Building Safety Levy is Coming

The Building Safety Levy came into operation on 1 October 2026, with the income it generates being used to fix building safety defects across England. The levy will be chargeable on residential developments resulting in at least 10 new dwellings and/or 30 new bedspaces in purpose‐built student accommodation and new residential floorspace.

The levy will be calculated on the floorspace of the development and charged on applications for Building Control Approval

Local authorities will act as the collecting authority, with different levy rates per square metre applying in each local authority

The levy will be in addition to any planning obligations, for example Section 106 agreements and the Community Infrastructure Levy

Social housing and supported housing residential developments will be exempt from paying the levy

Housing associations will also be exempt, but joint ventures will not unless each party is itself exempt, and members in joint ventures with housing associations should check their arrangements.

The levy will not apply to applications for Building Control Approval submitted before 1 October 2026, including where they are varied after this date. However, the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has confirmed that if an application submitted before 1 October 2026 is either invalid or rejected and subsequently resubmitted after this date, then it will be liable for the levy.

Source: Build UK