Planning applications fees, which are nationally set, will increase on 6 December 2023. A user friendly guide to all current fees is provided below:
Please note: payment should be made via the Planning Portal (external link) rather than through Surrey Heath Borough Council.
Service charges
In addition to the statutory fee, the Planning Portal applies a service charge for processing payments for planning applications. The current service charge is £58.33+VAT for any planning application with a fee over £60.
In addition to the statutory fee, Surrey Heath applies will apply service charges. The following service charges (inclusive of VAT) were agreed by the Council’s Executive on the 13 February 2024. For a planning application these charges have been in effect since April 2024. For a lawful development certificate, the charges apply to any application received on or after 2 January 2025:
| Type | Fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Postal application charge | £100 | Required due to the additional scanning and manual inputting. |
| Email received application charge | £50 | Required as there is more manual inputting than a portal application. |
| Administrative charge for invalid major application | £225 one-off charge |
A charge will be applied when the application is first made invalid. This charge will also apply if an invalid application is withdrawn after notification that it is invalid (this charge will be deducted from any fee refund) |
| Administrative charge for invalid minor application - non- majors commercial/ new dwelling (s) | £150 one-off charge |
A charge will be applied when the application is first made invalid. This charge will also apply if an invalid application is withdrawn after notification that it is invalid (this charge will be deducted from any fee refund) |
| Administrative charge for invalid householder planning application, invalid lawful development certificate application and any other planning application (Nb. priors and non-material amendment applications are excluded from a charge) | £75 one-off charge |
A charge will be applied when the application is first made invalid. This charge will also apply if an invalid application is withdrawn after notification that it is invalid (this charge will be deducted from any fee refund |
| Administrative charge for returned and closed invalid application | 25% of planning application fee | Triggered after 6 weeks of inactivity (the Council’s Local Validation List states that an application may be returned if it not made valid within 6 weeks) |
To avoid a charge for an invalid planning application it is highly recommended that you consult the Council's Local Validation List prior to the submission of your application. These charges will only be waived in exceptional circumstances and any request should be in writing to development control.
In the event of a dispute over a service charge please refer to the Council’s complaints procedure.