Introduction
In this blog post we discuss the Government’s changes made to the exemptions from Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirements under the planning system under The Biodiversity Gain (Town and Country Planning) (Amendments and Transitional Provisions) (England) Regulations 2026 (the Regulations) which were laid before Parliament on 13th July 2026
What changes do the Regulations make to the BNG exemptions?
The Regulations will take effect on 6 August 2026 and will make the following changes to exemptions in relation to the Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirements under the planning system:
(1) The existing exemption for small-scale self and custom-build housing on sites of up to 0.5 hectares is removed (but can continue to be relied upon in relation to planning applications submitted before 6 August 2026)
(2) Two new exemptions are introduced:
(a) An exemption for smaller development sites of up to 0.2 hectares where the development does not impact on an on-site priority habitat
(b) An exemption for temporary development that does not impact any onsite priority habitat and where the development is removed and the land reinstated within a period not exceeding 5 years
The Regulations provide that the above two new exemptions do not apply to planning applications made before 6 August 2026 and to permissions granted under Section 73 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 where the original permission to which the Section 73 permission relates was applied for or granted before 6 August 2026
The Regulations can be accessed at the following link:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2026/790/made
Our comments
The changes to the exemptions from BNG requirements under the planning system particularly the introduction of the new exemption for developments on smaller sites should make it easier for such developments to be granted planning permission without having to deal with the onerous requirements of the BNG regime. We therefore welcome these reforms as a positive measure to bring forward more development
Note: all comments and views expressed in this blog are merely opinions and provided for information purposes only and do not constitute legal advice which can be relied upon. Should you require legal advice on a matter then please contact us
