Following what it described as ‘three years of real-term reductions’, the GOC has increased its annual registration fees for optometrists, dispensing opticians and bodies corporate by £30 to £290.
The GOC said the increases, the first in two years, were essential if it was to continue being an effective regulator which acted in patients’ best interests. It added that in real terms, which accounted for inflation, the fee for optometrists fell by 27.5 per cent during same the three-year period, and that the fee for dispensing opticians was reduced by 16 per cent.
GOC chair Gareth Hadley said: ‘We’ve done our utmost to keep fees down during these tough economic times for registrants and they remain lower in real terms than they were three years ago. However, our costs have naturally increased over that period and we could not fulfil our role effectively if we were to freeze our fee for another year.
‘We would have had to increase the fee just to meet our existing costs; however, we also face new demands and expectations.’
Fees for student registrants will rise from £20 to £25 – the first increase since the GOC introduced student registration in 2005. The low income fee, for fully qualified registrants earning under £12,000 per year, will increase from £160 to £190.
Hadley added that an increase in the volume and complexity of fitness to practise cases in recent years required additional resources.
‘We never like to see registrants enter the fitness to practise process but we must be able to take timely and effective action when a small minority place patients at risk or undermine confidence in the profession.’