A tax charged by the state for providing judicial services. Distinct from expert fees, postage costs, and attorney fees.
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Estimate initial court fees for civil cases in Brazil's main courts.
Court fees are the tax the state charges for providing judicial services; they are not the same as expert fees, postage costs, or attorney fees. They vary by court and, as a rule, are levied on the cause value, subject to a floor and a ceiling. At TJSP, for instance, the reference rate is 1%, with a floor and ceiling set by an annual ordinance; at the Federal Courts, they follow art. 4 of Law 9.289/1996; and in the Labor Courts an individual claimant is exempt at filing (CLT art. 790, §3). Parties benefiting from legal aid (Law 1.060/1950 and CPC art. 98) are exempt from initial fees, but may be charged at the end if they lose and are no longer in hardship (CPC art. 100, sole paragraph). This calculator applies the chosen court's rate, floor, and ceiling and, when needed, converts the corresponding fiscal unit, always as an estimate to verify against the official table in force before filing.
Court fees are the financial counterpart to the service of adjudication, a public fee, distinct from attorney fees (which pay the lawyer), expert fees, and postage costs. As a rule, they are calculated as a percentage of the cause value, the same value the initial petition assigns to the claim. On top of that percentage sit a floor, so low-value cases cover the baseline cost of service, and a ceiling, so multimillion-real cases do not generate proportionally unlimited fees.
Because each court sets its own table, the same cause value produces different fees depending on the forum. At TJSP the reference rate is 1% with a floor and ceiling from an annual ordinance; at the Federal Courts, art. 4 of Law 9.289/1996 applies. Several states express these limits in fiscal units (such as UFESP in São Paulo), which the tool converts into reais.
Imagine a case with a cause value of R$ 50,000 in a court whose reference rate is 1% (illustrative values). The gross calculation would be R$ 500. If the court's floor is higher than that, you pay the floor; if the ceiling is lower, you pay the ceiling. That is why very low- or very high-value cases rarely pay exactly the full percentage.
The tool runs this path automatically: it applies the rate, compares it against the floor and ceiling in force, and shows the final amount, plus the breakdown by bracket when the court uses progressive brackets. If legal aid is checked, it zeroes the initial fees and flags that they may be reinstated at the end if the party loses (CPC art. 100, sole paragraph).
Legal aid (Law 1.060/1950 and CPC art. 98) exempts those who prove insufficient resources; a declaration in the case file suffices, subject to challenge by the opposing party, and it can be revoked if the financial situation improves (CPC art. 100, sole paragraph). At the end, the losing party is usually ordered to pay the costs (CPC art. 82, §2, and art. 85); in the Labor Courts, the claimant only bears them if litigating in bad faith.
The amounts change every year by court ordinance, and this tool covers a set of forums (TJSP, TJMG, TJRJ, Federal Courts, Labor Courts, STJ, and STF). Treat the result as a planning estimate: before paying the fee slip, check the court's official table in force and, if unsure about the bracket or legal aid, consult a lawyer.
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A tax charged by the state for providing judicial services. Distinct from expert fees, postage costs, and attorney fees.
Estimate based on current fee tables. Values are updated annually by courts. Verify the official table before filing.
UFESP (SP) = R$ 38,42 (in effect since 2026-01-01)
Lei Estadual 11.608/2003, com redação da Lei 17.785/2023