Beware of Mayoral Community Infrastructure Levy (“CIL”)

We were recently instructed to act on the purchase of a residential development site in the London Borough of Greenwich. Surprisingly the consented site was not subject to any planning obligations under a Section 106 Agreement. Nor was it subject to any CIL, because Greenwich London Borough Council is currently (as at August 2014) consulting on its draft charging schedule and therefore no Borough CIL is payable. Additionally, the result of our Local Search did not reveal any CIL liability (including Mayoral CIL referred to below) and the seller claimed there was no CIL payable in replies to CPSE1.

However, Mayoral CIL is payable and must not be forgotten about. The Mayor of London introduced a London-wide CIL applicable to developments consented on or after 1 April 2012. London Boroughs act as collecting authorities on behalf of the Mayor. CIL will be calculated according to the amount of additional floor space a new development will produce. The amount to be paid is calculated when planning permission is granted and it is paid when development starts.

CIL is charged on most developments in London at the following rates:

• Zone 1 boroughs - £50 per square metre                                                     Camden, City of London, City of Westminster, Hammersmith and Fulham, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Richmond-upon-Thames, Wandsworth
• Zone 2 boroughs - £35 per square metre                                                     Barnet, Brent, Bromley, Ealing, Greenwich, Hackney, Haringey, Harrow, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Kingston upon Thames, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Redbridge, Southwark, Tower Hamlets
• Zone 3 boroughs - £20 per square metre                                                Barking and Dagenham, Bexley, Croydon, Enfield, Havering,Newham, Sutton, Waltham Forest

Any Borough CIL will be in addition to this. Therefore, in the case of our client’s purchase where the development comprised 1000 square metres, the Mayoral CIL amounted to £35,000.

For further information on this topic please contact Paul Harbour or a member of the team.