Building control charges

There are standard fees for specific categories of work, as shown on the fee schedules. If the work you are proposing to do falls within these categories, these should be used. If you are carrying out any other project the fee charged will be based on our individually determined charges.

Types of charges

There are three types of application you can make, and also three types of work that we charge for.

We have standard charges for each to help you work out what you need to pay. You should make sure you are looking at the at the correct application type and type of work to calculate the fee for your project.

The three types of application are:

Building Control Approval with Full Plans
Building Notice (can't be used for commercial work and certain domestic projects)
Regularisation (used where works have already started or have been completed)

The three types of work are:

new dwellings or new build commercial property
extensions and alterations to residential or commercial property
other works to residential or commercial property

The standard charges only apply for:

new dwellings if the floor area is less than 300 sqm
works to building that are less than three storeys above ground level

If this is not the case, the project will require an individually determined fee.

For Full Plans, there are two elements to the charge, namely the plans charge and the inspections charge. You need to pay the plan charge when you first apply. You will then need to pay the inspection charge when work starts. The inspection charge is a flat fee, no matter how many inspections your project needs.

Schedule of fees

You can download the full schedule of fees. Alternatively, you can view a breakdown that guides you through the charges by application type:

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Administration fee for copy of offical documentation : £114 (includes £19 VAT)
Reversion fee (initial charge includes review of the application and the first inspection): £350 (not subject to VAT
Other administration fee: £114 (includes £19 VAT)

We currently do not charge for the following:

demolition notice
initial notice registration
initial notice final certificate
initial notice amendment notice
initial notice cancelation

All charges are subject to VAT at the appropriate rate.

Guidance notes

We can't consider your plans unless you have paid the correct amount, so to reduce processing delays, we suggest you read our guidance and calculate the fee for your project carefully. If you pay an incorrect amount, we will contact you to let you know, but this may delay your works.

For Full Plans applications, you must pay the plan charge when you deposit your plans with us. You have to pay the inspection charge after we have made the first inspection, but not until you receive the invoice. It is your responsibility to arrange payment of the inspection charge, unless we tell you otherwise.

For building notice applications, you must pay the whole fee when you make your application.

For regularisation applications, you must pay the fee when you apply.

After you have submitted your application, we will check the fee you have calculated, or if it is indiviudally determined, we will calculate your fee based on the information you have given us.

We will then send you a link via email to our payments system. You will only be able to pay the correct figure we have calculated, using credit or debit card.

Multiple work reductions

If your plans include work covered by two or more standard charges, you will not have to pay all charges in full. Instead, you will pay the full amount for the most expensive element, plus 50% of the charge for the other applicable elements.

Exemptions

You do not have to pay a charge if the whole of the work is solely for providing a person with a disability with:

access to, from and within either their own residence, or an existing public building (such as a shop or bank)
accommodation or facilities designed to secure their greater health, safety, welfare or convenience

You will need to provide appropriate evidence to show that the work will help the person with the disability or special needs. This would normally be a letter from a medical practitioner or occupational therapist.

When calculating your charge, we will look at the work we’ve already done, and won’t charge you for the first hour of officer time. Our costs are £95 an hour, plus VAT.

If you do need to pay a supplementary charge, we will tell you in writing, detailing how we have calculated the charge.

If you are due a refund and we have done less than an hour’s work on your case, we will refund you in full.

Supplementary charges

We may make a supplementary charge where:

you have made major variations to the original project design, meaning we have to put in significant additional resources
we need to carry out an excessive number of extra site visits, compared to our original estimate.

Refunds

We will not consider a refund request for:

an Application for Building Control Approval with Full Plans after we have issued a ‘Certificate of Completion’
a Building Notice after we have issued a ‘Certificate of Completion’ or the Notice expires, which is three years from the date of deposit
a Certificate of Regularisation after we have issued the Certificate of Regularisation

Site visits

We calculate the number of site visits assuming that the builder is competent and will complete the project within 24 months of starting the work.

If your project needs fewer inspections than we originally thought, we will refund you appropriately. This is providing we have received all relevant inspection notifications.

Reimbursements for support provided to the Building Safety Regulator

Section 13 of the Building Safety Act 2022 allows the Building Safety Regulator to get assistance from a local authority to fulfil its functions.

The reimbursement for our costs of complying with a request or direction under section 13 of the Building Safety Act 2022 is based on an hourly rate of £95 per hour, plus VAT.

We set individually determined charges where:

the project falls outside the specific categories of Schedules A, B and C
these categories do not cover all aspects of the project
the categories do not reflect a reasonable charge (an excessive number of categories are applicable)
the control of the works reverts to us as the approved inspector is unable to resolve a contravention (the reversion charge is VAT zero rated)

If you need an individually determined charge, you should contact us.

This means the total of the floor area of all applicable storeys, measured internally.

This means an estimation of the reasonable amount a professional builder would charge to carry out such work, excluding professional fees and VAT.