Our Prices

Our Prices - Licensing Applications

Licensing Applications for Business Premises

Licensing services are provided by Mr Richard Barca, the Senior Partner of the firm, whose hourly rate for this type of work is £300 + VAT(currently at 20%). He will be assisted from time to time, by a trainee solicitor at an hourly rate of £150 + VAT.

Further details of the members of our team including qualifications and experience can be accessed here

Our Services

We offer a full service for all types of Licensing Applications, including Applications for a premises licence under Section 17 of the Licensing Act 2003 and applications to vary a premises licence under Section 34 of the Licensing Act 2003.

The work we will undertake for you includes the following:

  • Taking your instructions

  • Advising as to how you can promote the licensing objectives within your premises Licence Application

  • Advising on the type of plans you are required to accompany your Application

  • Providing guidance on the fee levels payable to the licensing authority

  • Completing and submitting the Application

  • Preparing copies of the premises Licence Application for disclosure to the responsible authorities and serving copies of the Application on the responsible authorities.

  • Drafting the notices advertising the premises Licence Application and submitting the notice to the local newspaper.

  • Arranging for you to display the notice(s) advertising the premises licence Application and advising as to where and how this should be done in order to comply with the requirements of the Licensing Act 2003.

  • Providing a Designated Premises Supervisor {DPS) consent form for signature by a personal licence holder proposed by yourself.

  • Checking the licence once granted and correcting any errors with the licensing authority.

Our Fees

We do not work on fixed fees for these types of Applications and the hourly rates detailed above will apply. Our final fee will reflect the nature and complexity of the Application and the amount of work that is involved and fall within one of the following 3 categories:

  1. Simple Applications: £900 - £1,500 + VAT (requiring 3-5 hours of work);

  2. Applications of Medium complexity: £2,400 - £6,000 + VAT (requiring 8- 20 hours of work)

  3. Applications of High complexity: £6,000 - £15,000 + VAT(requiring 20-50 hours of work) 

Factors affecting complexity include:

  1. Whether there is a cumulative impact policy in place;

  2. Location of the Premises i.e. in a residential or commercial area;

  3. Size of the Premises and number of customers

  4. The number of objections raised.

The above fees do not include:

  • Disbursements (see below for further details)

  • Obtaining suitable plans.

  • Attending pre-consultation meetings with the Licensing Authority or Responsible Authorities, nor their fee for this meeting.

  • Dealing with or advising you in relation to queries or representations received from either the responsible authorities or other interested parties

  • Advising you on varying the licence

  • Attendance and representation at a licensing sub­committee hearing of the responsible authority.If representations are received and attendance and representation at a licensing sub-committee is required then we will provide a separate fee estimate for this work which will be charged at an hourly rate.

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as the application fee. We will pay the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. Not all disbursements are subject to VAT as indicated below, but we will notify you of any changes:

  • Application fee (payable to licensing authority): 
    Calculated in various ways e.g. on the rateable value of the Application premises; range £350-5000 (No VAT)

  • Advertising fee: Determined by the service providers; range £400-600 +VAT 

  • Special delivery fee to serve the application £9 – 18, related to weight of package

  • Printing additional copies of plans if necessary; £100-300 + VAT

Application and Advertising vary depending on the individual premises and its location. The fees can on occasion be higher than the ranges given above. We will give you a more accurate figure for each item as soon as we are able to do so.


How long will my application take?

Matters usually take 8 – 15 weeks from receipt of full instructions from you. This estimate is on the basis that the Application is relatively straightforward and you are able to provide all the necessary documents promptly. 

If your matter is more complex, e.g. there is substantial opposition from interested parties, or if there is a delay in receiving the documents we require, it may take longer to complete.