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

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations consolidate, with amendments, the provisions of the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications and Deemed Applications) Regulations 1989 (“the 1989 Regulations”) and subsequent amending instruments, in so far as they apply to England.

These Regulations provide for the payment of fees to local planning authorities in respect of applications made under Part 3 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 for planning permission for development or for approval of matters reserved by an outline planning permission and in respect of applications for consent for the display of advertisements; in respect of applications for planning permission deemed to have been made, by virtue of section 177 of the 1990 Act, in connection with an appeal against an enforcement notice; in connection with an application for a certificate of lawful use or development or a certificate of appropriate alternative development under section 17 of the Land Compensation Act 1961; or in connection with site visits. These Regulations also make provision for a fee to be paid to the Secretary of State in respect of applications for urgent Crown development.

The main changes are:

(a)

the increase of all existing fees by approximately 15%;

(b)

regulation 1(2) provides that these Regulations are to cease to have effect seven years after they come into force;

(c)

fees in respect of deemed applications are to be paid to the local planning authority, rather than half to the local planning authority and half to the Secretary of State (regulation 10);

(d)

fees paid in respect of an application deemed to be made in relation to the use of the land as a caravan site are to be treated the same as other applications for the purposes of refunds (regulation 10(13)). Under the 1989 Regulations, such a deemed application was excluded from the provisions providing for such a refund;

(e)

fees are to be payable to the Secretary of State in connection with applications for urgent crown development (regulation 12);

(f)

applications for adverts on multiple charging points for electric vehicles are to be treated the same as those for multiple adverts on parking meters, litter bins, benches and bus shelters (regulation 13(4));

(g)

fees are to be payable to local planning authorities in respect of an application for a certificate of appropriate alternative development (regulation 18); and

(h)

regulation 19 requires the Secretary of State to review the operation and effect of these Regulations and publish a report within five years after the Regulations come into force. Following the review it will fall to the Secretary of State to consider whether the Regulations should be allowed to expire as regulation 1(2) provides, be revoked early, or continue in force with or without amendment. A further instrument would be needed to continue the Regulations in force with or without amendments or to revoke them early.

Some drafting amendments have been made and there are transitional and savings provisions.

An impact assessment has been prepared in relation to these Regulations. It has been placed in the library of each House of Parliament and copies may be obtained from the Planning Directorate, Department for Communities and Local Government, Eland House, Bressenden Place, London, SW1E 5DU (Telephone [phone]) or on the website: www.communities.gov.uk.