How to Remove an Agricultural Occupancy Condition

The house is yours. The tie still decides who lives there.

Many farmhouses and bungalows were built with an agricultural occupancy condition, often called an agricultural tie. It usually limits who can live there to people working, or last working, in agriculture or forestry, and their families. A tie can reduce the value of the home and make it harder to sell, mortgage or pass on.

Route 1: apply to remove or vary the condition

You can apply to the council under section 73 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to remove or change the condition. The council will want evidence that there is no longer a need for the home for agricultural or forestry workers in the area. Many local plans expect the property to have been marketed for a period at a price that reflects the tie. Check your council's policy before you start.

Route 2: prove the tie has been breached for 10 years

If the home has been lived in by someone who does not meet the condition for 10 continuous years, the breach may now be immune from enforcement. A certificate of lawfulness can confirm that. The evidence has to be strong and cover the whole period.

Watch for a legal agreement

Some ties are also written into a section 106 agreement. That needs its own application to change or discharge the obligation, alongside or instead of the condition.

If you are planning a new home on the farm, read about agricultural workers dwellings first. Our farm planning consultants in Devon and our wider team across the UK can review your title and planning history.

How Foxes Rural can help

We check the condition, any legal agreement and your evidence, then tell you plainly which route gives the best chance and manage the application from start to finish.