Planning circular 1/2026: planning fees for applications, local reviews and appeals

Exemptions

The Application Fees Regulations provide for exemptions from fees for planning applications, including:

B.2 Repeat or revised applications

Regulations 11 and 12 of the Application Fees Regulations provide that, where:

• an application is withdrawn;
• planning permission is granted or refused; or
• the applicant has submitted an appeal or notice of review on the grounds of non-determination by the planning authority of an application,

the same applicant may submit, without paying a fee, one further application for development of the same character or description on the same site.

Where the original application was for planning permission in principle, only a repeat or revised application for planning permission in principle may be exempt from fees. In the case of an application for approval of matters specified in conditions, to be exempt the repeat or revised application must relate to the same matters. In any case, the repeat or revised application must be made:

• where permission was granted or refused, within 12 months of that decision;
• in the case of a withdrawn application, within 12 months of the making of that application; or,
• in the case of an appeal or review against non-determination, within 12 months of the expiry of the period within which the planning authority were required to decide the application.

An applicant may benefit from this exemption only once for any given site or part of that site. If they need to submit a further repeat or revised application, the full relevant fee is payable. The regulations allow revisions to schemes to include small amounts of land to accommodate different access arrangements, but in no other circumstances are revisions which include additional land eligible for exemption from fees. In order to benefit from these provisions, it is necessary that the appropriate fee was paid for the original application.

Regulation 13 of the Application Fees Regulations provides that no fee is payable for a repeat application for a certificate of lawful use or development where a previous application for such a certificate of lawful use or development:

• has been withdrawn before the authority have issued a decision; or has been refused either by the authority or Scottish Ministers.

No fee is payable as long as the application is made:

• within 12 months of the refusal of the earlier application;
• in the case of a withdrawn application, within 12 months of the lodging of the earlier one;
• the application relates to the same site as that to which the earlier application related, or to part of that site and to no other land;
• the planning authority to which the application is made is satisfied that it relates to a use, operation or other matter of the same description as the use, operation or matter to which the earlier application related and to no other use, operation or matter;
• the fee payable in respect of the earlier application was paid; and
• no application made by or on behalf of the same applicant in relation to the whole or any part of the site has already been exempted from payment of a fee by virtue of this regulation or regulation 12 of the 2004 Regulations.