Lawful Development Certificate in Kensington and Chelsea from £575
Kensington, Chelsea, Notting Hill and Earl’s Court: the Royal Borough sells a fast track that covers proposed and existing certificates, and lists Article 4 street by street.
£575 £425 drawings + £150 survey (£575 total), no VAT to add
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The short answer
The Royal Borough’s Fast Track Application Service accepts lawful development certificates, existing and proposed, for a flat fee of £865.20 with tax included on top of the statutory fee. It validates within 1 working day of payment, and decides within 10 working days of validation where no consultation is needed, against up to 8 weeks standard. It takes payment only after accepting your request. Our fee is £425 drawings + £150 survey (£575 total), no VAT to add; the council’s fees are separate.
Permitted development drawings and Lawful Development Certificate
from £575
- Drawings
- £425
- Measured survey
- £150
- Total you pay
- £575
- VAT
- None to add
- A measured survey of the house, so the drawings show your property and not a template
- Existing and proposed plans and elevations on A3 or smaller, with the 1 m and 10 m scale bars the Royal Borough asks for
- A check of your address against the Article 4 directions listed street by street, and the conservation areas
- The fast track request by email after you apply, if you want it
- The application submitted for you, with answers to the officer
£425 drawings + £150 survey (£575 total). A starting fee: we confirm one fixed figure after checking your address. The council’s own fee, where there is one, is paid to the council.
Get my fixed feeHow a Kensington and Chelsea certificate runs
Rights check
We look your street up in the Article 4 list and the conservation area map.
Survey
We measure depths, heights and distances to the boundaries.
Drawings to the rules
Each sheet states the limit it tests, within the A3 limit.
Apply
We submit, then email the fast track mailbox if you want it, and pay only once the council accepts.
How the fast track works here
You submit through the usual route, such as the Planning Portal, then request fast track by email. The council accepts or declines the request, then sends a secure payment link. It validates within 1 working day of receiving payment and a dedicated fast track officer contacts you within 5 working days of validation.
The fee is flat across householder, planning, listed building consent, advertisement and certificate applications, and rises each 1 April with national fee increases. For example, a Chelsea owner with a roof contractor booked can ask for it and know in two weeks, where the standard route runs up to eight.
Article 4 by street, and validation
The Royal Borough lists its conservation-area Article 4 directions by street, property numbers, article number and start date, so you can check an address precisely. A certificate cannot be granted for work whose right has been removed, so we check first and move you to a householder application when that is what the house needs.
The submission requirements of 10 March 2023 refuse paper larger than A3, ask for scale bars showing 1 and 10 metres, and plans at 1:50 or 1:100. Residential CIL in 2026 is £1,158.30 a square metre in Zone A and £911.20 in Zone B, but only from 100 square metres of new floor space, so a typical certificate project is outside it.
Certificates in Kensington and Chelsea in numbers
252 of 274
Householder decisions by the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea between July 2025 and June 2026 (prior approvals left out) that were made inside 8 weeks.
Source: MHCLG live table PS2, district planning application statistics, July 2025 to June 2026 (GOV.UK)
£865.20
Fast track fee, tax included, for householder, planning, listed building, advertisement and lawful development certificate applications.
Source: Fast Track Application Service (Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea)
10 days
Working days from validation in which the fast track decides applications that need no consultation.
Source: Fast Track Application Service (Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea)
1 day
Working day within which the council validates after receiving payment.
Source: Fast Track Application Service (Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea)
Both kinds
Existing and proposed lawful development certificates can both use the fast track.
Source: Fast Track Application Service (Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea)
By street
Article 4 directions in conservation areas are listed by street, property numbers, article number and start date.
Source: Article 4 Directions in Conservation Areas (Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea)
A3 maximum
Documents needing paper larger than A3 are not accepted, and the application will be deemed invalid.
£1,158.30 and £911.20
Residential CIL per square metre in Zone A and Zone B for permissions granted in 2026.
Questions about certificates in Kensington and Chelsea
What does the Royal Borough’s fast track cost?
£865.20 with tax included for a certificate, on top of the statutory application fee.
How fast is the decision?
Within 10 working days of validation where no consultation is needed. The standard service takes up to 8 weeks.
Can I fast-track a certificate for work already built?
Yes. The fast track covers existing and proposed lawful development certificates.
Do I still need building regulations?
Yes. A certificate covers planning law only.
Put it in writing before you build in Kensington and Chelsea
Send the address and what you plan. We reply with whether it fits permitted development and a fixed fee, from £425 drawings + £150 survey (£575 total).