The Sovereign Grant Act was the biggest reform to the finances of the British royal family since the inception of the Civil List in 1760.

[2] The resulting system required the annual state expenditure on the monarchy to be decided by the Treasury and presented to House of Commons.

The Act consolidated four funding sources that the monarch received into a single payment, called the Sovereign Grant.

[7] It is based on an index percentage that was initially set at 15%[8] and this is reviewed every five years by the Royal Trustees (the Prime Minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Keeper of the Privy Purse).

The level of the Sovereign Grant is protected by law from decreasing as a result of falling Crown Estate revenues.

[12] A decrease in the Crown Estate's rental income during the COVID-19 pandemic led to the first use of the provision that prevents the value of the Sovereign Grant from falling, with the Treasury committing to make up the shortfall.

The Keeper of the Privy Purse said the increase will be used to complete the renovation of Buckingham Palace, and that once this was accomplished: "a reduction in the absolute amount of the sovereign grant will be sought as part of the royal trustees review in 2026–27, through primary legislation".