Money Claim Online MCOL vs OCMC: Which Portal to Use in England and Wales

Two Portals, One Court System

HMCTS runs two online portals for filing a county court money claim, and picking the wrong one means starting over. Money Claim Online (MCOL) is the legacy system under Practice Direction 7E, accepting specified money claims up to £99,999.99. Online Civil Money Claims (OCMC) is the newer portal under Practice Direction 51R, handling specified claims up to £100,000 with a more modern interface and end-to-end digital case management.

Since 28 July 2025, legal representatives must use OCMC for eligible claims. Litigants in person can choose either portal, but OCMC offers real advantages: the defendant can respond online, you can track the case digitally, and the interface walks you through each step. MCOL's login system is clunky, status updates are less clear, and the platform is being wound down.

If you are a litigant in person and don't want to use either portal, you can file a paper Form N1 and post it to the Civil National Business Centre (CNBC) at St Katharine's House, 21-27 St Katharine's Street, Northampton NN1 2LH. Paper filing is the only option for unspecified money claims, multi-party claims, and cases involving human rights; legal representatives must use OCMC for eligible claims.

When to Use OCMC

OCMC works for most small claims. Use it when you're claiming a fixed sum of money (a "specified amount") up to £10,000 against a single defendant in England and Wales. The portal handles the entire journey from issuing the claim through to requesting judgment if the defendant doesn't respond.

One limitation: OCMC imposes strict character limits on the Particulars of Claim section. If your case involves complex facts — multiple invoices, a chain of events, or detailed contractual terms — you may run out of space. Use the portal option to indicate that separate detailed Particulars of Claim will be served within 14 days after service of the claim form, under CPR 7.4.

When MCOL Still Makes Sense

MCOL handles larger specified debt claims, particularly for businesses issuing claims above £10,000 that sit outside the small claims track. Commercial creditors running bulk debt recovery also use MCOL's Secure Data Transfer (SDT) system.

For a straightforward claim under £10,000, MCOL still works but there's no reason to prefer it over OCMC unless you already have an account and a familiar workflow.

Filing Step by Step on OCMC

Before you log in, gather three things: the defendant's full legal name and address, the amount claimed including any statutory interest, and a concise statement of facts (your Particulars of Claim).

1. Create a GOV.UK account and verify your email
2. Select "Make a money claim" and choose whether you're claiming as an individual or a business
3. Enter the defendant's details — use their full legal name, not a nickname or trading name alone
4. Draft your Particulars of Claim: state the facts, the amount owed, how interest is calculated, and what you've already done to resolve the dispute
5. Calculate and pay the court issue fee (ranging from £35 for claims up to £300 to £455 for claims up to £10,000)
6. Submit — the court issues the claim and serves it on the defendant

The issue fee is the same whether you file online or on paper. If you're on a low income, apply for Help with Fees (Form EX160) before filing — you'll receive an HWF reference number to enter during the process.

What Happens After You File

The defendant has 14 days from the deemed date of service to respond. For postal service, the claim is deemed served on the second business day after posting. The defendant can admit the claim, file a defence, or counterclaim. If they do nothing, you can request a default judgment through the portal.

If the defendant defends a specified claim of £10,000 or less, OCMC asks the claimant whether they want to continue. If they do, they must submit an online directions questionnaire within 28 days. Unless the claimant opted out of mediation, the court stays the case for 28 days and refers it to the Small Claims Mediation Service under the OCMC process in Practice Direction 51R. If the case is not settled, it proceeds to the next directions and track decision in OCMC.

Filing correctly from the start saves weeks. The Making a County Court Money Claim guide walks through each stage from the pre-action letter to the hearing, with deadline trackers and a portal selection matrix so you file on the right system the first time.

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