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When and how you can appeal or comment on an enforcement notice.

First published:
9 January 2019
Last updated:

When you can appeal

Your local planning authority may send you an enforcement notice if you’ve built or changed something without planning permission.

You can appeal against an enforcement notice if you own, rent or lawfully occupy the property or land it applies to.

Anyone can comment on an appeal.

There's no fee for appealing, unless you want planning permission granted. 

Deadline for appealing

Your appeal must be received before the date the enforcement notice takes effect.

When you can expect a decision

Once your appeal has started, you’ll normally get a decision within 27 weeks but it can take longer.

How to appeal

How to complete and Submit your Appeal

You can find appeal forms here. Completed appeals forms can be e-mailed to PEDW.Casework@gov.wales  If you want to appeal more than one enforcement notice you must make a separate appeal for each. Each person should appeal separately.

You also need to send a copy of your appeal, including all the supporting documents, to your local planning authority. Planning and Environment Decisions Wales will tell you how to do this.

Documents you must provide

You’ll need to submit:

  • a full statement of case 
  • any supporting documents that directly support your appeal or that you wish to use as evidence, for example the enforcement notice

You can send them by post or email to the Planning and Environment Decisions Wales

Planning and Environment Decisions Wales
2nd Floor West
Crown Buildings
Cathays Park
Cardiff
CF10 3NQ

email PEDW.casework@gov.wales
Telephone 0300 0604400.  

Comment on an appeal

Anyone can comment on an enforcement notice appeal. The deadline for comments is 4 weeks after the start date of the appeal.

Your local planning authority must tell any interested persons about the appeal. They have to do this within 1 week of the appeal being started by Planning and Environment Decisions Wales.

Read the detailed guidance about taking part in an appeal taking part in an appeal. 

After you appeal

The Planning and Environment Decisions Wales will check your appeal to make sure it’s valid. They’ll tell you the start date, what happens next and how long your appeal may take.

Planning and Environment Decisions Wales  will then consider your appeal. You will normally get a decision within 27 weeks of the starting date, but it can take longer.

If anyone behaves unreasonably

You can apply for an award of costs if anyone involved in your appeal has cost you money by behaving unreasonably, for example missing deadlines. You can have costs awarded against you too.

You can complain about how Planning and Environment Decisions Wales handled your appeal. There’s no time limit for complaints.

If you disagree with the appeal decision

You can challenge the decision in the High Court if you think Planning and Environment Decisions Wales made a legal mistake.

Get advice from a lawyer if you’re unsure about this.