The Building Safety Levy applies to residential building control applications from 1 October 2026

The Building Safety Levy applies to building control applications submitted on or after 1 October 2026 for residential developments in England. The trigger is the submission date of the application.

Affordable and non-profit housing is exempt. Everything else in residential development carries the levy, and the small housebuilder carries it on the same terms as the volume builder. Because the trigger is the submission date of the application, a scheme can sit either side of the line depending on when its application goes in.

Developers and named clients on the application

Developers and named clients on building control applications, including small housebuilders. Being named on the application is what attaches the levy, so it pays to know who is named before submission.

Decisions on applications either side of the date

• List residential building control applications you expect to submit around 1 October 2026.
• Check each scheme against the affordable and non-profit housing exemption.
• Confirm who is named as developer or client on each application.
• Price the levy into schemes whose applications go in on or after the date.
• Keep the submission date evidence for each application with the scheme file.

The Building Safety Act 2022 system

The levy sits inside the building safety regime that this system covers.

Verified 19 August 2026.

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