Apply for a certificate of lawfulness

Certificates of lawfulness are a way of deciding whether a use or piece of building work is legal or not. Certificates can be given for completed developments or proposed developments.

Applications for certificates of lawfulness are not advertised and there is no need to notify neighbours. Any public comments on certificates of lawfulness will only be taken into account if they relate to the legality of the use or development under planning legislation.

To ensure you complete the forms and pay the correct fee, please read our validation guidance and fees charter.

Apply for a certificate of lawfulness

Please note, that under section 153 of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 it is a criminal offence to provide information which is false or misleading, or withhold information in respect of an application for a certificate of lawfulness.

If you need to make a payment after you have applied, or if you need to make an additional payment use the form below.

Pay for your application after you have applied or make an additional payment

We no longer accept cheques or phone payments for certificates of lawfulness.