Hackney community infrastructure levy

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What is CIL?

The Council is now charging a local community infrastructure levy (CIL) in addition to the Mayoral CIL on all applicable development located in Hackney.

The community infrastructure levy (CIL) allows local authorities in England and Wales to fund infrastructure by charging on new developments in their area. The money generated through CIL can be used to support growth by helping to pay for a wide range of infrastructure including parks, schools, community facilities, health facilities and leisure centres.

Section 106 agreements (also known as planning contributions) will remain in place alongside CIL but will be limited to:

site specific financial contributions required to mitigate the impact of development and those that fall outside of the CIL Regulation 123 list (the list which specifies what Hackney CIL will be spent on and;
non-financial obligations such as affordable housing

The Mayor of London also levies a CIL to help pay for Crossrail. The Mayor of London started charging a CIL for decisions made on planning applications from 1 April 2012. The Council collects the Mayor of London’s CIL on the Mayor’s behalf.

When is CIL payable?

The Hackney and London Mayoral CIL rates will be applicable to development which:

  • consists of buildings to which people usually go; it does not apply to buildings to which people only go to on an occasional basis e.g. to inspect plant, or development that does not consist of buildings;
  • the net additional increase in floorspace (gross internal area) of most developments (with some exceptions) is at least 100 sqm or it involves creating one or more dwellings, even where this is below 100 sqm;
  • the conversion of a building that is no longer in lawful use; and
  • the use is identified in Hackney’s CIL charging schedule as incurring a charge

All applications made for planning permission must be accompanied by Form 0: CIL questions otherwise they will not be considered valid, however:

Development will not normally be accessed as being liable for CIL if:

  • it is development of less than 100 square metres – unless this is a whole dwelling, in which case the levy is payable
  • it involves only change of use, conversion or subdivision of, or creation of mezzanine floors within, a building which has been in lawful use for at least six months in the 36 months (3 years) prior to the development being permitted and does not create any new build floorspace; or
  • it is for a building into which people do not normally go, or go only intermittently for the purpose of inspecting or maintaining fixed plant or machinery; or
  • it is for a structure which is not a building, such as pylons or wind turbines; or
  • it is permitted by a ‘general consent’ (including permitted development) that commenced before 6 April 2013; or
  • it is for and occupied by a charity for charitable purposes and a claim for charitable relief is made and accepted before development commences; or
  • it is for social housing and a claim for social housing relief is made and accepted before development commences
  • it is for houses, flats, residential annexes and residential extensions which are built by ‘self- builders’ and a claim for relief is made and accepted before development commences
  • it is a building for which planning permission was granted for a limited period
  • it is a specified type of development which the charging authority has determined should be subject to a ‘zero’ rate and specified as such in the Hackney and/or Mayoral charging schedules
  • it is a vacant building brought back into the same use, in certain circumstances (see Regulation 40 of the CIL Regulations)
  • the levy liability is calculated to be less than £50, the chargeable amount is deemed to be zero so no levy is due

Mezzanine floors shall not be liable for the levy as they do not constitute development, provided that works to install the floors affect only the interior of the building. However, such floors, provided that they increase the floorspace of the building by over 200 square metres and are used for the retail sale of goods other than hot food, will still require planning permission.

Please note this is an update on the information contained within the charging schedule and the Council will update the advice in the charging schedule when the charging schedule is reviewed.

The CIL levy is calculated according to the amount of additional internal floorspace a new development will produce.

How much is the CIL?

The Mayoral CIL is charged at £35/sqm across the Borough.

The Hackney CIL is added to the London Mayoral CIL and is differentiated according to use and geography.  The table of the different rates and the map illustrating the geographical split of the charges are contained in the Hackney CIL charging schedule:

A detailed map to assist in identifying the Hackney CIL zone a site falls into is in development. In the interim please use this high resolution map:

CIL calculator

Calculate the potential CIL charges

The operation of the Hackney CIL is supported by several documents:

  • the regulation 123 list which details what Hackney intends to spend its CIL on
  • the  instalments policy which explains when the CIL payments need to be paid across a development’s timeframe based on the total liability due
  • the in kind policy explaining when the Council may accept land or infrastructure as full or part payment of CIL
  • the exceptions policy which allows the Council to consider negotiating a s106 with developers instead of the CIL Payment in exceptional circumstances

Neighbourhood element of CIL

Areas where development is taking place will receive a proportion of the receipts to be spent in the local neighbourhoods. The Hackney Community Fund, a new initiative launched in 2022, will use this income to make grants of up to £100,000 available to local groups, charities and organisations for projects that can reignite the borough’s rich culture, foster the local sense of community and bring Hackney together. You can learn more by visiting the Hackney Community Fund.

What additional information is needed when making a planning application?

When submitting a planning application for a CIL liable development applicants should submit a CIL questions form, to ensure that their CIL liability is calculated accurately. The planning applicant is responsible for payment of the CIL, unless another party completes a CIL ‘Form 1: Assumption of Liability’. These forms are available to download at the bottom of this page, or from Planning Portal.

When do I have to pay?

The levy charge becomes due when you commence the development. A commencement notice must be issued to the Council as the collecting authority (see form below: ‘commencement notice’) and all owners of the relevant land to notify them of the intended commencement date of the development. We will then send a demand notice to the person or persons who have assumed liability.

More information is available about CIL on Planning Portal.

If you do not assume liability before the commencement of development it may result in the Council (as the CIL collecting authority) imposing a surcharge of £50 per landowner (Regulation 80 of the CIL Regulations 2010 and as amended).

If you do not submit a valid commencement notice before development commences it may result in the Council (as the CIL collecting authority) imposing a surcharge of 20% of the CIL amount due, up to a maximum of £2,500.

Are there any exemptions?

The following types of uses are zero rated:

The following types of development can claim an exemption from the payment of CIL:

  • social housing provided by a local housing authority, registered social landlord or registered provider of social housing and shared ownership housing subject to the specific provisions of Regulation 49
  • charities where the development will be used wholly, or mainly, for charitable purposes
  • houses, flats, residential annexes and residential extensions which are built by ‘self builders’

A claim for relief must be made and accepted before development commences.

In any of these situations applicants must complete a claiming exemption or relief form and a decision must be made by the collecting authority before development commences.

Find out more information about CIL reliefs and exemptions.

What happens if I do not to comply with an information notice?

Failure to comply with the any requirement of an information notice within 14 days of the notice being served, may result in the Council (as the CIL collecting authority) imposing a surcharge. This would be of 20% of the CIL amount due, up to a maximum of £2,500.

What happens if I do not pay?

Late payment interest

If you do not pay CIL on time it will result in the imposition of late payment interest at 2.5 percentage points above the Bank of England base rate.

Late payment surcharge

Continued failure to pay CIL may result in one or more late payment surcharge. Such surcharges will be imposed in the following manner:

  • 5% of the outstanding amount where payment is still overdue after 30 days, subject to a £200 minimum
  • 5% of the outstanding amount where payment is still overdue after six months, subject to a £200 minimum
  • 5% of the outstanding amount where payment is still overdue after 12 months, subject to a £200 minimum

Stop notices and criminal offences

  • in cases where interest and late payment surcharges are considered to be ineffective in securing payment of the overdue CIL, the Council has the option to serve a CIL stop notice on the development. A CIL stop notice prohibits development from continuing until payment is made. Continuing to develop in the presence of such a notice is a criminal offence, punishable by potentially unlimited fines
  • when you fail to pay CIL the Council (as the collecting authority) may seek a court’s consent to seize and sell your assets to recover the money due. These assets may include any land you hold
  • if you continue to evade paying CIL, the Council can ask a magistrates’ court to commit you to prison for no more than three months

Appeals

Appeals can be made against all aspects of the CIL collection and enforcement system, from the calculation of the amount due to any enforcement actions that may arise from failure to pay. There are 2 exceptions where an appeal system does not exist: social housing relief and exceptional circumstances relief.

More information on how to appeal and the circumstances in which you can and cannot appeal can be found on Planning Portal.

Forms and downloads

The forms mentioned above are available here:

Hackney CIL income report

More information

  • if you have any legislation or policy questions about the Community Infrastructure Levy you can contact the Department for Communities and Local Government by email cil@communities.gsi.gov.uk
  • for general CIL enquires and to submit CIL forms (assumption of liability (Form 1), commencement notices (Form 6) and applications for CIL relief, email CIL.S106@hackney.gov.uk.
  • for enquires relating to a specific planning application contact the relevant case officer
Page updated on: 19 July 2023