Improver Programme costs

Understanding Improver Programme costs

The fees below apply from 1 January 2026 and are listed in Pounds Sterling (£), excluding VAT where applicable.

Mandatory annual programme costs

Applicants and accepted companies must pay the applicable MarinTrust fees and Certification Body audit costs when applying for and maintaining participation in the Improver Programme.

Companies accepted into the Improver Programme receive a MarinTrust Note of Acceptance after successfully completing the required audit process.

Annual MarinTrust fees:

• Company Registration Fee
• Factory Registration Fee
• Claim Licensing and Monitoring Fee

Annual Certification Body audit fee:

• Quoted by the Certification Body
• Payable directly to the Certification Body

Additional MarinTrust fees

Additional fees may apply depending on the application scope, facilities, subcontractor facilities or scope extension requests.

When a scope extension request may be required

• add a factory / facility;
• add a subcontractor facility;
• request a Certification Body transfer;
• amend invoicing or primary contact details;
• submit another change to the application or programme scope.

Scope extension requests

Once an application has been accepted by the Certification Body, or once a company has received a MarinTrust Note of Acceptance, any request to add or amend elements within the application or programme scope must be submitted as a scope extension request through the MarinTrust online portal.

A £100 scope extension fee will apply to each scope extension request. Additional fees may also apply where the request includes chargeable items, such as adding a factory/facility or subcontractor facility.

Mandatory annual fees and audit costs

Pro-rata invoicing for new applicants

When a new application is approved, MarinTrust issues an initial invoice covering a 12-month period from the application approval date.

If the applicant receives a MarinTrust Letter of Acceptance during that initial invoice period, MarinTrust will issue a pro-rata invoice from the day after the initial invoice period ends until 31 December of that year. This aligns the accepted company with the normal annual invoicing cycle.

The pro-rata calculation applies to mandatory annual programme costs only. Any applicable additional fees are charged in full according to the relevant fee schedule.

After the pro-rata period, the accepted company will enter the normal annual invoicing cycle, which runs from 1 January to 31 December each year. At that point, mandatory annual programme costs and any applicable additional fees will be invoiced as part of the normal annual cycle.

Example scenario

• Application approved: 8 September 2026
• Initial invoice period: 8 September 2026 to 7 September 2027
• MarinTrust Letter of Acceptance received during the initial invoice period
• Pro-rata invoice period: 8 September 2027 to 31 December 2027
• Pro-rata calculation: mandatory annual programme costs only
• Applicable additional fees: charged in full according to the fee schedule
• Normal annual invoicing cycle starts: 1 January 2028

Additional fees - only where applicable

Improver Programme FIP Group Fees

The following fees are paid by the FIP group, which may be a company, a group of companies, or other institutes, depending on the structure of the FIP. These fees include the FIP Registration Fee and FIP peer review fees under the Improver Programme.