Great crested newts: apply for a mitigation licence (A14)
Apply for a licence to do development or other work that may affect great crested newts and find out how much you may need to pay.
Applies to England
Documents
Details
You must apply for a mitigation licence if your work will have impacts on great crested newts (GCN) that would otherwise be illegal, such as:
- capturing, killing, disturbing or injuring them (on purpose or by not taking enough care)
- damaging or destroying their breeding or resting places (even accidentally)
- obstructing access to their resting or sheltering places (on purpose or by not taking enough care)
You should check if you’re working in an area where there is a district level licensing scheme. This offers a quicker option to apply for a GCN mitigation licence.
Find out how great crested newts are protected.
What you need to send
When applying for a mitigation licence, you need to complete the forms available on this page:
- application form (A14) for great crested newt mitigation
- method statement to show what you’ll do to reduce the impacts of the proposed work on great crested newts
- work schedule to show when you’ll do the activities and in what order
You also need to supply:
- a reasoned statement to show that the activity fits the criteria and that there is no satisfactory alternative
- references to show that the ecological consultant has the necessary experience to apply for a mitigation licence (references will not be needed if they’ve held a mitigation licence for the same species in the last 3 years)
If the application is for a phased or multi-plot development, you should supply:
- master plans
- habitat management and maintenance plans
Natural England will decide whether to issue a licence within 30 working days of receiving your application.
Use the European protected species (EPS) licensing policies
As part of your mitigation licence application, you may be able to use the EPS licensing policies to:
- reduce the level of survey you need to carry out
- reduce the mitigation requirements
- improve flexibility on where you create habitats as a compensation measure
Find out when and how to use European protected species policies to benefit EPS.
What you must include in your application
You must:
- use the latest version of the method statement, reasoned statement (if required), work schedule and application form
- complete all mandatory questions on the forms which are marked with *
- include a master plan and habitat management and maintenance plan if your application is phased or multi-plot
- make it clear in the covering email or letter you send with the application if the purpose of your application is preserving public health or public safety
- indicate clearly on both copies of your documents if you submit them by both email and post
On the application form, you must:
- provide the applicant’s email and postal address (Section 1)
- include a site address and grid reference (Section 6)
- indicate whether the named ecologist has held an EPS licence for the same species in the last three years - If not, you must provide two references and details of their experience (Section 10)
- obtain the necessary planning consents and include copies of them - Consents are required even if your application does not need a reasoned statement (Section 11)
- indicate whether your application requires a reasoned statement - If it does not need a reasoned statement, explain why not (Section 11)
- confirm you have no previous wildlife convictions (Section 16)
- have both the named ecologist and applicant complete, sign and date the declaration (Section 16)
On the work schedule, you must:
- include the site name and address, and the submission date
With the method statement, you must:
- include all compulsory figures (Section I)
- separate the figures into individual PDF documents and ensure the date of submission is included on each document (Section I)
How to request a change to an existing licence
You must quote the licence reference number.
For a change of licensee, you must include:
- a letter or email from the previous licensee explaining what is proposed
- a letter or email from the new licensee confirming that they accept the agreed mitigation proposals relating to the licence
- an application form with sections 1, 16a and 16b completed by the new licensee
For a change of named ecologist, you must include:
- a letter or email from the previous ecologist explaining what is proposed
- a letter or email from the new ecologist confirming that they accept the agreed mitigation proposals relating to the licence
- an application form with Sections 2, 10, 16a and 16c completed by the new ecologist
If your licence is annexed, you must:
- complete the modification request form
- have both the ecologist and the licensee sign the form
- include any amended documents or figures, dated appropriately, as stated on your request form (highlight changes within documents and strikeout deleted text)
If your licence is pre-annex - it includes a licensed method statement - you must:
- provide a summary of progress stating what has been completed and what is left to complete
- provide a summary of the animals captured or disturbed during the licensed works so far
- include a list of the changes to the licensed method statement and other documents
- state whether there are any implications for the ‘favourable conservation status’ of the licensed species as a result of the proposed changes
- include an updated method statement, dated appropriately, with all changes clearly highlighted (even if you only need to modify the work schedule)
- include all maps and figures that support your method statement
When you may need to pay
You may need to pay for a new licence, or to make modifications to an existing licence. Natural England will assess your application form and tell you:
- if you need to pay
- how much you’ll pay
Read the terms and conditions for paying for a wildlife licence.
When you do not need to pay
You will not pay for for a licence or a licence change if it’s for:
- use by a volunteer
- preserving public health and safety
- preventing the spread of disease
- preventing serious damage to property
- conservation of a historic property
- wildlife or science conservation
How to pay
Natural England will send you an invoice with payment details when it approves your application. You can pay by:
- electronic bank transfer
- debit or credit card (except American Express) by telephone
- cheque by post
You must include your invoice number with your payment. VAT does not apply.
Natural England will accept a purchase order. You must include your purchase order details on the A14 form if you want to raise one.
How to report your actions
You must report any actions you took using this licence. You must report no later than 2 weeks after your licence expires, even if you’ve taken no action. You may be asked to submit interim reports too. Send your completed form by post or email to Natural England using the details on the form.
Use the right report form
The report form you must use depends on when your licence was granted. If it was granted:
- before summer 2013, use the European protected species return form
- after summer 2013 (it’s an annexed licence), use the report form on this page
Last updated 30 March 2023 + show all updates
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Removed references to the separate charge form. You should enter charge information into section 15 of the A14 form.
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Updated the licence application form to reflect that it now covers derogations under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended).
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We've replaced the work schedule and the licence modification request form. We've removed the charge screening form as this has now been incorporated into the main application form.
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We've replaced the mitigation licence application form (A14).
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We've replaced the mitigation licence application form (A14).
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Added a section on how to use European protected species (EPS) policies to benefit EPS as part of your mitigation licence application.
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Replaced the 2 existing charge screening forms (for new applications and for modifications) with a single form that covers both requests.
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Payment details added. Charge screening forms added for applications and modifications to licences issued before 17 February 2020.
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New great crested newt method statement added.
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Added licence application and modification checklists to Detail section.
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Replaced great crested newt application form A14 with revised version.
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Added updated version of the application form.
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First published.