How Much Does a CVA Cost?
A Company Voluntary Arrangement typically costs around £5,000 to £10,000 in core nominee and supervisor fees. Crucially, these fees are usually drawn from the agreed monthly contributions the company already pays into the CVA — not charged on top — so there is normally no separate bill to find up front.
How much does a CVA cost?
The honest answer is that a Company Voluntary Arrangement usually costs in the region of £5,000 to £10,000 in core professional fees. That figure covers the two essential pieces of work carried out by a licensed insolvency practitioner: drafting and proposing the arrangement, and then administering it across its term, which is typically 3 to 5 years.
The most important point about CVA cost is not the headline number but how it is paid. In most cases the fees are taken from the agreed monthly contributions the company is already paying into the CVA — they are not an extra bill on top. That means a viable but cash-strapped company can fund the whole process out of its trading cash flow.
Typical total core fees (nominee + supervisor)
Fees usually taken from monthly payments, not on top
Term over which fees and creditors are paid
For the wider picture of how a CVA works and whether your company qualifies, read our complete Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) guide.
What makes up CVA fees (nominee vs supervisor)
A CVA has two distinct fee elements, both charged by the licensed insolvency practitioner. Understanding the split helps you see what you are actually paying for.
Nominee fee
The nominee fee is the up-front cost of getting the CVA off the ground. The insolvency practitioner reviews the company's finances, assesses whether a CVA is viable, drafts the formal proposal, and presents it to creditors for the vote.
This is a fixed piece of work, so the nominee fee is usually a set fee agreed in advance.
Supervisor fee
Once the CVA is approved, the same practitioner becomes the supervisor. The supervisor fee covers running the arrangement over its term: collecting the monthly contributions, distributing money to creditors, and reporting on progress.
The supervisor element is often charged as a percentage of the funds handled, so it scales with the size of the CVA.
Some companies also incur additional advisory or turnaround costs — for example, support to fix the operational problems that caused the distress in the first place. A CVA that restructures debt without addressing the underlying trading will struggle, which is why operational company restructuring often runs alongside the formal process.
How CVA fees are paid (from contributions, not on top)
This is the part that surprises most directors, and it is good news. CVA fees are not usually a separate invoice the company has to settle on top of everything else. Instead, they are drawn from the agreed monthly contributions the company already pays into the arrangement.
In practice, the company agrees an affordable monthly payment based on its forecast trading. That payment goes to the supervisor, who deducts the agreed fees and distributes the rest to creditors. The nominee fee for setting up the CVA is typically recovered from the first contributions once the arrangement is approved. The result is that the cost of a CVA is absorbed into payments the company is making anyway — there is normally no large lump sum to find before you can start.
Why this matters
For a business that is short of cash but still profitable day to day, the ability to fund a CVA from ongoing contributions — rather than an up-front fee — is often what makes the rescue affordable at all. It is a key reason a CVA can work where other options feel out of reach.
What affects the cost
Why does one CVA cost £5,000 and another closer to £10,000 or more? A few factors drive the difference:
Number of creditors
More creditors mean more notices, more claims to verify, and more votes to manage. A company with a handful of creditors costs less to administer than one with dozens.
Complexity of the business
Multiple sites, leases to renegotiate, group structures or significant HMRC arrears all add work to drafting and supervising the arrangement.
Length and size of the CVA
Because the supervisor fee is often a percentage of distributions, the more money flowing through the CVA over a longer term, the higher that element of the cost.
Additional advisory work
Where operational turnaround support is needed to make the CVA succeed, that work sits alongside the core nominee and supervisor fees.
Is a CVA worth the cost?
For a fundamentally viable business, the answer is usually yes. The fees are modest set against what a CVA achieves: the company keeps trading, the directors stay in control, jobs and contracts are preserved, and a proportion of the debt is written off at the end of the term. Set against the cost of losing the business altogether, £5,000 to £10,000 of fees — spread over several years and paid from contributions — is a small price.
The better question is not simply what a CVA costs, but what it saves. A CVA only makes sense where the underlying business is sound and the debt is the problem. Where the business model itself is broken, no amount of fee-paying will fix it, and an honest assessment may point to a different route. That is why a credible CVA always starts with a frank review of viability.
If creditor pressure has already escalated, it is also worth understanding how a CVA compares with the alternatives — we set this out in our guide to CVA vs administration.
CVA cost vs administration and liquidation cost
Cost should never be the only factor when choosing an insolvency route, but it is a fair question. Here is how the three main procedures compare in broad terms.
CVA
Paid from contributions. Business survives; directors keep control; debt restructured over 3–5 years.
Administration
An IP takes control of the whole company, so fees reflect more work, risk and reporting. Company may or may not survive.
Liquidation
Fees paid from asset realisations. Can be lower than administration, but the company is closed and equity is lost.
The headline is simple: a CVA is usually the cheapest route that still lets the business survive. Administration costs more because an insolvency practitioner takes control of the company; liquidation can be cheaper still, but only because there is no longer a business to run. For a side-by-side look at control, survival and outcomes, see CVA vs administration: the key differences.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a CVA cost?
A Company Voluntary Arrangement typically costs in the region of £5,000 to £10,000 in total for the core professional fees, made up of a nominee fee to draft and propose the arrangement and a supervisor fee to administer it over its term. The exact figure depends on the size and complexity of the business and the number of creditors. Crucially, these fees are usually drawn from the agreed monthly contributions the company already pays into the CVA, rather than charged on top, so there is normally no separate bill to find.
What are the nominee and supervisor fees in a CVA?
A CVA involves two main fees, both charged by the licensed insolvency practitioner. The nominee fee covers assessing the company, drafting the CVA proposal and putting it to creditors for a vote. The supervisor fee covers administering the CVA once it is approved, collecting contributions and distributing them to creditors over the 3 to 5 year term. Together these make up the core cost of a CVA, typically around £5,000 to £10,000, with the supervisor element often charged as a percentage of the funds handled.
Are CVA fees paid on top of the monthly payments?
No, in most cases CVA fees are not charged on top. The fees are usually taken from the agreed monthly contributions the company pays into the arrangement, so they come out of the money already budgeted for creditors rather than as a separate invoice. This is one of the practical advantages of a CVA: a viable company can fund the whole process from its trading cash flow without finding a large lump sum up front.
What affects the cost of a CVA?
The cost of a CVA depends mainly on the complexity of the company and the number of creditors. A small company with a handful of creditors and straightforward debts sits at the lower end, while a larger business with many creditors, multiple sites, leases to renegotiate or HMRC arrears takes more work and costs more. The length of the arrangement and the amount of money distributed also affect the supervisor fee, since it is often charged as a percentage of distributions.
Is a CVA worth the cost?
For a viable business, a CVA is usually worth the cost because it allows the company to keep trading, retain its directors, staff and contracts, and write off a proportion of its debt at the end of the term. Compared with the alternatives, the fees are modest: administration generally costs more because an insolvency practitioner takes control of the whole company, and liquidation, while it can be cheaper, ends the business entirely. The right question is not just what a CVA costs, but what it saves.
Do I need a lump sum to start a CVA?
Usually not. Because CVA fees are normally drawn from the ongoing monthly contributions rather than charged up front, most companies can start a CVA without a large lump sum. The contributions are set at an affordable level based on the company's forecast trading, and the nominee and supervisor fees are met from within those payments. This makes a CVA accessible to companies that are short of cash but still trading profitably at an operating level.
Want to know what a CVA would cost your company?
Every situation is different. K2 offers a no-charge initial assessment — we will tell you honestly whether a CVA is viable, what it would cost, and how it would be funded from your trading.
30+ years turnaround experience · Confidential consultation · Honest about viability
Related Guides
Go deeper on CVAs and the alternatives.
Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA): Full Guide
The complete pillar guide to CVAs — meaning, process, eligibility and implementation
CVA vs Administration
Key differences in control, survival, cost and timing — and which is right for you
Pre-Pack Administration
How a pre-pack administration sale works as a business rescue route
Company Restructuring
The full picture of restructuring options for saving an insolvent company
Winding-Up Petition Guide
Urgent response strategies when facing a winding-up petition