Buying Land With Planning Permission: A 2026 UK Due Diligence Guide

Why buy land with planning permission?

Buying land with existing planning permission can save a buyer between 6 and 18 months of pre-application work and uncertainty. An unplanninged land purchase requires a buyer to:

• Appoint an architect or planning consultant.
• Commission pre-application advice from the LPA.
• Submit a planning application and wait for the statutory determination period (8 weeks for householder, 13 weeks for major).
• Absorb the application risk — a refusal is a significant loss of time and money.

A land purchase with planning permission already in place bypasses much of this. The buyer’s risk is reduced to confirming the existing permission is still valid and developable, which is a much smaller due-diligence exercise.

The primary statute governing the validity of planning permissions is the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. The substantive permissions regime is set out in the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 (the GPDO) for permitted development, and in the local development plan for full planning permission.

For the broader planning-permission context, see our Permitted Development Rights in 2026 guide and our householder planning permission guide.

The four due diligence checks

When buying land with planning permission, a buyer should carry out the following four due diligence checks before exchange of contracts:

1. Confirm the permission is still valid. Planning permissions lapse after 3 years if development has not begun (under section 91 of the TCPA 1990). The buyer must confirm that the development has either begun (in a meaningful way) or that the 3-year period has not yet expired. The LPA can confirm the status of an extant permission.
2. Confirm the permission is implementable. The permission may be subject to conditions that require further approval before development can begin (e.g. approval of reserved matters, discharge of planning conditions, or completion of a planning obligation under section 106). The buyer must identify these conditions and confirm they can be satisfied.
3. Confirm the permission is not subject to a current application to vary or remove conditions. A new application (under section 73 of the TCPA 1990) to vary or remove conditions may be in progress. The LPA can confirm whether any such application is pending.
4. Confirm the permission is consistent with the current local development plan. The local development plan may have changed since the permission was granted. A permission that was consistent with the plan at the time it was granted remains valid, but a buyer should be aware that subsequent planning applications (e.g. for amendments) will be determined against the current plan.

The standard searches undertaken by a buyer’s solicitor (Local Search, Drainage Search, Environmental Search, etc.) do not cover all of these points. The buyer (or their solicitor) must make a specific enquiry to the LPA to obtain a planning history report that confirms the current status of any extant permission.

The 3-year commencement rule

A full planning permission lapses after 3 years if development has not begun. The 3-year period runs from the date of the permission, not the date of any subsequent reserved matters approval or discharge of condition.

Development is treated as having “begun” for the purposes of section 91 of the TCPA 1990 when material operations have been carried out on the site. The definition of “material operations” is set out in section 56 of the TCPA 1990 and includes:

• Any work of construction in the course of the erection of a building.
• The demolition of a building.
• The digging of a trench that is to contain the foundations or part of the foundations of a building.
• The laying of any underground main or pipe to the foundations or part of the foundations of a building.
• Any operation in the course of laying out or constructing a road or part of a road.

In most cases, a material operation is the laying of foundations or the demolition of any existing building on the site. The LPA is the final arbiter of what constitutes a “material operation” for a particular site.

A buyer of land with an extant permission should confirm with the LPA that the 3-year period has not expired, or that development has begun in a way that constitutes material operations.

Reserved matters and outline permissions

A full planning permission is permission that approves the detailed design of a development. An outline planning permission is permission that approves the principle of a development but reserves some or all of the detailed matters (such as layout, scale, appearance, landscaping, and access) for later approval.

A land purchase with an outline permission in place requires the buyer to submit a reserved matters application before development can begin. The reserved matters application must be in the same general terms as the outline permission, and the LPA has 8 weeks (or 13 weeks for major development) to determine it.

The buyer should be aware that the reserved matters application is a fresh planning decision and that the LPA can impose further conditions. A land purchase with a full permission is therefore generally more attractive than one with an outline permission, because the full permission has greater certainty.

For the planning-application process, see our Bradford planning portal guide.

Section 106 planning obligations

A planning permission may be subject to a section 106 planning obligation — a legal agreement between the developer and the LPA that requires the developer to make contributions to local infrastructure or services. Typical contributions include:

• Affordable housing contributions.
• Education contributions (towards new school places).
• Highways and transport contributions.
• Public open space contributions.
• Healthcare contributions.

The buyer of land with an extant permission must understand which section 106 obligations are in place and whether they have been paid, partially paid, or are still outstanding. Outstanding section 106 obligations are typically transferred to the new owner on completion of the land purchase.

The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) is a separate charge introduced by the Community Infrastructure Levy Regulations 2010. CIL is a per-square-metre charge on new development, calculated by reference to the local CIL charging schedule. The buyer should also confirm whether any CIL is outstanding.

Section 73 applications to vary conditions

The buyer should be aware that the existing permission can be varied after the land purchase by submitting a section 73 application to vary or remove conditions. Section 73 applications are useful for:

• Amending the approved plans to accommodate design changes.
• Removing or amending conditions that have become unnecessary or impractical.
• Phasing the development to spread the build-out over time.

A section 73 application is a fresh planning decision and can be refused. The buyer should consider whether the existing permission can be implemented as granted, or whether a section 73 application is likely to be needed.

What if the permission has lapsed?

If the existing permission has lapsed (because the 3-year commencement period has expired), the buyer has two options:

1. Submit a fresh full planning application under section 62 of the TCPA 1990. This is the most common approach. The LPA will determine the new application against the current local development plan, which may have changed since the original permission was granted. The new application may be refused.
2. Submit a section 73 application to extend the time limit for implementing the existing permission. This is less common and is not always available. The LPA may agree to a time extension where the original permission was substantially implementable but the development was held up by technical issues or market conditions.

The buyer’s solicitor should advise on the most appropriate course of action for a specific site.

For a worked example of an LPA-specific planning process, see our Bradford planning portal guide or our Allerdale planning guide.

Next steps and resources

• Town and Country Planning Act 1990 — primary statute.
• Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 — the GPDO, for Permitted Development.
• Community Infrastructure Levy Regulations 2010 — CIL framework.
• Planning Portal — application forms and fee calculator.

Editorial note. This article is for guidance only and does not constitute regulated advice. Buying land with planning permission is a complex legal and financial transaction. The buyer’s solicitor and a planning consultant should be instructed to carry out the specific due diligence required for the transaction. For project-specific questions, consult a chartered town planner registered with the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI).