Nature Restoration Fund rules arrive — but a quote won’t reserve capacity

Developers now have their clearest look yet at how the Nature Restoration Fund will work in practice — and one point jumps out immediately: getting a levy quote does not reserve capacity in an Environmental Delivery Plan.

New guidance published on 1 September by Defra, MHCLG and Natural England explains the route from checking an Environmental Delivery Plan, through a levy quote and formal request, to a commitment certificate, liability notice and payment. The mechanics matter because each EDP can cover only a defined amount of development.

The new capacity question

Every EDP must define its geographical area, the kinds and volume of development it can cover, the environmental impacts it addresses and its operating period. The Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 expressly builds that development limit into the system.

Once the maximum amount of development has been reached, further schemes cannot rely on that EDP unless it is amended to accommodate more development. Natural England says remaining capacity will be published on GOV.UK at regular intervals.

That makes the distinction between a quote and a commitment rather important. A developer can obtain multiple levy quotes, but the new levy guidance is explicit that a quote does not commit the developer and does not reserve capacity. Indeed, a quote will not be issued if the development would exceed the EDP’s remaining capacity.

This has echoes of the capacity issue Planning Geek recently reported with SANG at Farnham. The systems are different, but the practical lesson is similar: knowing a mitigation route exists is not the same as having secured a place within it.

So when is capacity actually reserved?

Before making a planning application, a developer may formally request to use the nature restoration levy. Natural England will check eligibility, the information supplied and whether sufficient EDP capacity remains.

If the request is accepted, Natural England issues a commitment certificate and updates the EDP capacity to show that capacity has been allocated to that development. The certificate should then accompany the planning application.

The commitment is not open-ended. If it is not submitted as part of a planning application within six months, it expires and the reserved capacity is released. A fresh quote and request can be made if capacity is still available.

What does the certificate change for the planning application?

The new Nature Restoration Fund guidance says that where an impact is covered by an EDP and the applicant has a valid commitment, the LPA does not deal with that covered impact through the usual project-level environmental obligation.

That needs careful wording for Habitats Regulations cases. It does not mean Appropriate Assessment disappears from planning law. Rather, where the statutory EDP disapplication applies to a particular covered impact, that impact is disregarded for the relevant Habitats Regulations obligation. Other impacts not covered by the EDP must still be assessed in the normal way.

So a project affecting a protected site in more than one way could still require a Habitats Regulations Assessment for the impacts left outside the EDP, even though an EDP deals with another impact strategically.

BNG remains separate

The government also makes an important distinction with biodiversity net gain. BNG and the Nature Restoration Fund are separate policies. Mandatory BNG and the off-site biodiversity-unit market are not replaced by an EDP or the nature restoration levy.

From commitment to liability notice

After planning permission is granted, someone normally has to assume liability for the whole relevant development before it begins. Natural England then calculates the levy and issues a liability notice setting out the amount, inflation adjustment, payment dates and any instalment arrangement.

The levy is indexed using the RICS CIL Index. The government guidance describes a two-stage adjustment: first from the charging schedule to the point liability arises, and again for later-year payments.

Once liability is assumed or imposed, Natural England registers it as a local land charge. If nobody assumes liability before commencement, liability can be imposed on owners of material interests and a surcharge applied.

For general consents, including permitted development, the timing differs. The guidance says liability arises when Natural England accepts the request, or where prior approval is required, when that approval is given.

Payment becomes a pre-commencement issue

The levy framework requires a statutory pre-commencement condition where permission is granted for development using the levy. Before development can begin, the levy must be paid in full or, where an instalment plan applies, the first instalment must be paid.

Natural England can apply surcharges and take enforcement action for failures under the levy regime. Once payment is made, it tells the planning authority and developer that the payment condition has been met. The local land charge is removed once the levy is fully discharged.

The detailed levy regulations are still going through the draft affirmative procedure in Parliament at the time of writing, so developers should check the final made instrument before relying on the detailed procedural rules.

What will developers actually have to do?

• Check whether the development and its environmental impact fall within an EDP
• Get a levy quote — while remembering that the quote reserves no capacity
• Request to use the EDP and secure a commitment certificate
• Submit the certificate with the planning application where required
• Assume levy liability and deal with the liability notice
• Pay the levy, or first instalment, before commencement

The real shift is that the Nature Restoration Fund is becoming a process developers can plan around rather than simply a policy concept. But finite EDP capacity means timing may matter almost as much as price.

Created: 2nd September 2026 — Nature Restoration Fund