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Contact

Correspondence relating to development management should go to: DMprocedures@gov.scot
telephone tiny 20 0131 244 7065

Area 2-H (South)
Planning & Architecture Division,
The Scottish Government
Victoria Quay
EDINBURGH
EH6 6QQ

Key Documents

Legislation

Introduction

Legislation

The main legal procedures for dealing with applications for planning permission are set through the following legislation.

Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 Town and Country Planning (Hierarchy of Developments) (Scotland) Regulations 2009.
Planning etc. (Scotland) Act 2006, Town and Country Planning (Hierarchy of Developments) (Scotland) Regulations 2009
 Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2013  

 

In Scotland, The Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Scotland) Order 1997 identifies various uses of land and buildings and groups those with similar planning implications into classes.  It specifies that changes between uses in the same class do not require planning permission.  Explanation is provided in Circular 1-1998.

The Planning etc. (Scotland) Act 2006 and the Town and Country Planning (Hierarchy of Developments) (Scotland) Regulations 2009, introduced approaches to processing planning applications which relate specifically to the scale of the proposed development.

There are three categories of development with flowcharts showing the procedures.

More information on the hierarchy is provided in Circular 5/2009 Hierarchy of Developments.

Legislation can be found at legislation.gov.uk 
Please note that this does not incorporate changes made to regulations.

New consultation and notification requirements regarding planning applications relating to developments which may affect World Heritage Sites, historic battlefields and land in neighbouring planning authorities came into force in June 23, 2014