The £349 flat fee filing service.

What is a Certificate of Lawfulness?

Two types, both issued by your local planning authority under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990:

• Section 192, Proposed use or development. You're about to build and want written proof from the council that it would be lawful under permitted development. Useful before you start work; essential when your buyer's solicitor wants certainty before completion.
• Section 191, Existing use or development. Already built or in use, and you need to prove it was lawful retrospectively. Either (a) because the work was permitted development when it was done, or (b) because it has been in place long enough to be immune from enforcement. The immunity period depends on when the work was completed — our retrospective PP vs LDC page walks through the 4-year rule, the 10-year rule, and the 25 April 2024 change in detail.

Either way, the certificate lets you point a buyer's solicitor, a mortgage lender, or an insurer at a council issued document and say: this is settled, permanently. That's what indemnity insurance can't do, and what makes LDCs the clean answer when a sale is mid transaction.

When do you need one?

• Selling the house. Buyer's solicitor spots an extension, loft conversion or garden office and asks for proof it was lawful. This is by far the most common trigger for an LDC.
• Before you start work. You're planning a project under permitted development and want certainty before you pour money into groundworks. An s.192 gives you a council-signed yes.
• Mortgage or insurance. A lender or insurer asks for documentation of planning status before releasing funds or renewing cover.
• Boundary / neighbour disputes. A neighbour has written to complain or the council has sent an enforcement warning. An LDC can close the question before it escalates.

How much does a Certificate of Lawfulness cost?

£274 to the council for a proposed extension or loft (s.192) or £548 for a retrospective one (s.191). An outbuilding such as a garden office is £136 and £272. The fee is statutory, the same across every English council, and indexed each 1 April. Add whatever the drafter charges you: a planning consultant typically charges £600–£1,500 for the drafting work; an architect £800–£2,000. We charge £349 flat. Total with LDC Express: £623 proposed or £897 retrospective. See our honest cost breakdown vs other options.

How long does it take?

The council has 8 weeks by statute. Most councils decide within that window. We handle the case inside that clock and keep you updated in your dashboard.

What evidence do you need?

For s.192 (proposed): exact measurements of what you intend to build, six site photographs, an OS-licensed site location plan (about £10; we tell you where to buy one), and confirmation of the property's position in the road. Our intake form captures everything else needed to draft a complete application.

For s.191 (retrospective): documentary proof the development has been in place for the relevant period, dated photographs, utility bills, Council Tax records, contractor invoices, Building Regs completion certificates, insurance documents. Statutory declarations from neighbours also accepted.

Is it worth getting one?

If you're mid sale and the buyer's solicitor has asked for it, almost always yes. An LDC settles the question permanently. Indemnity insurance might cost a bit less but creates a recurring liability for every future transaction. And if the council pursues the underlying development for any reason, indemnity pays out but doesn't legalise the works; an LDC does.

If you're about to build under permitted development with no transaction pressure, optional but cheap insurance. £623 now is much less painful than £8,000 of groundworks that a neighbour's complaint turns into a refused retrospective application.

What if the council refuses?

Three options:

1. Accept our refund. You get your £349 service fee back in fulli. Be clear-eyed about one thing: indemnity insurance is not usually a fallback at this point, because the council now knows about the work and nearly every policy requires that it doesn't. That's the reason we screen the borderline cases out before anyone pays.
2. Appeal to the Planning Inspectorate. A second independent review by a planning inspector. Free to lodge but takes 3–12 months and your case needs to actually have merit.
3. Apply for full planning permission instead. If the project isn't permitted development, this is the proper route. Higher fee, longer timeline, but addresses genuine non-compliance.

We tell you which is most likely to work based on why the council refused.

Are you a law firm?

No. LDC Express is not a law firm or a planning consultancy in the regulated sense. We prepare and file planning paperwork, that's an administrative service. If you need legal advice on a sale, dispute, or enforcement action, talk to a solicitor; if you need planning-consultant-level advocacy on a complex case, we'll tell you up front at the intake stage.

The rules for your type of project

Whether your work is permitted development depends on which class it falls under, and each class has its own conditions. These pages set out what the rules actually say, so you can check your own project before you apply.

• Rear and side extensions, Class A. The 3 m and 4 m depth limits, measuring from the original rear wall, and the 50% curtilage cap.
• Loft conversions, Class B. The 40 m³ and 50 m³ volume allowance, why it is cumulative, and why internal measurements understate it.
• Garden offices and outbuildings, Class E. Height limits near a boundary, the incidental use test, and where a shower or kitchen takes the building outside the class.