What is the Community Infrastructure Levy

How to find out whether you need to pay the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) and which forms you need to send.

CIL allows local planning authorities to raise funds from developers and individuals who are undertaking building projects in their area.  This is a way of making sure that all relevant development contributes towards new infrastructure such as transport, open space, flood defences, greenspace, leisure centres and schools.

The CIL is charged per square metre on new developments, and applies to:

  • new dwellings of any size
  • any development where the internal area of a new building, extension or change of use exceeds 100 square metres

Some developments are exempt from paying.

CIL regulations at Arun came into force on 1 April 2020. All planning applications granted full planning permission after that date are subject to CIL.

Where CIL does not apply to a development, section 106 obligations will still apply just as before CIL was introduced.  All strategic development sites allocated within the Local Plan are required to pay section 106 rather than CIL.

For more information please see the government guidance on CIL.

CIL liability is held as a charge on land. If CIL is not paid you may have difficulty selling your land or property. For more info see CIL and Land Charges.

CIL is a type of developer contribution and will be used alongside section 106 and section 278 contributions.

When to send your forms

Applications for planning permission

When submitting a planning application, you must submit the CIL additional information form at the same time. This is used to see if you have to pay the CIL for your development.

This form is required for all planning, householder and reserved matters planning applications. You’ll need to fill out this form even if you do not need to pay.  Your planning application will be invalid without a fully completed form attached.

CIL form 1: additional information [pdf] 368KB

CIL form 1: guidance note [pdf] 368KB

 

CIL and permitted development

In cases where you are exercising permitted development rights you may still be liable to pay CIL.  For example:

  • a prior approval application for the conversion of offices to flats
  • an agricultural barn to residential use
  • where the development is more than 100 square metres of net additional area

To confirm whether your development is CIL liable it is still advisable that you complete CIL Form 1: additional information [pdf] 368KB and submit this to us at cil@arun.gov.uk.

If your development is CIL liable - before you commence development you must submit CIL form 5: notice of chargeable development [pdf] 302KB.

 

Forms to send if you do have to pay

  1. Once planning permission is granted you will receive a CIL liability notice – this tells you the amount you have to pay once you start your development. Estimate how much you will have to pay.

    If the chargeable amount is £0 due to an exemption from CIL being granted, you will still receive a liability notice showing a zero balance.

    If you do not agree with the liability notice

    You can request a review of the calculation of the chargeable amount set out in the liability notice. To do this you must submit your request for review in writing to cil@arun.gov.uk within 28 days of the date stated on the liability notice. It is advisable that your request is accompanied by written representations in connection with the review.

    A review request cannot be made:

    • once the relevant development has started
    • if you have submitted a claim for an exemption which has not been withdrawn
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  2. After receiving the liability notice, you must complete and submit CIL form 2: assumption of liability [pdf] 311KB and, if applicable, any forms to claim exemption for your development.

  3. Before starting work on your development, including site clearance and/or demolition, you must send us a CIL form 6: commencement notice [PDF] 283KB.

    You will lose the option to pay the charge in instalments and you may also incur a surcharge up to a maximum of £2,500 if you:

    • do not submit the commencement notice at least one clear working day before the date of commencement
    • start your development before we confirm we have received the commencement notice

    Please note that this form is different from any similar form required by building control or planning enforcement.

  4. When we receive your commencement notice, we will send you a demand notice and invoice (unless exemption granted), which confirms how much, when and how to pay.

    Amounts over £10,000 can be paid in instalments. For details of when instalment payments should be made please see our instalments policy in Arun CIL Charging Schedule January 2020[pdf] 1MB.

All completed forms should be emailed to cil@arun.gov.uk.

The complete list of CIL forms is available on the Planning Portal.

Who is responsible for paying

Landowners are liable to pay CIL, but anyone involved in a development may take on the liability to pay. In order to benefit from payment in instalments, someone must assume liability using CIL form 2: assumption of liability [pdf] 311KB prior to commencement.

Where no one has assumed liability, it will automatically default to the landowners and payment becomes due as soon as development commences.

Liability to pay the levy will also default to the landowners if we have been unable to recover the levy from the party that assumed liability, despite making all reasonable efforts.

Withdraw or transfer liability

Before commencement

If you are liable to pay the CIL, you may withdraw or transfer liability at any time before commencement by using one of the below forms:

CIL form 3: withdrawal of assumption of liability [pdf] 278KB

CIL form 4: transfer of assumed liability [pdf] 295KB

Completed forms should be emailed to cil@arun.gov.uk

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After commencement

You cannot withdraw liability – instead you must transfer liability to another person by submitting a transfer of liability form.

CIL form 4: transfer of assumed liability [pdf] 295KB

Completed forms should be emailed to cil@arun.gov.uk

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If you fail to pay

Failure to pay CIL on time will result in late payment interest at 2.5% above the Bank of England base rate.

Continued failure to pay CIL will result in an additional late payment surcharge.

We can also take enforcement action to collect outstanding CIL charges - in the most severe cases this may include stopping development on site or taking court action. 

Full details of the action we can take can be found in the CIL Regulations 2010 (as amended)

Appeals

If your development is liable for CIL, payment is mandatory. However, you can appeal to the government’s Valuation Office Agency (VOA) if you think a mistake has been made in our calculations.

For further information see CIL appeals guidance - gov.uk

Appeals relating to surcharges, commencement and stop notices are dealt with by the Planning Inspectorate.

For further information see CIL enforcement notice appeals guidance – gov.uk

Penalties

CIL involves a number of stages, which are legal processes that must be complied with.  Failure to do so could result in penalties such as surcharges (up to £2,500) and removal of any exemptions or instalments granted to you.

List of surcharges
  • £50 on each person liable to pay CIL for failure to assume liability
  • £500 for each material interest where liability has to be apportioned
  • 20% or £2,500 of the chargeable amount, whichever is the lower amount, for failure to submit a notice of chargeable development
  • 20% or £2,500 of the chargeable amount, whichever is the lower amount, for failure to submit a commencement notice
  • 20% or £2,500 of the chargeable amount, whichever is the lower amount, for failure to notify us of a disqualifying event
  • 20% or £1,000 of the relevant amount, whichever is the lower amount, for failure to comply with an information notice
  • 5% or £200, whichever is the greater amount, on the outstanding liability for late payment after the end of 30 days after the liability is due, further increasing if still outstanding after 6 months and after 12 months
  • failure to pay CIL on time will result in late payment interest at 2.5% above the Bank of England base rate
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CIL and Land Charges

Once a liability notice has been issued, the CIL charge will be registered on the Land Charges Register.

The CIL charge will be removed from the Land Charges Register once we have received the CIL payment.

However, if an exemption has been granted for a residential extension, the CIL charge will be removed from the Land Charges Register once commencement has been confirmed. For other types of exemption and relief, the CIL charge will remain on the Land Charges Register for 3 or 7 years, depending on what exemption has been granted.  In the event a disqualifying event occurs, the CIL charge will be removed when the time period lapses.

In the event a permission is not built out, the CIL charge will be removed from the Land Charges Register upon expiry of the planning permission.