Regularisation of Existing Development Regulations, 2016

L.N. 285 of 2016

DEVELOPMENT PLANNING ACT

(CAP. 552)

Regularisation of Existing Development Regulations, 2016

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by articles 85 and 101

of the Development Planning Act, the Parliamentary Secretary for

Planning and the Simplification of Administrative Processes, in

consultation with the Planning Authority, has made the following

regulations:-

The title of these regulations is the Regularisation of Citation.

Existing Development Regulations, 2016.

(1)

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise Interpretation.

requires

"the Act" means the Development Planning Act;

"amenity" has the same meaning assigned to it by the

Development Control Design Policy, Guidance and Standards 2015;

"the Authority" means the Planning Board as defined in the Act;

"Development Zone" means land within the boundary for

development in a planning scheme or local plan;

"injury to amenity" means any development which causes harm

to an amenity. For the purpose of these regulations, uses falling

within any of the uses defined in classes 1, 4A or 4B of the

Development Planning (Use Classes) Order are not deemed to S.L. 552.15

constitute an injury to an amenity;

"the Tribunal" means the Environment and Planning Review

Tribunal as defined in the Environment and Planning Review Cap. 551.

Tribunal Act;

"Urban Conservation Area" means an area of land designated as

such in a planning scheme or local plan or other currently approved

planning policies.

(2) In these regulations, words and expressions defined in the

Act shall have the same meaning as they have in the Act.

The scope of these regulations is to lay down procedures Scope.

by which any person may request the regularisation of an existing

irregular development. These regulations shall apply only to

(a)

that irregular development located entirely in a

Development Zone; or

(b)

that irregular development already covered by a

Category B concession issued in terms of the Environment and

Development Planning Act prior to the coming into force of

these regulations and located in a Development Zone.

An existing development requiring regularisation

which is located in a Development Zone and which was in existence

prior to the coming into force of these regulations, may be regularised

by means of the following procedure, unless a permit is otherwise

lawfully obtained

(a)

an electronic application is to be submitted to the

Authority requesting the regularisation of the relative

development;

(b)

the application shall be submitted by the

applicant’s perit and shall be accompanied by the applicant’s

declaration certifying the applicant’s ownership of the existing

development

Provided that where the applicant is not the owner

of the existing development, he has notified the owner of his

intention to apply by registered letter of which a copy has been

received by the Authority and that the owner has granted his

consent to such a proposal;

(c)

the applicant’s perit shall also be required to

submit the following

(i) a site plan indicating the exact location of the

existing development;

(ii) detailed plans of the existing development

which must also indicate the type of use of the relative

development;

(iii) external

elevations of

the existing

development which must clearly indicate the type of

materials used in the same development;

(iv) sections of the existing development;

(v) three photographs relative to each external

elevation of the existing building taken from different

angles.

Additionally, where the existing development is

located in an Urban Conservation Area, an internal

photographic survey of all the rooms and any other internal

structure of the existing development cross referenced to

an existing plan must be submitted;

(vi) documentary proof confirming that the

specific use is in line with the provisions of sub-regulation

(5)(c) and (d);

(vii) the payment of a minimum administrative

fee of fifty euro (€50).

(2) Developments already covered by a Category B

concession issued in terms of the Environment and Development Cap. 504.

Planning Act prior to the coming into force of these regulations and

located in a Development Zone may be regularised by means of the

following procedure

(a)

an electronic application is to be submitted to the

Authority requesting the regularisation of the Category B

concession by a permission;

(b)

the application shall be submitted by the applicant's

perit and shall be accompanied by the applicant's declaration

certifying the applicant's ownership of the existing

development

Provided that where the applicant is not the owner

of the existing development, he has notified the owner of his

intention to apply by registered letter of which a copy has been

received by the Authority and that the owner has granted his

consent to such a proposal;

(c)

the applicant’s perit shall also be required to

(i) a clean copy of drawings showing the

building as constructed;

(ii) the payment of a minimum administrative

fee of fifty euro (€50).

(3) Any application shall be deemed to be ab initio invalid if

any one or more of the submission requirements specified in sub-

regulations (1) or (2), as the case may be, have not been complied

with. Applications which are ab initio invalid shall be automatically

rejected by the Authority without any further consideration. Fees

submitted with invalid applications shall be refundable, however the

Authority shall retain the minimum administrative fee of fifty euro

(€50).

(4) Any part of the existing development which is not shown

on the relative drawings submitted together with the application shall

not be considered as a regularised development, if the relative

application is approved.

(5) The development specified in these regulations can be

regularised if

(a)

in the opinion of the Authority, the development

does not constitute an injury to amenity; and

(b)

the use of the development is in conformity with

current planning policies and regulations; or

(c)

the relative use falls within any of the uses defined

in classes 1, 4A or 4B of the Development Planning (Use

Classes) Order provided that documentary proof is submitted

showing that the uses defined in Classes 4A or 4B have

subsisted continuously for three consecutive years immediately

prior to the coming into force of these regulations; or

(d)

the development involves the subdivision of

dwellings provided that documentary proof in the form of a

deed of transfer showing that the subdivision occurred prior to

the entry into force of these regulations is submitted

Provided that paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) shall not

apply to an application submitted in terms of sub-regulation (2) for

the regularisation of a Category B concession by a permission

Provided further that any irregular use, except for a use

falling under Class 1 of the Development Planning (Use Classes)

Order, cannot be regularised if an enforcement notice relative to such

use has been issued by the Authority prior to the coming into force of

these regulations and the same notice is still in force.

(6) The existing development which may be regularised in

terms of sub-regulation (1) shall be the footprint which appears in the

Authority’s aerial photographs of the year 2016. Any extension or

addition in the footprint of the relative development beyond that

which appears in the Authority’s aerial photographs of the year 2016

cannot be regularised in terms of these regulations.

(1)

When an application is submitted on a site affected Determination

by an enforcement notice which is still in force, and the notice was of applications.

issued following the submission of a formal complaint by third

parties, the Executive Chairperson shall inform the same third parties

of the submission of the application and request them to indicate,

within fifteen days from notification, whether they should be

considered as registered interested parties in terms of article 71(6) of

the Act. Upon confirmation from the third parties that they should be

considered as registered interested parties, the provisions of the Act

with regards to registered interested third parties shall apply mutatis

mutandis.

(2) The Authority shall, following the recommendation of the

Executive Chairperson, decide upon any application which has been

validly submitted in accordance to the provisions of regulation 4. In

deciding upon any such application, the Authority shall apply the

provisions of these regulations. Furthermore, when the Authority

does not follow the recommendation of the Executive Chairperson, it

shall provide the specific planning reasons adduced by it justifying

the overturning of such recommendation.

(3) Where the Authority decides to approve an application

submitted in terms of regulation 4, it shall have the power to impose

any condition which it may deem necessary, including, but not limited

to, the execution of specific works within a specified time-frame of

two years failing which the application shall be dismissed.

(4) Any full development permission granted by the Authority

in terms of these regulations shall be issued saving third party civil

rights and shall not be deemed to confer any proprietary rights or any

title whatsoever over the existing development to which the same

permission relates. This permission does not exonerate the applicant

from obtaining any other necessary permission, license, clearance or

approval required from any Government department, local council,

agency or authority as required by any law or regulation.

(5) The applicant shall have a right to appeal the Authority’s

decision before the Tribunal in terms of the Environment and Review Cap. 551.

Tribunal Act.

(6) The Authority may, at any time, revoke or modify any

permission issued in terms of these regulations in accordance with

article 80 of the Act.

(1)

The Executive Chairperson shall inform the Fees.

applicant and the perit of the fees to be charged by the Authority for

applications submitted in terms of these regulations which fees shall

be charged at the rates set out in the Schedule. The total aggregate

roofed over area of each floor of the property being regularised under

one application shall be taken into account when determining the fees

to be charged.

(2) The fees shall be paid prior to the formulation of the

recommendation by the Executive Chairperson.

(3) The fees paid to the Authority for a Category B concession

issued in terms of the Environment and Development Planning Act

shall be deducted from the fees to be charged for applications

submitted on the same site of the concession in terms of these

regulations.

(4) When an application has been refused by the Authority,

90% of the fees paid shall be refunded to the applicant.

Any application in terms of these regulations must be

submitted to the Authority within two years from the date of coming

into force of these regulations. The Authority shall impose a

surcharge of 25% on the fees set out in the Schedule for those

applications submitted after two years but prior to three years from

the coming into force of these regulations.

Schedule - Fees to be charged by the Authority

(Regulation 6)

B

€0.72