Dorset Council Community Infrastructure Levy

The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) was introduced by the Planning Act 2008 and enables local authorities to deliver infrastructure in support of development in their area, through the adoption of a charging schedule. It is charged at a set amount per square metre of additional floor area and increases each year on 1 January, using the value published by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

The CIL Regulations was amended on 1 September 2019 and detailed guidance on CIL for planning permissions granted after this date, is published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Planning permission granted before this date is subject to the previous version of the Legislation and relevant guidance. The forms used to submit information have also been amended and can be found on the Planning Portal website.

From 1 April 2019, Dorset Council became the charging authority for the rural part of the county and administers the following CIL Charging Schedules.

• East Dorset Area (implemented 3 January 2017)
• Purbeck Area (implemented 5 June 2014)
• West Dorset Area (implemented 18 July 2016)
• Weymouth & Portland Area (implemented 18 July 2016)

Dorset Council does not operate CIL in the former North Dorset area and mitigation required to support the needs of new development is secured through section 106 legal agreements.  

A single charging schedule that will cover the whole of the Dorset Council administrative area is currently being developed and will be introduced in conjunction with the adoption of the emerging Dorset Council Local Plan. 

Important

If you have a development proposal which is CIL liable, please follow the guidance issued on your liability notice carefully as failure to adhere to the CIL processes may result in the loss of relief and addition of surcharges. The commencement of development is an important stage for both CIL and Building Control. If your development is CIL liable, a Commencement Notice must be submitted to the Dorset Council CIL Team prior to work (including any associated demolition) taking place.

Please make sure you have assumed liability for your proposal and sought relief where necessary prior to commencement too. If in doubt, please check with the CIL Team before commencing work.

For advice on Building Regulation requirements before starting work, please visit the Building Control pages.

CIL Rates

The CIL rates to be charged for each team's charging schedule, from 1 January 2024, are contained in the tables below. The CIL Calculator will give an approximate value for the liability payable on a chargeable development.  Please note, the published rates and calculator are for reference only and approximate to two decimal places.  Therefore, the  liability calculated may not be the actual value for the floor area proposed that is stated on the Liability Notice.

The total amount of liability calculated for a development can be paid in instalments, in accordance with the instalment policies currently adopted for each Charging Schedule area.

• East Dorset Area Instalment Policy

• Purbeck Area Instalment Policy

• West Dorset and Weymouth & Portland Areas Instalment Policies

The Purbeck Charging Schedule is currently under review alongside the Local Plan Review PLP1.

In accordance with CIL Regulation 121A, the council produces an infrastructure funding statement for each financial year.  The statement reports information on the receipt and expenditure of all obligations secured by CIL and section 106 agreements. 

View the statement by year:

• Infrastructure Funding Statement 2019/2020
• Infrastructure Funding Statement 2020/2021
• Infrastructure Funding Statement 2021/2022
• Infrastructure Funding Statement 2022/2023

In accordance with CIL Regulation 59A, the council has a duty to pay a proportion of the relevant CIL receipts from chargeable development that occurs within the area administered by a Town or Parish Council.  The amount paid is either 25% for councils with an adopted Neighbourhood Plan and 15% for those councils without an adopted plan.  In accordance with CIL Regulation 59D, payments are made in April and October of each year to cover the receipts collected in the previous six months, respectively and Town & Parish Council CIL Payments show the amounts paid to date.   Dorset Council has produced guidance and information about the neighbourhood proportion of CIL receipts passed to Town & Parish Councils.

See information about planning legal agreements and compliance. To view previous monitoring reports or other documents, contact us.