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Change (vary) a premises licence
You will need to change (vary) your licence details if the details of your premises have changed or the licensable activities you are carrying out on the premises have changed.
If the changes you need to make don't affect our licensing objectives, it may be possible for you to apply for a minor variation which is quicker and costs less than changing the details of your licence.
What parts of a licence can be changed
The areas of a licence which can be changed are:
- the hours of a permitted licensable activity
- adding or removing licensable activities
- amending, adding or removing conditions on a licence
- altering any aspect of the layout of the premises which is shown on the plan
What parts of a licence cannot be changed
You cannot make a change to:
- extend a time limited licence
- transfer the licence from one premises to another
- vary the designated premises supervisor
If you need to make changes to these parts of your licence you may need to apply for a new licence, but you should contact us first.
Who can apply to vary a premises licence
Only the existing premises licence holder, their nominated agent or their solicitor can apply to make a variation to a premises licence.
Costs
To apply for a change to your premises licence you will need to pay an application fee. You may also need to pay an additional person capacity fee for large venues with a capacity of over 5,000 people.
If you currently hold a licence you will need to pay an annual fee to keep your licence.
Application fee
The application fee is a one-off payment you need to make with your application. It will be determined by the rateable value band your property is in. These fees are:
| Rateable value band | Application fee |
|---|---|
| A | £100 |
| B | £190 |
| C | £315 |
| D | £450 |
| E | £635 |
Application fee for selling alcohol
Where the premises fall within Band D or E and are used exclusively or primarily for the selling of alcohol you must pay a higher fee.
| Rateable value band | Application fee |
|---|---|
| D x 2 | £900 |
| E x 2 | £1,905 |
Rateable value bands
The value of your property will tell you what band you are in and how much your application fee will be. If the premises are in the course of construction, they will fall into Band C. If your club premises have no rateable value then you will fall into band A.
The fee bands are:
| Rateable value | Band |
|---|---|
| No rateable value to £4,300 | A |
| £4,301 to £33,000 | B |
| £33,001 to £87,000 | C |
| £87,001 to £125,000 | D |
| £125,001 and above | E |
Additional person capacity fee
If your premises can hold more than 5,000 people you will be required to pay an additional fee:
| Premises capacity | Additional fee |
|---|---|
| 5,000 to 9,999 | £1,000 |
| 10,000 to 14,999 | £2,000 |
| 15,000 to 19,999 | £4,000 |
| 20,000 to 29,999 | £8,000 |
| 30,000 to 39,999 | £16,000 |
| 40,000 to 49,999 | £24,000 |
| 50,000 to 59,999 | £32,000 |
| 60,000 to 69,999 | £40,000 |
| 70,000 to 79,999 | £48,000 |
| 80,000 to 89,999 | £56,000 |
| 90,000 and over | £64,000 |
What you need to provide with your application
It is advisable to gain your own legal advice prior to applying to vary a premises licence to ensure you are fully aware of the correct procedure.
You will need to submit the following:
1. A completed application to vary a premises licence (and privacy statement if applying by post)
You can do this online or by downloading our application form. Your application must show what changes you want to make.
The application form must be signed by the licence holder(s) or by a legal representative.
2. A plan of the premises if you are changing the layout
Applications that request an amendment to the existing plan should submit a new plan of the premises with the requested changes. The plan must be in a specific format following our guidance.
3. Your original premises licence
Send your original premises licence and summary with your application or, if that is not practical, a statement of the reasons for the why not.
4. Confirmation of advertisement of your application
You are required to advertise your application in two ways:
- in a local newspaper
- display a notice on the premises
You should submit confirmation of the newspaper submission with your application and a copy of the newspaper notice as soon as possible.
5. Confirmation that you have served your application to the responsible authorities
If you are applying online this will be done automatically.
If you are not applying online, you must provide a copy of the full application and documents to a number of responsible authorities.
What happens once you have made an application
On the day after an application is received, a 28 day consultation period begins allowing comments (representations) to be made about the application by the responsible authorities and any local residents or interested parties.
During this time, the responsible authorities will work with you to ensure your proposals are in line with their four licensing objectives.
If no comments are received during this period the application will be deemed granted after the last date for representations and your licence will be issued and sent to you.
If relevant representations are received within the 28 day consultation period a public hearing must be held to determine your application. You will be notified in writing telling you when the hearing will be, who has made a representation and what that representation is.
The public hearing will be held within 20 working days after the last date for representation. The hearing date may be extended if we consider it is in the public interest to do so.
Tacit consent will apply
This means that you will be able to act as though your application is granted if you have not heard from us within 20 working days after the last date of representations. You should contact us for an update on your application at the end of your consultation period to confirm the status.
Apply to change (vary) your premises licence
You can apply online to change the details of your premises licence.
Apply by post
Before you send your application by post, you should pay any required fees online first and provide a reference of payment with your submitted application.
You can then download and print all relevant forms and send them to us and copies to all other responsible authorities by post.
How to make an appeal or a complaint
If you want to appeal our decision you should contact us.
Any applicant, responsible authority or person making representation is able to appeal our decision to a Magistrate’s Court within 21 days of the notice of decision.
Members of the public who are experiencing problems with licensed premises should contact us for advice.
