To admit charge, as it were (5,3)
I believe the answer is:
entry fee
'it were' is the definition.
I don't know anything about this answer so I cannot judge whether this works.
'to admit charge' is the wordplay.
'to admit' becomes 'entry' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'charge' becomes 'fee' (fee is a kind of charge).
'entry'+'fee'='ENTRY FEE'
'as' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for entry fee that I've seen before include "Admission charge" , "Teeny ref seeking payment to get in" , "Cost of starting" , "Payment often required to take part in competition" , "Price paid to gain admittance" .)