Announced 19 November 2025

UK resale cap: coming soon

The government has announced that reselling a ticket above face value will become illegal: the original price plus unavoidable fees, service charges included. Resale platform fees will be capped too. It is not law yet.

Not law yet

Full UK calculator
when the rules are law

Preview, following the announcement only: the most a ticket could be resold for is its original price including unavoidable fees. The platform fee cap level is not published, so it is not calculated.

Admit oneResale price checkNo. 000000

Where is the event?Washington DCMaineUK (proposed)

Original all-in price

What was paid at first sale, with every fee and tax.

Tickets

That price is forEach ticketThe whole order

Optional: check a listing

Listing price, all-in

The total the buyer pays, as shown at checkout.

Of which exchange fee

The marketplace’s own fee, if the listing itemizes it. Same basis as the listing price.

Listing price is forEach ticketAll my tickets

The calculator needs JavaScript. The rule itself: in DC the most a resale ticket can cost is the original all-in price plus 10%, plus an exchange fee of up to 10% of that original price.

Breakdown
Item	Per ticket	All tickets

What the text says

“Ticket resale above face value will be illegal – this will be defined in legislation as the original ticket price plus unavoidable fees, including service charges”
GOV.UK, 19 Nov 2025

“Service fees charged by resale platforms will be capped to prevent the price limit being undermined”
GOV.UK, 19 Nov 2025

“Individuals will be banned from reselling more tickets than they were entitled to buy in the initial ticket sale”
GOV.UK, 19 Nov 2025

Unclear or unverified

Not law yet. On the date checked, no Act or regulation setting the cap was found. Dates, scope and exceptions can change.
The resale platform fee cap level has not been published. ResaleCap cannot calculate a maximum fee for the UK.

Sources

GOV.UK press release: Government bans ticket touting to protect fans from rip-off prices
Published 19 November 2025 by the Department for Business and Trade and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. An announcement of planned legislation, not a law.

Last checked against the primary source: 2026-10-25.

How to report a violation

Citizens Advice consumer helpline (reports go to Trading Standards)
For ticket problems under current UK consumer law. The resale price cap itself is not in force yet.

Keep screenshots of the listing, the itemized price and your original receipt.

UK plan: questions

Is ticket resale above face value illegal in the UK?

Not yet. The government announced the plan on 19 November 2025. It said resale above face value will be illegal, defined as the original ticket price plus unavoidable fees, including service charges.

Will resale platform fees be capped in the UK?

The announcement says service fees charged by resale platforms will be capped. The level of that cap was not published in it.

Who would enforce it?

The announcement says businesses that break the rules could face penalties of up to 10% of global turnover from the Competition and Markets Authority, under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024.