Planning permission cost has more than one part. There is the local planning authority’s application fee, and there may also be professional fees for survey, design, planning drawings and application preparation.
For a typical householder application in England, the Planning Portal lists the statutory application fee as £548 from 1 April 2026. Fees can change, and different application types have different charges, so the current fee should always be checked before submission.
Current fee guidance: Planning Portal.
The application fee is only one part of the planning cost
The statutory fee pays for the authority to process the application. It does not pay for the work required to design the proposal or prepare the submission.
Depending on the project, the wider planning-stage cost can include:
- measured survey or existing drawings;
- architectural design and option development;
- existing and proposed planning drawings;
- application preparation and submission;
- planning statements or specialist reports where required;
- heritage, arboricultural, ecology or other specialist input on more sensitive projects.
What if the project is permitted development?
If the work genuinely falls within permitted development rights, a full householder planning application may not be required. But you may still choose to apply for a lawful development certificate, and some forms of permitted development involve prior approval.
Those routes have their own statutory fees. See Planning permission or permitted development?
Why professional fees vary
A simple, well-defined proposal can be quicker to prepare than a project that needs several design options, sensitive planning judgement or additional supporting information.
The fee should reflect the actual work needed to reach a coherent submission rather than just the number of drawings.
Are Building Regulations included?
Not automatically. Planning and Building Regulations are separate stages. A planning application fee does not cover Building Control, technical drawings or structural engineering.
See What do Building Regulations drawings cost? and How much does a structural engineer cost?.
The useful way to budget
Separate the statutory application fee from the professional work needed to design and prepare the application. That makes it easier to understand what you are paying the council for, what you are paying your design team for and which specialist costs sit outside both.
If you are unsure which planning route applies to your home, start with your home.