Claiming CIL exemptions or relief

CIL reliefs and exemptions are not automatic. The relevant claim generally needs to be made, and the authority’s decision obtained where the regulations require it, before the chargeable development starts. Starting first can prevent relief being obtained.

The conditions after approval are different for each regime. A whole self-build home has a three-year principal-residence requirement, a residential annexe has its own three-year clawback events, charitable and social housing relief have separate disqualifying-event rules, and a qualifying residential extension does not carry the same three-year sale or occupation condition.

Check out our popular frequently answered questions page.

See our CIL process guide for the current sequence of forms, reliefs and commencement steps.

Self Build Exemption for CIL

Charitable Relief

Some types of charitable development are entitled to relief from CIL. This is not automatic and must be applied for.

A charitable institution which owns a material interest in the land will get full relief from their share of the liability where the chargeable development will be used ‘wholly, or mainly, for charitable purposes’ (whether of the claimant or of the claimant and other charitable institutions) and they meet the requirements of Regulation 43. More information is available on the Government website here.

An empty building is not automatically entitled to mandatory charitable relief merely because a charity owns it. Mandatory relief turns on the intended charitable use and the detailed occupation or control requirements in the Regulations. A separate discretionary charitable investment relief may be available where the charging authority has adopted a policy for it.

Mandatory charitable relief is subject to the detailed conditions in the Regulations, including the claimant’s material interest and the charitable use of the development. Subsidy control can also be relevant, so a complex or mixed charitable scheme should be checked against the current rules rather than relying on the old State Aid terminology.

You can apply for Charitable Relief via Form 10.

Social Housing Relief

Social Housing Relief is a mandatory relief from the levy which is available for those dwellings and communal areas that are either let in specified tenancies by a private registered provider of social housing, or a registered social landlord, or a local housing authority, or are occupied under specified shared ownership arrangements. Subject to meeting specific conditions, Social Housing Relief can also be applied to discounted rental properties provided by bodies which are neither a local authority nor a private registered provider.

To qualify for social housing relief, the claimant must own a material interest in the relevant land and have assumed liability to pay the levy for the whole chargeable development.

Mandatory social housing relief can also apply to dwellings where the first and subsequent sales are for no more than 70% of their market value (“First Homes”). To be eligible, a planning obligation must be entered into prior to the first sale of the dwelling designed to ensure that any subsequent sale of the dwelling is for no more than 70 percent of its market value. Regulation 49 (as amended by the 2015 Regulations and the 2020 (No. 2) Regulations) defines where social housing relief applies.

When applying for relief, a claimant must provide evidence that the chargeable development qualifies for social housing relief. The Regulations provide that dwellings no longer meeting these requirements must pay the levy.

Further details on when Social Housing Relief applies are in the government CIL guidance. Our CIL social housing relief guide explains the qualifying routes, First Homes, Form 10 and the clawback rules in more detail.

You can apply for Social Housing Relief via Form 10.

Exceptional circumstances relief

A charging authority may choose to offer exceptional circumstances relief where paying the full CIL charge would have an unacceptable impact on the viability of a particular development. It is not available automatically: the authority must first have published a notice saying that it will consider this relief.

A section 106 agreement must exist in relation to the permission, the viability case must satisfy the authority, and the claim must be made before development starts. The current claim form is Form 11. Even where the authority offers the relief, each case is decided individually and the authority has discretion whether to grant all, part or none of the liability. See the current government CIL guidance.

Don’t forget!

It is important that you don’t begin work until you submit your application for exemption and you receive notice from the local authority with a decision. If you start any work, including digging foundations, your application for exemption will be refused.

After relief or exemption has been granted, check whether a Commencement Notice is required. A whole self-build home, residential annexe, charitable relief and social housing relief require one before commencement; a residential extension exemption does not. Since the 2019 amendments, missing a required Commencement Notice generally leads to a surcharge of 20% of the amount that would otherwise have been payable, capped at £2,500, rather than automatically cancelling relief already granted.

Starting development before the relief or exemption itself has been obtained is different and can prevent the claim succeeding at all. The sequence therefore matters.

The CIL appeal routes are narrow and depend on the decision being challenged. Regulation 116A covers the specific question whether a residential annexe is wholly within the curtilage of the main dwelling. Regulation 116B covers the amount of a self-build housing exemption. Other relief decisions have their own routes and grounds. The deadlines are short, and commencement can invalidate several of them. Our guide to CIL appeals sets them out in full.

Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL)

CIL page updated: 30th August 2026