court may ask for two signed copies of this form). If you are the respondent, the completed form should be  
submitted at the time the fee you are asking the court to waive is due. For example, file the form in the trial court with 
your request for a copy of the clerk’s transcript if you are asking the court to waive the transcript fee or file the form in 
the Court of Appeal with the first document you file in that court if you are asking the court to waive the fee for filing 
that document. To request waiver of a court fee for telephonic oral argument, you should file the completed form in the 
Court of Appeal when the fee for telephonic oral argument is due.  
Writ Proceeding in Other Civil Cases. If you want the Supreme Court or Court of Appeal to waive the fees and costs  
in a writ proceeding in a civil case other than a limited civil case, such as a family law case or an unlimited civil case (a 
civil case in which the amount of money claimed is more than $35,000), you must complete a Request to Waive Court 
Fees (form FW-001). If you are the petitioner (the party filing the petition), the completed form should be submitted   
with your petition for a writ in the Supreme Court or Court of Appeal clerk’s office. If you are a party other than the 
petitioner, the completed form should be filed with the first document you file in the Supreme Court or Court of Appeal. 
Petition for Review. If you want to request that the Supreme Court waive the fees in a petition for review proceeding, 
you must complete a Request to Waive Court Fees (form FW-001) or a Request to Waive Court Fees (Ward or 
Conservatee) (form FW-001-GC). If you are the petitioner, you should submit the completed form with your petition 
for review. If you are a party other than the petitioner, the completed form should be filed with the first document you 
file in the Supreme Court. 
IMPORTANT INFORMATION! 
Fill out your request completely and truthfully. When you sign your request for a fee waiver, you are declaring 
under penalty of perjury that the information you have provided is true and correct. 
The court may ask you for information and evidence. You may be ordered to go to court to answer questions about 
your ability to pay court fees and costs and to provide proof of eligibility. Any initial fee waiver you are granted may 
be ended if you do not go to court when asked. You may be ordered to repay amounts that were waived if the court 
finds you were not eligible for the fee waiver.  
If you receive a fee waiver, you must tell the court if there is a change in your finances. You must tell the court 
immediately if your finances improve or if you become able to pay court fees or costs during this case (file form 
FW-010 with the court). You may be ordered to repay any amounts that were waived after your eligibility ended. If the 
trial court waived your fees and costs and you settle your case for $10,000 or more, the trial court will have a lien on 
the settlement in the amount of the waived fees. 
The fee waiver ends. The fee waiver expires 60 days after the judgment, dismissal, or other final disposition of the 
case or when the court finds that you are not eligible for a fee waiver.   
APP-015/FW-015-INFO 
Page 2 of 2

Retrieval chunks

• #1

  Form ID: APP-015-INFO Title: Information Sheet on Waiver of Appellate Court Fees—Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, Appellate Division Effective Date: 2026-03-01 Mandatory Form: yes Languages: 汉语, 한국어, español, Tiếng Việt Info Page: https://selfhelp.courts.ca.gov/jcc-form/APP-015-INFO Primary Download URL: https://…

• #2

  1. Who can get their court fees waived? The court will waive your court fees and costs if: You are getting public assistance, such as Medi-Cal; Food Stamps; Supplemental Security Income (not Social Security); State Supplemental Payment; County Relief/General Assistance; In-Home Supportive Services; CalWORKS; Triba…

• #3

  Reimbursement Fund, may help pay for the transcript. (See www.courtreportersboard.ca.gov/trf/index.shtml and Business and Professions Code sections 8030.2 and following for more information about this fund.) If you are unable to pay the cost of a reporter’s transcript, a record of the oral proceedings can be prepare…

• #4

  request a fee waiver. See California Rules of Court, rule 7.5. Appeal in Other Civil Cases. If you want the court to waive fees and costs in an appeal in a civil case other than a limited civil case, such as a family law case or an unlimited civil case (a civil case in which the amount of money claimed is more tha…

• #5

  petitioner, the completed form should be filed with the first document you file in the Supreme Court or Court of Appeal. Petition for Review. If you want to request that the Supreme Court waive the fees in a petition for review proceeding, you must complete a Request to Waive Court Fees (form FW-001) or a Request to…