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

Discretionary fees

There are a range of services for which an authority may introduce charges, which are set out in the Regulations. Some of these charges are up to the authority to set out, and others are as prescribed in the Application Fees Regulations.

B.5 Pre-application discussions

A planning authority may only charge fees for pre-application discussions if it has first published information on its website setting out:

• the services for which a fee is to be charged (this may, for example, specify who is to be involved in discussions, how feedback is to be provided to prospective applicants and relevant timescales);
• how the fees for each level of service have been calculated; and
• under what circumstances it may waive or reduce the fee.

B.6 Processing Agreements

A planning authority may only charge fees for the preparation of a processing agreement if it has first published information on its website setting out:

• how the fee is to be calculated;
• under what circumstances it may waive or reduce the fee; and
• when any fee is to be paid.

B.7 Masterplan Consent Areas (MCA)

Planning authorities may require payment of a charge to recover their costs in preparing a Masterplan Consent Area Scheme. The regulations provide that the costs for the preparation of a MCA can be recovered through requiring the payment of a charge from a person making an application for approval, consent or agreement required by a condition specified in the Masterplan Consent Area Scheme. The charge may only relate to the recovery by the planning authority of the cost of preparing and making or altering a MCA scheme. Where the authority requires payment of a charge, as soon as is practicable after all costs have been recovered, it is to publish a statement declaring that their costs have been recovered. Planning authorities may also introduce fees in respect of an application for approval, consent or agreement required by a condition specified in the masterplan consent area scheme in order to recover their ongoing costs in processing such applications. Masterplan Consent Area Guidance^[1] provides more information.

A planning authority may only charge fees in relation to Masterplan Consent Areas if it has first published information which sets out:

• how the fee or charge is to be calculated;
• under what circumstances the planning authority may waive or reduce the fee or charge; and
• in the case of a charge payable under paragraph 2(a) of regulation 4A when the charge is to be paid.

B.8 Non-material variations

The Application Fees Regulations provide that an authority may introduce a charge of £247 for each request for a non-material variation to a planning permission under Section 64 of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997.

B.9 Conditions

An authority may introduce a fee of £124 to consider a request for written confirmation that a condition has been complied with. An applicant may wish to seek written confirmation of compliance with more than one condition within each request which would incur a single fee of £124. This does not include approval of matters specified in conditions relating to Planning Permission in Principle.

B.10 Retrospective applications

Authorities may introduce a surcharge for retrospective applications for planning permission, where the application relates to development carried out without permission (section 33 of the 1997 Act). The surcharge must not exceed one quarter of the level of fee which would be charged if the application were for planning permission to carry out the development. A planning authority may only impose a surcharge if they have published information on its web site on how the surcharge is calculated and under what circumstances the authority may impose a surcharge.