The Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) Regulations 2012

[^key-a1066d59ca48d4ff081ece8c71aad0f4]: Reg. 16(1)(b) applied (29.12.2025) by The Helios Renewable Energy Project Order 2025 (S.I. 2025/1372), art. 1, Sch. 2 para. 28(1) (with Sch. 9)

[^key-c8cc5bb5a6bc9a3d02dab2537c867f53]: Reg. 16(1)(b) applied (4.3.2026) by The Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind Farm Order 2026 (S.I. 2026/138), art. 1(2), Sch. 20 para. 4(1) (with arts. 42, 43, Sch. 18)

Pre-application advice about applying under section 62A of the 1990 Act

2A

• (1) Where the Secretary of State gives advice about applying for any permission, approval or consent under section 62A of the 1990 Act (“pre-application advice”), a fee shall be paid to the Secretary of State.

• (2) The fee payable in respect of pre-application advice shall be the time (in hours or parts thereof) spent by a planning inspector, or as the case may be, a planning officer, giving such advice multiplied by—

• (a) where the advice is given by a planning inspector, the hourly rate for a planning inspector; or

• (b) where the advice is given by a planning officer, the hourly rate for a planning officer.

• (3) The hourly rate for a planning inspector, and for a planning officer, shall be—

• (a) set from time to time by the Secretary of State;

• (b) calculated by reference to the average hourly cost to the Secretary of State of providing the services of a planning inspector or, as the case may be, a planning officer;

• (c) set at a level which ensures that, taking one financial year with another, the income from fees charged for pre-application advice does not exceed the cost of providing that advice; and

• (d) published by the Secretary of State in such manner as the Secretary of State considers appropriate.

• (4) In this regulation—

• “planning inspector” means a person appointed by the Secretary of State under section 76D(1) of, or paragraph 1 of Schedule 6 to, the 1990 Act at any time in the 12 months preceding the request for advice; and

• “planning officer” means an officer of the Department for Communities and Local Government working for the part of that Department known as the Planning Inspectorate.

Fees for planning applications

Exceptions – access and facilities for disabled persons

Exceptions – permission granted by General Permitted Development Order not applying

Exception – applications relating to demolition of unlisted etc buildings in conservation areas

5A

Regulation 3 shall not apply where the local planning authority to whom the application is made are satisfied that the application relates solely to development which is relevant demolition (within the meaning of section 196D of the 1990 Act).

Exceptions – application relating to same use class necessary because of condition

Exceptions – consolidation of subsisting minerals permissions

Exemptions – second application relating to development on same site etc.

Exemptions – application following withdrawal of earlier application or refusal of permission etc.

Refund of fees in relation to planning applications not determined within 26 weeks

9A

• (1) Subject to paragraph (2), any fee paid by an applicant in respect of an application for planning permission , or permission in principle or for the approval of reserved matters shall be refunded to the applicant in the event that the local planning authority fail, or the Secretary of State, in relation to an application made under section 62A of the 1990 Act fails, to determine the application within the relevant period.

• (1A) For the purposes of paragraph (1), the relevant period is—

• (a) in the case of a valid application falling within article 34(2)(b) of the Development Management Procedure Order, 16 weeks beginning with the day immediately following the day on which the application is received by the local planning authority;

• (b) otherwise, the period of 26 weeks beginning with the date on which a valid application is received by the local planning authority or the Secretary of State (as the case may be).

• (2) Paragraph (1) does not apply where—

• (a) the applicant and the local planning authority, or, in the case of an application under section 62A of the 1990 Act, the Secretary of State, have agreed in writing that the application is to be determined within an extended period;

• (b) the Secretary of State gives a direction under section 77 of the 1990 Act in relation to the application before the period mentioned in paragraph (1) has expired;

• (c) the applicant has appealed to the Secretary of State under section 78(2) of the 1990 Act before the period mentioned in paragraph (1) has expired; or

• (d) any person who is aggrieved by any decision of the local planning authority or the Secretary of State in relation to the application has made an application to the High Court before the period mentioned in paragraph (1) has expired.

• (3) In this regulation “valid application” is—

• (a) where the application is made to a local planning authority, to have the same meaning as in article 34(4) of the Development Management Procedure Order or article 5S(3) of the Town and Country Planning (Permission in Principle) Order 2017, as the case may be;

• (b) where the application is made under section 62A of the 1990 Act, to have the same meaning as in article 8(4) of the Town and Country Planning (Section 62A Applications) (Procedure and Consequential Amendments) Order 2013.

Fees in respect of deemed applications

Fees for applications for certificates of lawful use or development

Fees payable in respect of applications under section 62A of the 1990 Act

11A

• (1) When an application is made under section 62A of the 1990 Act a fee is payable to the Secretary of State.

• (2) A fee is only payable under this regulation if a fee would have been payable to a local planning authority under these Regulations ... had the application been made to that authority (“the relevant authority”).

• (3) The amount of the fee payable to the Secretary of State under paragraph (1) shall be the same as the amount of the fee that would have been payable to the relevant authority under these Regulations.

• (4) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• (5) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• (6) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• (7) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• (8) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• (9) Any fee paid under this regulation shall be refunded if the application is rejected as invalid.

Fee payable in respect of urgent crown development applications

Fees for applications for consent for advertisements

Fees for certain applications under the General Permitted Development Order

Fees in respect of the monitoring of mining and landfill sites

Fees for confirmation of compliance with condition attached to planning permission

Fees for applications for non-material changes to planning permission

Fees for applications for certificates of appropriate alternative development

Review

Revocations, transitional provisions and savings

Pre-application advice given by a Mayoral development corporation or an urban development corporation

2B

• (1) Subject to paragraph (2), where a Mayoral development corporation or an urban development corporation (“the corporation”), gives advice to a person at the request of that person about applying for any permission, approval or consent under Part 3 of the 1990 Act (“pre-application advice”), the corporation shall charge that person a fee.

• (2) The corporation may only charge afee for pre-application adviceunder paragraph(1) if—

• (a) a fee schedule has been adopted by the corporation in accordance with paragraphs (3) and (4);

• (b) the requirements of paragraph (5) have been met;

• (c) the fee schedule has come into effect on or before the date on which the request for pre-application advice is made;

• (d) the fee schedule meets the requirements in paragraph (6);

• (e) the fee schedule provides for a fee to be charged for that advice; and

• (f) the fee is calculated in accordance with the fee schedule.

• (3) A fee schedule is adopted when the corporation resolves to adopt it.

• (4) A corporation may only adopt a fee schedule if it has published a copy of the proposed fee schedule—

• (a) in one or more newspapers, whose circulation or combined circulations cover the corporation’s area; and

• (b) on its website,

at least 21 days before the fee schedule is adopted.

• (5) Within 5 days of adopting the fee schedule, the corporation must publish a copy of it on its website and make hard copies of it available on request.

• (6) The fee schedule referred to in paragraph (2) must—

• (a) set out how a fee charged under paragraph (1) is to be calculated; and

• (b) specify the date on which it comes into effect, which may not be earlier than 10 days after the day on which it is adopted.

• (7) The corporation may amend a fee schedule at any time and, in relation to the charging of a fee under paragraph (1) for advice to which the amendment relates, paragraphs (2) to (6) apply but as if for “fee schedule” there were substituted “amended fee schedule”.

Fees for planning applications

Exceptions – access and facilities for disabled persons

Exceptions – permission granted by General Permitted Development Order not applying

Exception – applications relating to demolition of unlisted etc buildings in conservation areas

Exceptions – application relating to same use class necessary because of condition

Exceptions – consolidation of subsisting minerals permissions

Exemptions – second application relating to development on same site etc.

Exemptions – application following withdrawal of earlier application or refusal of permission etc.

Refund of fees in relation to planning applications not determined within the relevant period

Fees in respect of deemed applications

Fees for applications for certificates of lawful use or development

Fees payable in respect of applications under section 62A of the 1990 Act

Fee payable in respect of urgent Crown development and Crown development applications

Fees for applications for consent for advertisements

Fees for certain applications under the General Permitted Development Order

Fees in respect of the monitoring of mining and landfill sites

Fees for confirmation of compliance with condition attached to planning permission

Fees for applications for non-material changes to planning permission or permission in principle

Fees for applications for certificates of appropriate alternative development

Review

Revocations, transitional provisions and savings

Fees payable on or after 1st April 2025

18A

• (1) If there is a relevant increase in the consumer prices index, each relevant amount is increased on the fee change date in accordance with paragraph (3).

• (2) There is a relevant increase in the consumer prices index if the consumer prices index for the month of September preceding the fee change date is higher than that for the previous September.

• (3) Each relevant amount is increased by the lower of—

• (a) the percentage increase in the consumer prices index, and

• (b) 10%,

rounded up or down to the nearest £1.

• (4) The increase in a relevant amount in accordance with paragraphs (1) to (3) applies only in respect of an application which is, or is deemed to have been, made on or after the fee change date.

• (5) In this paragraph—

• “consumer prices index” means the all items consumer prices index published by the Statistics Board;

• “fee change date” means—1st April 2025, or1st April in any subsequent year;

• “relevant amount” means—a fee specified in regulation 11(3)(b) or (6)(a), (b) or (c), 14(1)(za) to (c), 15(4) or (5), 16(1)(a) or (b), 17(1)(a) or (b) or 18(2),a fee specified in paragraph 3(1), 4(2), 5, 6(b) or 7(1)(a), (b) or (c) of Schedule 1,an amount set out in the table in Part 2 of Schedule 1 and expressed in pounds sterling, ora fee specified in the table in Schedule 2.

Review

Revocations, transitional provisions and savings