If you are looking to place a static caravan offsite and onto your own land, finding out about static caravan planning permission is essential.

In May 1999 the European Parliament passed a new law. Relating specifically to siting static caravan regulations, the new law means that siting mobile homes and static caravans on private land may not require planning permission. However, the regulations state that this is subject to certain conditions.

The basics of planning for static caravan siting

The law says that a mobile home or static caravan (referred to as ‘a non-attached structure’) may be sited without the need for planning permission if:

1. It is not registered as where you live (known as ‘your principal place of residence’).
2. The static caravan is for private use and not for any business purpose (known as ‘a leisure pursuit’).
3. The static is not cited in a National Park or A.O.N.B. (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) or another equivalent place.
4. There is a militarily sensitive area close to where the caravan will be sited.
5. There are no more than 5 mobile homes or static caravans on any one property.

In other words, as long as you technically live somewhere else (have another address registered as your home address) and don’t run a business from it, then siting a static caravan in your garden or on private land should be possible without the need for planning permission.

In the UK, we have never heard of any instance of these conditions not being upheld except where there is a pre-existing situation. If in doubt, always consult with your local planning office.

Siting a static caravan in Europe

This rule applies to the whole EU. However, some countries will make it difficult to connect up to services or try and throw up various other spurious restrictions to be aware of, for example:

• In parts of southern France, it’s claimed that static caravans are a fire hazard.
• Portugal tries to say that agricultural land must be used for that purpose and not have a mobile home or static caravan on it.

At South East Static Trader we have experience of this, especially when exporting static caravans to Europe. We’ve worked with static caravan owners to find compromises which work around these problems. If this is relevant for you, please contact us for further details.