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Permits, air and water EWSNI

Environmental permits: who needs one, how to apply and what it costs

An environmental permit is the legal authorisation you need before running an activity that could pollute air, water or land, such as an industrial installation, a waste site, a discharge or combustion plant of 1 MWth or more. You apply to the Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales or your council. Scotland moved these activities into EASR on 1 November 2025. Operating without one is a criminal offence.

Reviewed against official sources on . 9 minute read. Regulators: Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales, SEPA, NIEA, Local councils.

At a glance

Who must comply
Operators of installations, waste and mining waste sites, water discharges, medium combustion plant, radioactive substances and some flood risk work.
Thresholds
Set activity by activity, for example combustion plant from 1 MWth. Some low-risk activities only need a registered exemption or general binding rules.
Next key date
1 November 2026: Scottish deadline to apply for an EASR authorisation for activities run under most old waste management exemptions.
Regulator
Environment Agency (England), Natural Resources Wales, SEPA (Scotland), NIEA (Northern Ireland); local councils for Part A2 and Part B (England and Wales) and Part C (NI).
Maximum penalty
Unlimited fine and up to 5 years in prison. In England, civil penalties for permit offences committed since 1 December 2023 have no upper limit.
Where to do it
GOV.UK environmental permit guidance and online applications (EA), NRW permits pages, SEPA EASR authorisations, DAERA online licence applications.

This probably applies to you if

  • You run an industrial process listed as a Part A or Part B activity, such as large-scale food and drink production, chemicals, metals or surface coating.
  • You store, treat, transfer, recycle or dispose of waste, or manage mining waste.
  • You discharge anything other than clean surface water to a river, lake, the sea or groundwater.
  • You operate boilers, engines, turbines or generators with a net rated thermal input of 1 MWth or more.
  • You keep radioactive sources or dispose of radioactive waste.
  • You plan work in, over, under or close to a main river, flood defence or sea defence in England or Wales.

What is an environmental permit and who needs one?

You need an environmental permit if you operate a "regulated facility" in England or Wales. The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 make it an offence to run one without a permit, or to breach a permit's conditions. The permit sets conditions to protect air, water and land, and the regulator checks that you meet them.

GOV.UK's check if you need an environmental permit tool lists the regulated activities. The main ones are:

Activity Typical examples Who regulates (England / Wales)
Part A(1) installations Large chemical, food and drink or intensive farming sites Environment Agency / NRW
Part A(2) and Part B installations Smaller processes, mostly air emissions, such as vehicle respraying Local council
Waste and mining waste operations Transfer stations, treatment plants, landfill Environment Agency / NRW
Water discharge and groundwater activities Trade effluent or sewage to a river or to ground Environment Agency / NRW
Medium combustion plant and specified generators Boilers, engines and generators of 1–50 MWth Environment Agency / NRW
Radioactive substances Sealed sources, radioactive waste disposal Environment Agency / NRW
Flood risk activities Work in, over or under a main river, or within 8 m of it (16 m if tidal) Environment Agency / NRW

Water abstraction needs a separate licence rather than a permit. See our guide to water discharges and trade effluent. For boilers and generators, see medium combustion plant.

Standard rules permits, bespoke permits and exemptions

Most activities fit one of four routes. Choose the lightest one your activity fully qualifies for.

Route When it fits What to know
Exclusion The law says the activity is not regulated No permit or registration, but only within the exclusion's limits
Exemption Low-risk activity within set limits No permit, but you must usually register it first
Standard rules permit Common activity that fully meets a published rule set Quicker and cheaper; you cannot change or appeal the rules
Bespoke permit Anything that does not fit the above Conditions tailored to your site; most applications go to public consultation

Standard rules permits are fixed sets of conditions for common activities, such as a waste transfer station or a cooling water discharge. If you later want to operate outside the rules, you must apply for a bespoke permit.

Bespoke permits need more work up front. You will need a management system, risk assessments, site plans and, for waste sites, evidence of technical competence. You can appeal a refusal or the conditions of a bespoke permit.

Waste exemptions have their own rules and registration process. See our waste exemptions guide.

Watch out: a regulatory position statement (RPS) is not a permit. It only means the regulator will not normally take enforcement action while you meet its conditions, and each RPS can expire.

How to apply for an environmental permit

Start early. Complex applications can take months, and you cannot lawfully start the activity until the permit is issued.

  1. Confirm the activity, route and regulator

    Check whether your activity is excluded, exempt, covered by standard rules or needs a bespoke permit, and whether the Environment Agency, NRW or your council regulates it.

  2. Ask for pre-application advice

    The Environment Agency's basic advice is free and normally answered within 20 working days. Enhanced advice costs £103.80 an hour plus VAT from 1 April 2026; NRW charges £125 an hour plus VAT.

  3. Prepare your supporting documents

    Typical items are a site plan, management system summary, risk assessments, modelling where needed, and technical competence and financial evidence for waste activities.

  4. Apply and pay the application charge

    The Environment Agency now offers online applications for several permit types in England. Pay the full charge with the application or it cannot be determined.

  5. Get the application duly made

    The regulator checks the application is complete enough to assess. You may get up to 10 working days to fill gaps; otherwise it is returned and up to 20% of the charge (maximum £1,673.78 in England) is kept.

  6. Wait for the decision

    The law allows 4 months where public consultation applies, 3 months for most other applications and 2 months for transfers. The clock stops while you answer information requests, and you can agree longer.

Environment Agency permit charges and other fees for 2026/27

You pay an application charge, then an annual subsistence charge for as long as the permit is in force. Changes, transfers and surrender carry their own charges. The Environment Agency invoices subsistence at the start of April for the year to 31 March, with a pro rata bill in the first year.

Environment Agency charges rose by 3.8% (CPI) on 1 April 2026. Under its charging scheme, charges increase each 1 April by no more than CPI for the 12 months to the previous September.

Item (2026/27) Charge
Environment Agency enhanced pre-application advice £103.80 per hour plus VAT
Environment Agency standard rules application, SR2010 No 2 cooling water discharge £1,390.52
Environment Agency bespoke application, Part A food and drink installation £14,515.39
Environment Agency habitats assessment add-on £808.60 (£2,302.44 for discharges)
NRW standard rules waste transfer station (SR2008 No 1) £2,009 application, £3,143 a year
NRW bespoke low impact Part A installation £7,722 application, £615 a year

For installations and waste operations, your compliance record changes the subsistence charge (see the next section). SEPA charges under the Environmental Regulation (Scotland) Charging Scheme 2025, which took effect on 1 November 2025.

Watch out: unpaid subsistence charges can lead to your permit being suspended or revoked.

Compliance checks, variations, transfers and surrender

Expect inspections, many of them unannounced, plus desk checks of your monitoring and reports. After each check the officer issues a compliance assessment report (CAR) listing any breaches and what you must fix. CARs go on the public register.

How breaches affect your bill

The Environment Agency scores breaches using its Compliance Classification Scheme: category 1 scores 60 points, category 2 scores 31, category 3 scores 4 and category 4 scores 0.1. Your points for the calendar year set your band.

Band Points in year Subsistence charge paid
A 0 95%
B 0.1 to 10 100%
C 10.1 to 30 110%
D 30.1 to 60 125%
E 60.1 to 149.9 150%
F 150 or more 300%

Changing, transferring or ending a permit

  • Variation: apply before you change the activity. Charges depend on whether the change is administrative, minor, normal or substantial.
  • Transfer: the current and new operator apply jointly, and the new operator must show they are competent.
  • Surrender by notice: for Part B installations, mobile plant, solvent activities, medium combustion plant, specified generators and some flood risk activities (plus stand-alone discharges in Wales), give at least 20 working days' notice.
  • Surrender by application: for Part A installations, waste sites and most discharges in England, you must show the regulator that pollution risks are removed and the site is back in a satisfactory state.

Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

Wales

Wales uses the same 2016 Regulations, with Natural Resources Wales as regulator and its own charging scheme from 1 April 2026. NRW no longer issues standard rules permits for medium combustion plant, so new applicants need a bespoke permit.

Scotland (EASR)

On 1 November 2025 water, waste management and industrial (PPC) activities moved into the Environmental Authorisations (Scotland) Regulations 2018 (EASR). There are four levels:

  • General binding rules for the lowest-risk activities, with no application.
  • Notification, where you tell SEPA before starting.
  • Registration, with standard conditions, normally decided within 28 days.
  • Permit, with site-specific conditions, which can take up to 4 months.

Most existing licences and permits converted automatically. Unless a general binding rule now covers the activity, holders of most old waste exemptions must apply for an EASR registration or permit by 1 November 2026, or before the exemption expires if that is sooner. SEPA has set later application windows for other activities, including carbon dioxide capture (1 December 2026 to 1 April 2027) and combustion plant of 1 MW or more generating electricity (28 February to 30 June 2028). See SEPA's guide to moving to EASR.

Northern Ireland

The Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) issues Part A and Part B pollution prevention and control (PPC) permits under the PPC (Industrial Emissions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2013. District councils issue Part C permits for air emissions. Waste sites need a waste management licence from NIEA, and discharges need a consent under the Water (Northern Ireland) Order 1999.

Penalties for operating without a permit

Running a regulated activity without a permit, or breaching a condition, is a criminal offence in every UK nation.

Nation Summary conviction Conviction on indictment
England and Wales Unlimited fine and/or 12 months' prison Unlimited fine and/or 5 years' prison (2 years for flood risk activities)
Scotland (EASR) Fine up to £40,000 and/or 12 months' prison Unlimited fine and/or 5 years' prison
Northern Ireland (PPC) Fine up to £50,000 and/or 6 months' prison Unlimited fine and/or 5 years' prison

Regulators can also serve enforcement and suspension notices, revoke permits and recover clean-up costs. In England, the Environment Agency can impose a variable monetary penalty of any amount for permit offences committed on or after 1 December 2023. SEPA can impose fixed penalties of £300, £600 or £1,000 and variable penalties of up to £40,000.

Tip: if you find a breach, report it to your regulator promptly and record what you did to fix it. Early, honest reporting is usually treated more favourably.

How it differs across the UK

E England

The Environment Agency regulates most permits under the 2016 Regulations, with councils handling Part A2 and Part B installations. Since 28 February 2026, new and substantially refurbished in-scope generating plant must also show decarbonisation readiness.

W Wales

Same 2016 Regulations as England, but Natural Resources Wales is the regulator with its own charging scheme. NRW no longer issues standard rules permits for medium combustion plant, and the decarbonisation readiness requirements introduced in England in 2026 do not apply.

S Scotland

The England and Wales permitting regulations do not apply. Since 1 November 2025 SEPA authorises water, waste and industrial activities under EASR through general binding rules, notifications, registrations and permits.

NI Northern Ireland

NIEA issues PPC permits (Part A and B), waste management licences and water discharge consents under separate laws; district councils issue Part C permits. There is no single permitting regime.

Key dates

  • EASR (Scotland): apply for an authorisation for activities run under waste management licensing exemptions

    Holders of most waste exemptions registered under the Waste Management Licensing (Scotland) Regulations 2011 S

  • EASR (Scotland): application window opens for carbon dioxide capture activities (closes 1 April 2027)

    Operators capturing carbon dioxide for utilisation or storage in Scotland S

  • Environment Agency environmental permit charges rise by up to CPI and annual subsistence invoices issued

    Environmental permit holders in England E Annual

  • EASR (Scotland): application window opens for combustion plant of 1 MW or more generating electricity on site (closes 30 June 2028)

    Operators of electricity-generating combustion plant with aggregated rated thermal input of 1 MW or more in Scotland S

Dates marked “Proposed” are announced or consulted on but not yet law. See the full deadlines calendar.

Fees and charges

ItemAmountApplies inNotes
Environment Agency enhanced pre-application advice for environmental permits£103.80 per hour plus VAT
From 1 April 2026		EBasic pre-application advice is free. Source
Environment Agency standard rules permit application — SR2010 No 2 cooling water and heat exchanger discharge£1,390.52
2026/27		E Source
Environment Agency bespoke environmental permit application — Part A food and drink installation (section 6.8)£14,515.39
2026/27		E Source
Environment Agency environmental permit application — habitats assessment add-on£808.60
Per application, 2026/27		E£2,302.44 for water discharge and groundwater activities. Source
NRW pre-application advice for environmental permits£125 per hour plus VAT
From 1 April 2026		W Source
NRW standard rules environmental permit — SR2008 No 1 waste transfer station (building)£2,009
Application; annual charge £3,143		W Source
NRW bespoke environmental permit — low impact Part A installation£7,722
Application; annual charge £615		W Source

Penalties and enforcement

BreachPenaltyApplies in
Operating a regulated facility without an environmental permit, or breaching a permit conditionSummary: unlimited fine and/or up to 12 months' prison. Indictment: unlimited fine and/or up to 5 years' prison (2 years for flood risk activity offences)EWSource
Environmental permitting offence committed on or after 1 December 2023 (civil sanction)Variable monetary penalty imposed by the Environment Agency, with no upper limitESource
Carrying on a regulated activity without an EASR authorisation, or breaching its conditions or general binding rulesSummary: fine up to £40,000 and/or 12 months' prison. Indictment: unlimited fine and/or up to 5 years' prisonSSource
SEPA civil penalties for relevant environmental offencesFixed monetary penalty of £300, £600 or £1,000; variable monetary penalty up to £40,000SSource
Operating a PPC installation without a permit or breaching permit conditionsSummary: fine up to £50,000 and/or 6 months' prison. Indictment: unlimited fine and/or up to 5 years' prisonNISource

Compliance checklist

Where to do it: official services

The law behind this

Questions people ask

Do I need an environmental permit for my business?

You need one if your business carries out a regulated activity, such as running an industrial installation, handling waste, discharging effluent to water or ground, or operating boilers or generators of 1 MWth or more. Some low-risk activities are excluded or can be registered as exemptions instead. In England, use the GOV.UK check if you need an environmental permit tool or ask for free basic pre-application advice. In Scotland, check the EASR authorisation levels with SEPA.

How long does it take to get an environmental permit?

The law gives the regulator 4 months to decide applications that need public consultation, which covers most bespoke permits, and 3 months for most others. Transfers have a 2-month period. The clock only starts once the application is duly made and stops while you answer information requests. In Scotland, SEPA normally decides EASR registrations within 28 days and permits within 4 months.

How much does an environmental permit cost?

It depends on the activity. In England for 2026/27, a standard rules cooling water discharge permit costs £1,390.52 to apply for, while a bespoke Part A food and drink installation costs £14,515.39. You then pay an annual subsistence charge, which rises for operators with poor compliance records. Environment Agency charges rose 3.8% on 1 April 2026 and can rise by up to CPI each April.

What is the difference between a standard rules permit and a bespoke permit?

A standard rules permit uses a fixed set of published conditions for common activities. It is cheaper and faster, but you cannot negotiate or appeal the rules. A bespoke permit has conditions written for your site, takes longer and usually goes to public consultation, but suits activities that do not fit standard rules. You can appeal a bespoke permit's conditions.

Can I transfer an environmental permit to a new owner?

Yes. The current and new operator apply jointly to the regulator, and the new operator must show they are competent to run the activity. The statutory decision period for a transfer is 2 months, and a transfer charge applies. If you sell a site without transferring or surrendering the permit, the permit, and responsibility for complying with it, stays with you.

What happens if I operate without an environmental permit?

It is a criminal offence. In England and Wales you face an unlimited fine and up to 5 years in prison if convicted in the Crown Court. In England, the Environment Agency can also impose a variable monetary penalty with no upper limit for offences since 1 December 2023. Regulators can serve notices to stop the activity and recover clean-up costs.

What is EASR in Scotland and does it replace PPC and CAR?

Yes. EASR is the Environmental Authorisations (Scotland) Regulations 2018. Since 1 November 2025 it has covered water (formerly CAR), waste management and industrial (formerly PPC) activities, as well as radioactive substances. Most existing licences and permits converted automatically, but some holders must apply again, including most waste exemption holders by 1 November 2026.

Terms used in this guide

Regulated facility
Any activity that needs an environmental permit in England and Wales, such as an installation, waste operation, water discharge activity or medium combustion plant.
Standard rules permit
A permit made up of a fixed, published set of conditions for a common activity. It is quicker and cheaper to get, but the rules cannot be changed or appealed.
Bespoke permit
A permit with conditions written for a specific site, used when no exemption or standard rules permit fits.
Duly made
The point at which the regulator accepts that an application has enough information, and the right fee, for it to start the determination.
Subsistence charge
The annual charge you pay while your permit is in force, which covers the regulator's compliance work.
Compliance assessment report (CAR)
The report an officer issues after an inspection, audit or desk check, recording any permit breaches and the actions needed.
EASR
The Environmental Authorisations (Scotland) Regulations 2018, Scotland's single framework for authorising activities that could harm the environment.
General binding rules (GBRs)
Mandatory rules for low-risk activities in Scotland. If you follow them, you are authorised without applying to SEPA.

Full glossary

Sources

  1. Check if you need an environmental permit — GOV.UK
  2. Get advice before you apply for an environmental permit — GOV.UK
  3. Environmental permits: when and how you are charged — Environment Agency
  4. Environmental permits and abstraction licences: tables of charges — Environment Agency
  5. Environment Agency fees and charges — GOV.UK
  6. Waste: environmental permits — GOV.UK
  7. How you'll be regulated: environmental permits — GOV.UK
  8. Compliance ratings (waste and installations) — data.gov.uk
  9. Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016, Schedule 5 — legislation.gov.uk
  10. Our charging schemes — Natural Resources Wales
  11. Moving to the new Regulations (EASR) — SEPA
  12. EASR authorisations in Scotland — NetRegs

Reviewed 14 October 2026. If you spot something out of date, email info@thamesenvironment.com.

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