If you do need to pay, the online form will ask for your sector. You can choose, but are not limited to:
- Education and childcare, Childminder, Childminder
- Education and childcare, Tutor, Home Tutor
- Land and Property Services, Property Management, Property Management
- Membership Association, Club, Neighbourhood Watch
- General Business, Supplier of services, Other
- General Business, Business advice and consultancy, Consultant
- General Business, Business advice and consultancy, Employment Agency
- Transport and Leisure, Passenger transport, Taxi driver
- Transport and Leisure, Haulage, Transportation Company
Frequently asked questions
I have CCTV on my business premises for crime prevention reasons – do I need to pay a fee?
Yes. Images of people caught on camera is their personal data. If you record these images to prevent crime, and crime prevention is not the purpose of your business, then you need to pay.
I only hold personal data about members of our residents association/residents management company – do I need to pay?
If you have created a limited company for the purpose of maintaining communal areas, this is classed as property management and is not an exempt purpose for processing personal data and a data protection fee would be required. The type of information you process that you need to pay a fee for could include:
- Holding personal information on each resident
- Financial payments – e.g. how much each resident pays into the account
- Maintenance requests
- Decisions on what suppliers to use e.g. builder/gardener
- How much to spend on each area of the property
- Dispute resolution between residents
- CCTV for crime prevention
How do I know if my company can claim the not-for-profit exemption – we don’t make a profit?
To meet the criteria for the not-for-profit exemption the organisation must:
- be established as a not-for-profit organisation, which may be stated in your constitution/articles
- only process information necessary to establish or maintain membership or support
- only process information necessary to provide or administer activities for people who are members of the organisation or have regular contact with it;
- you only hold information about individuals whose data you need to process for this exempt purpose
- the personal data you process is restricted to personal information that is necessary for this exempt purpose
- only keep the information while the individual is a member or supporter or as long as necessary for member/supporter administration
The organisation would not be exempt:
- if you are responsible for CCTV
- if you provide additional services outside of the organisations aims/objectives that can’t be covered by the other exemptions
- if you trade and share in personal data
I only process personal information for personal, family or household affairs – do I need to pay?
This will only apply to you if you are not running a business.
Individuals are exempt from paying a fee if the only information they process is for personal, family or household affairs that have no connection to any commercial or professional activity.
‘Personal, family or household affairs’ includes recreational activities and the capturing of images that contain personal data, even if they captured in a public space.
Examples include holding a personal address list; social networking and online activity, including blogging (as long as this is done in a purely personal capacity and you do not use the blog to endorse or promote businesses, services or products); using CCTV to monitor property, even if capturing images beyond the boundaries of your property; and personal information held in connection with a hobby, even if this involves capturing personal data images in a public space.
I have a domestic household job e.g. governess or butler, and have set up a limited company solely for my own accounts – Do I need to pay?
You are not required to pay a fee if your company is only for the purpose of your own accounts and payments.
I’m a childminder – do I need to pay?
A childminder does have to pay the data protection fee, if:
- They take digital material/photograph of child
- Hold and process the child’s progress, learning and development
- If they use the contact details to send updates via texts, emails or both, on the child’s progress and development throughout the day
I’m a nanny – do I need to pay?
If you are a nanny employed by a family then you do not need to pay a data protection fee.
If you have set up a limited company to process your accounts and payments only there is no requirement to pay a data protection fee.
I am a tutor – do I need to pay?
If you have set up a company and keeping educational records on your students’ progress this would require a data protection fee.
You are not required to pay a fee if your company is only for the purpose of your own accounts and payments.
I have a dashcam on my business vehicle – do I need to pay a fee?
If you have a dashcam that you use for work purposes on a vehicle that you use for work – even if you own the vehicle - then you will need to pay a data protection fee. Again, images of people recorded on camera – even when in their cars - will be their personal data.
My company is dormant – do I need to pay?
It depends. If your business is dormant and you are not processing personal data electronically, then you’re not required to pay the fee.
However, some businesses and professionals are required to retain some personal data after they cease trading or practicing, as required by industry guidelines. If this applies to you then you probably will need to pay.
Do I have to pay because I hold client data on a computer?
You are not usually required to pay just because you hold client details on computer, but the important point is what you do with those details. Our self-assessment tool will help you to see if any of your activities mean you need to pay.
More information
There is more information about the data protection fee on our website.
There is also lots of information for sole traders and smaller businesses on our SME web hub, to help you understand data protection and how it can help you safely make the most out of the personal data you hold.