CIL FAQ

A handy CIL FAQ. CIL is a potentially very expensive charge that can make or break a development. If your local authority has introduced it, then you must account for the costs before agreeing to purchase the land or property. Here at Planning Geek, we aim to remove some of the confusion surrounding CIL by answering many of the most common questions or in other words a CIL FAQ. Book a Zoom session with Ian if you are confused or need help. His advice could save you thousands! See our CIL process guide for the current sequence of notices, exemptions and commencement steps.

1. What is the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL)

The Community Infrastructure Levy is a levy which some local authorities will charge on developments. The money raised will go towards the costs of infrastructure projects within the local authorities such as schools, transport improvements and GP Practices. The levy was introduced by the Government through the Planning Act 2008 and the CIL Regulations 2010, which have been amended repeatedly. The Regulations were amended again for England with effect from 1 May 2025, so always use the current legislation and current government guidance rather than an old consolidated summary. It is a development contribution and applies to most new development, including individual building projects. It is a legally enforceable levy which is shown as a land charge on the local land charges register. Please refer to this page on the Government website which may supersede any information on this page. 

2. Does my local authority have CIL?

It depends where the development is. CIL does not apply in Scotland or Northern Ireland and only applies in parts of Wales. In England the government said in June 2026 that over half of local planning authorities now charge CIL, so a substantial minority still do not. Our Who charges CIL? guide lists the English charging areas we have identified, including legacy charging-schedule areas after local government reorganisation. Always confirm the current charging schedule and site boundary with the authority before relying on a rate.

3. Which developments are liable for CIL?

A development is potentially within CIL where it is chargeable development and either includes at least 100 m² of new-build gross internal area, or comprises one or more dwellings. A dwelling can therefore be within the CIL regime even where the amount of new-build floorspace is below 100 m², or where a conversion creates a dwelling without adding new floorspace.

Being within the CIL regime does not necessarily mean money will be payable. A nil charging rate, existing-building deductions, an exemption or a relief may reduce the charge to zero.

4. Are there any reasons why a development might not be liable for CIL?

There are several different reasons why development may be outside CIL liability, exempt or relieved, or simply produce a zero charge. They should not be treated as the same thing.

• Minor development with less than 100 m² of new-build floorspace is exempt unless the chargeable development comprises one or more dwellings
• Regulation 6 excludes certain buildings into which people do not normally go, or go only intermittently to inspect or maintain fixed plant or machinery
• The subdivision of a building previously used as a single dwellinghouse into two or more separate dwellinghouses is excluded by regulation 6(1)(d)
• Certain works to an existing building which require planning permission only because of section 55(2A) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 are excluded by regulation 6(1)(c)
• A charging schedule may set a nil rate for a particular use or area
• Qualifying charitable development can obtain charitable relief where the statutory conditions and procedure are met
• Qualifying dwellings and communal development can obtain social housing relief where a valid claim is made and relief is granted
• Qualifying self-build housing can obtain the self-build exemption, subject to the claim, commencement and clawback rules
• A qualifying residential annexe can obtain the annexe exemption where the main-dwelling, curtilage, ownership and procedural requirements are met
• A qualifying residential extension can obtain the extension exemption; extensions with less than 100 m² of new build may already fall within the minor-development exemption
• Existing-building deductions under Schedule 1 can reduce the calculated charge, sometimes to zero, but they do not make the development itself exempt
• If the final calculated chargeable amount is less than £50, Schedule 1 treats it as zero

Do not assume that ‘exempt’ means ‘no paperwork’. In a CIL area Form 1 will normally be needed with a planning application, and specific exemptions and reliefs have their own claim forms and deadlines. The consequence of a missed form depends on which form and which relief is involved: some mistakes prevent an exemption being obtained, while others lead to a surcharge. Follow the CIL process for the route that applies to your development.

Existing floorspace can reduce CIL, but do not assume that every physical loft or storage area is automatically deductible. The space must first count as gross internal area (GIA), and the relevant existing building must separately satisfy the statutory in-use test. A 2026 VOA appeal accepted one loft area with permanent stair access but rejected three hatch-accessed storage areas; see our CIL loft floorspace appeal analysis.

6. Is CIL payable on affordable homes?

Not automatically. Calling a home “affordable housing” does not by itself remove CIL. Our CIL social housing relief guide explains the qualifying routes in detail. Social housing relief applies where the dwelling or qualifying communal development satisfies the statutory conditions in regulation 49, or where discretionary social housing relief under regulation 49A has been made available and its conditions are met. A valid claim must be made and the relief granted through the CIL procedure.

Two forms of relief apply to affordable housing:

• Mandatory Social Housing Relief applies where dwellings meet one of the qualifying conditions set out in the CIL Regulations. Between them these cover social rented, affordable rented and shared ownership homes, and First Homes. Each route has its own conditions, and most require a planning obligation controlling the price on any later sale
• Discretionary Social Housing Relief can apply to qualifying discounted market housing, but only where the charging authority has made that relief available and the regulation 49A conditions are met

7. Is CIL payable on First Homes?

First Homes can qualify for mandatory social housing relief, but the relief is not automatic. Regulation 49 includes an England-only discounted-sale condition where the first sale is for no more than 70% of market value and a planning obligation is entered into to control subsequent sales on the same basis.

A valid social housing relief claim still has to be made and granted. The label “First Home” on its own is not a substitute for satisfying the statutory conditions and CIL procedure.

8. Can I claim relief from CIL?

Depending on the circumstances, the following forms of relief may be available:

• mandatory charitable relief
• discretionary charitable relief
• mandatory social housing relief
• discretionary social housing relief
• exceptional circumstances relief

Claims for charitable relief or social housing relief should be submitted on Form 10: Charitable and/or Social Housing Relief Claim.

Claims for exceptional circumstances relief should be submitted on Form 11: Exceptional Circumstances Relief Claim.

Where a development originally receiving charitable or social housing relief from CIL has, or is intended to be, altered in a way which changes the extent of the relief previously granted, then a further exemption claim must be made on Form 12: Further Charitable and/or Social Housing Relief Claim.

9. Do I have to claim my exemption before I start work?

Yes, and this is the single most expensive mistake people make with CIL.

For the self-build home, residential annexe and residential extension exemptions you must apply to the collecting authority and receive written confirmation that the exemption has been granted before development commences. A whole self-build home and an annexe also require a Commencement Notice before work starts. A qualifying residential extension is expressly excluded from that Commencement Notice requirement. Where a notice is required but is missed after an exemption has already been granted, the post-2019 rules provide for a surcharge rather than automatically cancelling the exemption.

Getting planning permission retrospectively, after work has already begun, can mean an exemption cannot be obtained either.

The government accepted in June 2026 that householders have been caught out by exactly this, and plans to consult on changing the rules. Nothing has changed yet, so follow the current procedure to the letter. See our pages on CIL exemptions and reliefs and the self-build exemption.

11. Outline planning granted before CIL is adopted? 

If outline permission is granted before a CIL charging schedule is adopted but the details don’t come until after the charging schedule is adopted, can CIL be collected following granting consent on the details?

Approval of reserved matters under an outline permission granted before the charging authority’s CIL schedule took effect does not, by itself, turn the original permission into a CIL-liable permission. Regulation 128 looks to whether the charging authority had a charging schedule in effect when the planning permission was granted.

Again, be careful if a later section 73 permission is involved. Schedule 1 contains separate rules for pre-CIL permissions amended after CIL has come into effect.

12. What is lawful use for claiming relief for in-use buildings. 

Existing-building floorspace can reduce the CIL calculation, but there are two separate questions: whether the building is a relevant building, and whether it is an in-use building.

A relevant building must be situated on the relevant land on the day planning permission first permits the chargeable development. A building demolished before that date is not a relevant building for the standard Schedule 1 calculation.

For the in-use test, the building must contain a part that was in actual lawful use for a continuous period of at least six months within the preceding three years. A use being lawful on paper is not enough if it was not genuinely being carried on. That distinction comes from Hourhope.

13. When is a building in use? 

The building must contain a part that has been in actual lawful use for a continuous period of at least six months within the three years ending on the day planning permission first permits the chargeable development.

For a non-phased outline permission, that first-permits date is the final approval of the last reserved matter. A phased permission is dealt with phase by phase under regulation 8: depending on the type of phase, the trigger can be the last reserved matter, an agreed pre-commencement-condition approval, or the grant of permission where there is no relevant pre-commencement condition. For most other permissions the starting point is the date permission is granted.

A building is in use for CIL purposes when the lawful use is being actively carried on.

This follows the High Court judgement of R (oao Hourhope Ltd) v Shropshire Council [2015] EWHC 518 (Admin), which said that the building must actually be used for its lawful use not just that the building has a lawful use which could be carried on.

Whether a building is in use at any time depends on all the information and evidence of what activities take place and what the intentions of the persons using the building are.  The amount of activity that you must prove will depend on the type of use and whether the use has stopped depends on the length of time, and reasons for, the break in use and the intentions of the property users.

If planning permission is being sought in a CIL area, check the first-permits date early and preserve evidence of the qualifying use. Waiting until the Liability Notice arrives can be too late to reconstruct a weak evidence trail.

14. Is CIL payable on parts of a building that people do not normally go in?

Yes, for example a plant room within an otherwise chargeable building is not excluded merely because people enter it only intermittently. The exception for a building into which people do not normally go applies to the building as a whole, not individual rooms within it.

Lofts and eaves need a separate GIA check. Do not assume that roof space counts simply because the floors below are residential. The question is whether the area itself forms part of the building’s gross internal area on the applicable measurement basis. See question 5 above and our CIL loft floorspace appeal analysis.

15. Will a residential annex in my garden be liable for CIL?

A qualifying residential annexe can be exempt, but simply building it at your home is not enough. You must own a material interest in the main dwelling, occupy that dwelling as your sole or main residence, and the annexe must be wholly within its curtilage and comprise one new dwelling. The exemption must be claimed and granted before the chargeable development starts.

The annexe has a three-year clawback period beginning with the date of its compliance certificate. During that period the exemption can be withdrawn if the main dwelling is used for anything other than as a single dwelling, the annexe is let, or the main dwelling and annexe are sold other than at the same time to the same person.

16. Are roof terraces or balconies subject to CIL?

No. External balconies and roof terraces will not be liable for CIL

17. Are car parks subject to CIL?

Enclosed or underground parking can form part of a building’s gross internal area and can therefore enter the CIL calculation. Open surface parking does not itself create chargeable building floorspace. Whether any CIL is actually payable still depends on the charging schedule, the wider development and the Schedule 1 calculation.

18. Will a change of use from commercial to residential or office to resi be CIL liable?

Our CIL change of use guide explains conversions in detail. A change of use that creates one or more dwellings is potentially within the CIL regime even where no new floorspace is created, and permitted development rights do not themselves remove CIL liability. The actual charge may nevertheless be zero where qualifying existing floorspace can be deducted under the six-in-36-month in-use rules, or where the charging schedule sets a nil rate. An empty commercial building therefore needs particular care: do not assume either that the conversion is automatically charged or automatically free of CIL.

19. Where buildings are redeveloped will their floorspace be deducted from the final floorspace for CIL?

Potentially, but it is not simply a case of subtracting the whole old building from the whole new building. For England the current calculation is in Schedule 1 to the CIL Regulations.

Qualifying parts of in-use buildings which are to be demolished can enter the E deduction. Retained parts can enter the K_R deduction where the relevant Schedule 1 conditions are met. The building therefore has to be assessed part by part against the statutory definitions and the available evidence; the deductions may reduce the charge substantially or to zero.

20. If I convert a detached dwelling into two semi-detached dwellings or a house into two flats will I pay CIL?

The subdivision itself is excluded from CIL. Regulation 6(1)(d) says that changing a building previously used as a single dwellinghouse into two or more separate dwellinghouses is not treated as development for CIL liability.

If the same project also includes separate chargeable new-build floorspace, that element must be considered on its own facts. The six-in-36 rule is not a condition of the subdivision exclusion; it matters where existing-building floorspace is being used in the Schedule 1 calculation for other chargeable development.

21. How long does a building have to be vacant before the floorspace can no longer be offset against CIL?

There is no single rule saying a building becomes unusable for CIL after a fixed number of vacant months. The test looks backwards from the day planning permission first permits the chargeable development: an in-use building must contain a part that was in actual lawful use for one continuous period of at least six months within that three-year window.

A building can therefore be vacant on the first-permits date and still qualify if the required six-month period remains within the preceding three years. Once the three-year window no longer contains a qualifying continuous six-month period, it cannot qualify as an in-use building on that basis. Schedule 1 has a separate, narrower retained-building rule which does not depend on the in-use definition.

22. What if only a small part of a building to be demolished has been in use over the last 6 months?

If a relevant building contains a part that has been in lawful use for a continuous period of at least six months within the three years ending on the day planning permission first permits the development, the building can qualify as an in-use building. That is only the gateway to the deduction.

It does not follow that every square metre in the building is automatically deducted. Schedule 1 then identifies which retained parts can enter the K_R deduction and which parts of an in-use building to be demolished can enter E. The authority can also deem an area to be zero where it does not have sufficient-quality information to establish the relevant part or its GIA. Our CIL existing building guide explains the full calculation and evidence rules.

23. I want to convert my barn which is not in residential use at the moment into a dwelling, will I have to pay CIL?

A barn conversion that creates a dwelling is potentially chargeable development even if it adds no new floorspace. If the existing barn qualifies as an in-use building under the six-in-36-month rule, its qualifying floorspace can be brought into the CIL calculation and may reduce the net charge to zero. The result therefore depends on the actual lawful-use evidence, the floorspace calculation and the charging schedule; it is not a blanket exemption for barn conversions.

24. Is CIL liable on a listed building or within the curtilage of one?

There is no general CIL exemption simply because a building is listed or development lies within the curtilage of a listed building. The normal CIL rules still apply to any chargeable development, subject to the charging schedule, existing-building calculation and any exemption or relief that is otherwise available.

25. When is a liability notice issued?

The collecting authority must issue a Liability Notice as soon as practicable after planning permission first permits the development. For a non-phased outline permission that is normally the final approval of the last reserved matter. Phased permissions have their own first-permits rules for each phase.

A revised Liability Notice must be issued where the chargeable amount, relevant exemption or relief particulars, or applicable instalment arrangements change, and the authority also has a wider power to revise a notice at any time. Surcharges do not by themselves require a new Liability Notice: they are included in the amount stated in the Demand Notice.

26. When is a demand notice issued?

A Demand Notice does not have to wait for the physical start on site. The collecting authority must serve one on each person liable to pay CIL, and it states either the intended commencement date from a valid Commencement Notice or any deemed commencement date determined by the authority, together with the amount payable and the due date or instalments.

If the authority later changes the commencement date, amount payable or instalment particulars, it must serve a revised Demand Notice. A Notice of Chargeable Development is a different document used for development under a general consent; it is not proof that the development has commenced.

27. When is CIL payment due?

Where someone has assumed liability, the authority has received a valid Commencement Notice and no deemed commencement date has been determined, CIL is payable under any applicable instalment policy. If no instalment policy applies, regulation 70 normally makes the full amount due 60 days from the intended commencement date. 

However: 

• Where no-one has assumed liability but a commencement notice has been received, payment is due immediately upon commencement
• Where the Council has determined a ‘deemed commencement’ date (because no valid Commencement Notice was provided), payment is due on the deemed commencement date
• There are also special provisions under Regulation 71 where the Council has to transfer liability to the land owners or where charitable or social housing relief has been granted and a ‘disqualifying event’ has taken place. These will be unusual events

28. What classes as commencement? 

For CIL, regulation 7 treats development as commencing on the earliest date a material operation begins on the relevant land. Our CIL commencement guide explains how that test works where earlier permissions or site works are involved. The definition comes from section 56(4) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and includes work of construction in the course of erecting a building, demolition, digging a foundation trench, laying specified underground mains or pipes to foundations, operations in the course of constructing a road, and a material change in the use of land.

The operation still has to be part of the chargeable development. Work carried out under another permission or unrelated works on the same site do not automatically commence the later CIL development.

29. Who is liable to pay the levy?

A person can formally assume liability for the chargeable development before it starts, and that person becomes liable on commencement. If nobody has assumed liability when the development commences, regulation 33 normally apportions default liability between the material interests in the relevant land. Ownership therefore matters most acutely where the statutory assumption-of-liability procedure has not been used.

30. How is the levy paid?

CIL rates are expressed in pounds per square metre, but the amount payable is calculated under regulation 40 and, in England, Schedule 1. It is not always just the physical increase in floorspace: the calculation can include different charging rates, indexation, retained and demolished existing-building areas and special rules for amended or phased permissions.

CIL is normally paid in money to the collecting authority. The Regulations also allow payment in kind through land or infrastructure where the statutory conditions are met and the charging authority has chosen to make the relevant arrangements available.

31. Is VAT applied to CIL charges?

No VAT is added to the CIL charge. HMRC’s current guidance says CIL is outside the scope of VAT because the local authority is not making a direct supply of goods or services to the developer in return for the levy. That is technically different from saying the levy is VAT-exempt.

32. How will proposed levy rates respond to factors such as inflation?

In calculating individual charges for the levy, charging authorities will be required to apply an annually updated index of inflation to keep the levy responsive to market conditions. Therefore the actual CIL rate might be considerably higher than the published rate.

33. What is the CIL annual indexation notice?

Indexation is built into the statutory chargeable-amount calculation. For a given CIL rate, Schedule 1 broadly applies the rate to the deemed net area chargeable at that rate and then applies the relevant index figures for the year planning permission was granted and the year the charging schedule took effect. The deemed net area is itself calculated under Schedule 1, including any qualifying existing-building deductions.

          R x A x I^P
I^c

Where:

• R is the CIL rate in £/sqm
• A is the deemed net area chargeable at the relevant rate, calculated under Schedule 1
• I^P is the applicable index figure for the year in which planning permission was granted
• I^c is the applicable index figure for the year in which the relevant charging schedule started operation

For permissions granted before 1 January 2020 the relevant historic BCIS index rules apply. For permissions granted on or after 1 January 2020 the RICS CIL Index is used. For an outline permission, current government guidance confirms that the Ip figure is the year in which the outline permission itself was granted, irrespective of when the last reserved matters are approved or whether the permission is phased.

34. How is the levy collected?

The Liability Notice records the chargeable amount after planning permission first permits the development. The Demand Notice then tells each liable person what is payable and when, using the intended or deemed commencement date and any applicable instalment policy.

Payment is made to the collecting authority. How CIL receipts are then applied and reported is governed by the separate spending, neighbourhood-funding and infrastructure-funding-statement provisions of the Regulations; it is not the same mechanism as a project-specific section 106 contribution.

35. Can CIL be paid in instalments?

A charging authority may publish an instalment policy, but it is not required to offer one. Where a valid instalment policy applies, the timing and percentages are set locally. If there is no applicable instalment policy, the default payment rules in the Regulations apply. Always check the authority’s current policy before commencement, because procedural defaults can also remove the benefit of instalments.

36. Can I transfer my CIL liability?

Prior to commencement of development an assumption of liability can be withdrawn or transferred at any time by using the relevant form below.

Once development commences, the assumption of liability can only be transferred and cannot be withdrawn. Once commencement occurs, CIL liability can be transferred any time up to the date the final payment is due.

If a landowner who has assumed liability to pay CIL subsequently wishes to withdraw or transfer their liability to someone else, due to selling the site for example, then the landowner will be responsible for completing the appropriate form and returning it to your local authority. The forms are available below.

• View and download (Form 3) Withdrawal of Liability form
• View and download (Form 4) Transfer of Liability form

If liability is not validly transferred, the person who previously assumed it remains liable. Do not assume that a sale of the land transfers CIL liability automatically: use Form 4 and obtain the authority’s acknowledgement. Separate surcharges can arise where liability was never assumed before commencement or where other procedural requirements are missed.

37. Are there any surcharges and late interest?

Our CIL surcharge guide explains the penalties and late-payment interest in more detail. Surcharges and interest may be imposed as follows: 

• If the development has commenced and nobody has assumed liability – £50 on each liable person (regulation 80)
• Where the Council has to apportion liability between different owners – £500 on each owner (regulation 81)
• For failure to submit a Notice of Chargeable Development – 20% of the chargeable amount up to a maximum of £2,500 (regulation 82)
• For failure to submit a Commencement Notice – generally 20% of the chargeable amount up to £2,500; where specified reliefs or exemptions have already been granted, regulation 83 uses 20% of the notional chargeable amount, again capped at £2,500
• For failure to notify the Council of a disqualifying event within 14 days – 20% of the chargeable amount up to a maximum of £2,500 (regulation 84)
• For late payment – after 30 days the authority may impose 5% of the amount that was due or £200, whichever is greater; further 5% or £200 surcharges can be imposed after 6 and 12 months by reference to the amount still unpaid (regulation 85)
• Failure to comply with an information notice within 14 days – 20% of the chargeable amount up to a maximum of £1,000 (regulation 86)
• Late payment interest runs from the day after payment was due until the unpaid amount is received, at 2.5 percentage points above the Bank of England base rate (regulation 87)

38. Abatement

Abatement prevents CIL being inappropriately charged twice as a development changes. There are two related routes. Where a section 73 permission changes an existing chargeable development, levy already paid can be credited against the revised liability. Separately, regulation 74B can allow levy paid on a commenced but incomplete development to be credited against a completely new planning permission covering all or part of the same land. That second route must be requested before the alternative development commences. Once the original development is completed, the regulation 74B route is no longer available, and it does not create a refund merely because the later scheme has a lower liability.

Abatement depends on the statutory conditions being met and the correct request being made. For the regulation 74B route, the request must be made before development starts under the alternative permission and must include evidence of the levy already paid. If the conditions are not met, there is no credit to apply.

Where ownership or development responsibility has changed, keep the payment records and contractual paperwork. A later developer will need sufficient evidence to establish the amount previously paid and the basis on which any credit is claimed.

39. What is the 6 in 36 month rule? 

The six-in-36 rule is part of the existing-building test. A relevant building is an in-use building if it contains a part that has been in actual lawful use for a continuous period of at least six months within the three years ending on the day planning permission first permits the chargeable development.

The first-permits date matters. For a non-phased outline permission it is normally the final approval of the last reserved matter. Phased permissions are considered phase by phase under regulation 8. For development under a general consent, such as permitted development, planning permission normally first permits the development when the collecting authority receives the Notice of Chargeable Development.

Timing is everything. The building must still be a relevant building on the first-permits date, and the six-month use has to be both lawful and actually carried on. A planning permission or lawful-use entitlement on paper is not enough if the building was not genuinely being used.

You may need to prove this for example:

• Copies of leases
• Proof of use over 6 months
• Electricity/gas bills for the six month period
• Business rate/council tax bills and payments
• Where an informal arrangement exists, redacted bank statements should be submitted to show to show rent has been paid
• Confirmation from a letting agent/solicitor advising of the period of occupancy
• An affidavit/legal declaration

40. What if I think my CIL bill is wrong?

There is no ordinary planning appeal against a CIL charge. You cannot use the route you would use against a refused application, and the deadlines are short.

First, ask the collecting authority in writing to review how it calculated the charge. That request must be made within 28 days of the day the liability notice was issued. The review has to be carried out by someone senior to, and not involved in, the original calculation, and you should hear the outcome within 14 days.

If you are still not happy, you can then appeal to the Valuation Office Agency. That appeal must be made within 60 days of the day the liability notice stating the original chargeable amount was issued, and you can only use it if you asked for the review first.

Do not start work while any of this is running. A review or appeal lapses the moment development is commenced, so in practice you have to choose between starting on site and keeping your challenge alive. This was spelled out by the High Court in the Hourhope case above. There is a narrow exception where planning permission was granted after the development had already begun.

Separate appeals go to the Planning Inspectorate rather than the Valuation Office Agency, including appeals about surcharges and about the date the authority says you started. Our guide to CIL appeals sets out the grounds for each one, and where each deadline starts counting from.

If the underlying planning application is refused there is no CIL to pay, and you can appeal the refusal in the normal way: see our page on planning appeals.

41. What is the Mayoral CIL?

If you are building in Greater London there is a second CIL charge on top of the one your borough sets. It is set by the Mayor of London and it applies across Greater London.

The first Mayoral charging schedule, known as MCIL1, applied to permissions granted from 1 April 2012 until the end of March 2019. It was replaced by MCIL2, which took effect on 1 April 2019 and remains the current schedule. The Mayor now describes MCIL receipts as being used to repay the financing costs of the Elizabeth line. The published MCIL2 base rates are indexed each year, so the amount used in a liability calculation will normally be higher than the headline 2019 schedule rate.

Your borough works out and collects the Mayoral charge alongside its own, so you will not deal with the Mayor directly. The rates are indexed each year in the same way as borough CIL, and some uses, including most medical and education floorspace, are charged at nil. See our separate page on the Mayoral CIL.

42. What happens if I do not pay my CIL?

CIL is a legally enforceable debt and it is registered as a local land charge, so it does not quietly go away when the land is sold. The regulations give the collecting authority a long list of powers:

• surcharges and interest are added to whatever is outstanding
• a CIL stop notice can be served, which stops the development going any further until payment is made. The authority has to issue a warning notice first, and a copy is displayed on the land
• carrying on in breach of a CIL stop notice is a criminal offence. The fine has been unlimited since March 2015, and the court is directed to take account of any financial benefit gained from the breach
• the authority can apply to the magistrates’ court for a liability order, which opens the door to enforcement agents seizing and selling goods
• where at least £2,000 is outstanding, a charging order can be sought over a relevant interest in the land, and insolvency remedies may also be available
• as a last resort, where the debtor is an individual, the authority can ask the court to commit them to prison for up to three months

It is also a separate offence to knowingly or recklessly give the authority false or misleading information.

A useful warning on how long a CIL stop notice can remain available comes from Captain Lee Jones v Shropshire Council [2025] EWHC 365 (Admin). The High Court held that the six-year limitation period in section 9 of the Limitation Act 1980 does not prevent a collecting authority from issuing a CIL stop notice under regulation 90. A stop notice is an administrative enforcement step, not an “action” brought in a court to recover the debt.

That matters because regulation 97(3) separately prevents a new application for a liability order once six years have passed from the date the amount became due. Losing that court recovery route does not, by itself, remove the stop-notice power while the development remains incomplete. The council must still consider whether stopping the development is expedient, and a decision to use the power can be challenged on ordinary public-law grounds. Our CIL enforcement guide explains the warning notice, stop notice, liability-order and recovery routes together.

In June 2026 the government reminded councils that they have discretion over which of these steps to take and when, and that the regulations do not require them to escalate to forced sale or prosecution. See question 43.

43. Is the government changing the CIL rules?

Yes, although nothing has changed yet.

On 25 June 2026 the Minister of State for Housing and Planning wrote to every CIL charging authority in England. The letter confirmed that CIL is staying, and that the government remains committed to strengthening and improving it, with over half of local planning authorities now charging it.

It also said the government will consult on amending the CIL Regulations so that householders and self-builders who would have qualified for an exemption are not landed with unexpected bills because of a procedural error. At the time of writing that consultation has not been published, and the current rules still apply in full.

For people who have already been charged, the letter told councils three things. They keep discretion over what collection steps to take and when. Escalated action such as threats of forced sale or criminal proceedings is not something the regulations require. And a council can make a discretionary payment out of its own general funds in exceptional cases, where somebody would have qualified for an exemption but missed the procedure and now faces real hardship. That is not a refund and nobody is entitled to one, but it is worth raising if it applies to you.

44. Is there a minimum CIL charge?

Yes. If the calculation comes out at less than £50, the chargeable amount is treated as zero and nothing is payable. That is set out in Schedule 1 to the CIL Regulations.

Do not confuse this with the 100 square metre threshold in question 3. The threshold decides whether your development is caught at all. The £50 rule decides what happens once the sum has already been worked out.

Any other CIL FAQ?

If you have any other FAQ over and above these 44, please feel free to get in touch and we will do our best.

Book a Zoom session with Ian if you are confused or need help. His advice could save you thousands!

See our CIL process guide for the current sequence of notices, exemptions and commencement steps.

Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL)

Page Updated: 30th August 2026