Not every garden building needs planning permission. But what if you built a summer house that required planning permission, yet you never got it? This is a situation where property owners sometimes find themselves in and then learn about the so-called “4-year rule”, which has been replaced by the “10-year rule” in October 2023.  These rules are a part of the UK’s planning law and are used to simply describe time limits related to enforcement action. In this blog, we briefly cover what these rules are about and how they work in the context of summer houses.

What is the 4-year rule?

Previously, owners were safe from planning enforcement action in cases of unathorised development. This could be any garden building, like a summer house, that required planning permission but was built without one. If the building had been continuously in use for four years with no enforcement action taken against the owner during that period, no action could be taken after the time limit had passed.

Once the 4-year condition was met, owners were allowed to apply for a Certificate of Lawfulness, legalising the building. It’s important to note that to get the certificate, it’s required to prove that there was no deliberate concealment as well as no previous enforcement action.

What is the 10-year rule?

In October 2023, the planning law was updated to extend the time limit from 4 years to 10. This means that there’s a significantly longer time window for enforcement action. However, it’s good to know that for outbuildings such as summer houses, the four-year rule still applies for developments completed before April of 2023. Any build that was completed after April falls under the 10-year rule.

This means that if a summer house was built without planning permission and has been in use continuously – for 4 years before April 2023, 10 years if after – and no enforcement action has been taken, in most cases the local authority can’t order its removal.

How do I apply for a Lawful Development Certificate?

If you need to legalise your garden building, you need to apply for the Lawful Development Certificate. Here’s a short step-by-step guide on how to go about it:

1. Confirm eligibility: You can apply if your summer house has been built without planning permission and it has now passed the time limit (4 or 10 years, depending on the completion date).
2. Gather evidence: You need to provide evidence that clearly shows that the building was “substantially complete” before the time limit for enforcement expired. This could be dated photographs, utility bills, invoices or council tax records. You can also submit statutory records from neighbours as well as yourself, that confirm the continuous existence and use of the summer house.
3. Prepare application: You’ll find the application either in the Planning Portal or your local council’s website. The documents you likely need are: a completed form, location plan, plans or drawings of the summer house, a statement with an explanation on why the certificate should be granted and ownership details.
4. Pay the fee: The fee is about £293, but it may be different depending on your location.
5. Submit the application: Submit all documents via the Planning Portal or to your local planning authority.

Now all that’s left to do is to wait for the decision. This should take about 8 weeks. Should your application be refused, you have a legal right to appeal to the Planning Inspectorate.

Summary

Previously, the so-called 4-year rule allowed property owners to legalise their summer houses or extensions after four years of continuous use with no enforcement. As of today, the timeframe is ten years – a big change! Remember, if you’re not sure whether or not you need planning permission, it’s always better to be safe than sorry. Check with your local council and the planning authority if you have any doubts about whether or not the building you’re putting up requires planning permission. To get started, why not have a look at our helpful guide on summer house planning permission? You’ll find plenty of useful information and answers to some of the most frequently asked questions.