Planning fee indexation and the annual April check

Planning application fees in England rise on 1 April each year, and the figure you budgeted in a scheme appraisal six months ago is probably wrong. Indexation was built into the fee regulations so that fees move with inflation rather than sitting still for a decade and then jumping, and the practical effect for anyone programming submissions across a financial year is that the rate in force when the application is received is the rate you pay. Check the schedule before every submission, not once a year.

Why the fee moves and how often

Fees are set by the Town and Country Planning fees regulations, which are amended from time to time. A substantial uplift took effect in December 2023, and an annual indexation mechanism was introduced so that fees are adjusted each April by reference to the consumer prices index, subject to a cap.

Two things follow. The increase is usually modest, so it is easy to ignore on a single householder application and easy to underestimate across a pipeline of majors. And the exact figure for any given April is confirmed shortly beforehand, so a budget prepared in the autumn is working from an assumption.

Verify the current figures rather than relying on a spreadsheet inherited from a previous scheme. That sounds obvious. It is also the most common reason applications are held at validation.

Where the current schedule lives

Three sources, in order of authority.

1. The fee regulations themselves on the legislation service, which are definitive but require reading the amendments alongside the principal instrument.
2. The national planning guidance chapter on fees, which explains how the regime works.
3. The Planning Portal fee calculator, which is the practical tool most agents use and which is updated when the schedule changes.

Local authority websites often carry a fee page of their own. Treat it as a convenience rather than as the source, because these pages are among the last things to be updated after a change.

Some fees are not in the national schedule at all. Pre-application advice charges are set by each authority under its own charging arrangements and vary widely, as do charges for planning performance agreements and for discharging conditions on complex schemes. Those come from the council's published fee list.

Checking the fee before you submit

Work through the same short sequence each time.

• Confirm the application type. A section 73 variation, a non-material amendment under section 96A, a lawful development certificate and a discharge of conditions request each carry their own fee.
• Confirm the unit of charge. Residential fees run on the number of dwellings, most other development on floorspace or site area, and the banding changes at stated thresholds.
• Check whether a cap applies to large schemes.
• Check whether the proposal is a mixed use, which is charged differently from either use alone.
• Confirm the fee at the date of submission rather than the date of instruction.

An illustrative example. An agent quotes a client a fee in February for a 14 unit scheme, the drawings slip, and the application goes in on 8 April. The fee payable is the new one. If the difference has not been flagged, the agent absorbs it or has an awkward conversation.

Refunds, invalid applications and the 26 week rule

Where an application is not valid, most authorities will return the fee less an administrative charge, though practice varies and some hold the fee pending a corrected submission. Ask before assuming.

The regulations also provide for a refund where the authority fails to determine an application within 26 weeks and no extension of time has been agreed in writing. Exceptions apply, and the provision is easy to lose by signing an extension without thinking about it. Agreeing an extension is often the right commercial decision, because a refused application costs far more than a refunded fee saves. Make it a decision rather than an oversight.

The so-called free go, a further application of the same character on the same site within a set period without a further fee, has been narrowed by amendment. Check the current regulations before you rely on it, because the conditions attached to it are specific about timing, applicant identity and the character of the development.

Exemptions worth checking

Several categories attract no fee or a reduced one:

• Applications for listed building consent.
• Applications for works to trees subject to a Tree Preservation Order, and notices for trees in conservation areas.
• Householder applications where the works are solely to improve access for a disabled person.
• Certain applications by parish and town councils and by community organisations, subject to conditions.
• Applications required only because permitted development rights have been removed by an Article 4 direction, in defined circumstances.

Each of these has conditions attached and none of them should be claimed without checking the regulation. An incorrectly claimed exemption produces an invalid application and a lost submission date.

Community Infrastructure Levy and section 106 obligations sit outside the fee regime entirely. They are separate liabilities on a different timetable, and the levy has its own annual indexation.

Budgeting across a financial year

For a developer running several applications, treat fees as a line that moves in April and plan around it.

The tempting move, submitting something unready in late March, is generally a mistake. An invalid application does not secure the earlier rate in most authorities' practice, and it wastes the officer's goodwill at the start of the case.

Programme the survey work so that submissions are genuinely ready when you want them. Seasonal inputs are the usual constraint, as the notes on traffic count neutral months and parking survey timing describe.

Avoiding a validation delay over payment

Fees are paid through the national submission service or directly to the authority, and payment problems are a boring but frequent cause of delay. The application is not valid until the correct fee is received.

Three habits prevent it. Pay at the point of submission rather than promising to follow up. Keep the payment reference with the application record. And where the authority disputes the amount, respond the same day, because the determination clock does not start until the matter is resolved.

Where the fee calculation is genuinely ambiguous, for example on a mixed use scheme or an unusual application type, ring the validation team before submitting and record what they say. That conversation costs ten minutes and routinely saves a fortnight.

Enter your postcode on PlanScope to see which reports your scheme is likely to need, and see the pricing page for what a draft report costs. PlanScope provides AI-assisted draft reports for planning applications. Reports should be reviewed before submission. We do not guarantee planning approval.

This is general guidance, not legal advice. Check the position with your local planning authority or a qualified professional before relying on it.