Pavement licence for outdoor tables: cost, timeline and how to apply before Easter 2027

The first warm Saturday of spring, guests ask for a table outside, and the only thing between you and four extra tables on the pavement is a council licence you have not applied for.

In England, tables and chairs on the pavement outside a restaurant, café or pub need a pavement licence from your council under the Business and Planning Act 2020. The fee is capped at £500 for a first application and £350 if you already hold a licence for the premises. The council consults for 14 days and then has 14 days to decide; if it misses that deadline, the licence is granted automatically for two years. Christmas Day, Good Friday and bank holidays do not count. To trade outside by Good Friday, 26 March 2027, send a complete application by Thursday 25 February 2027 at the latest.

Last checked: 5 November 2026.

Do I need a pavement licence for tables outside my restaurant?

You need one if the furniture goes on the public highway, which includes most pavements outside shops and restaurants. Land you own or lease, such as a forecourt inside your boundary or a pub garden, does not need a pavement licence, though it may need planning permission. If you are not sure where the highway ends, ask the council's highways team before you buy furniture.

Who can apply: any business using its premises as a pub or bar, or to sell food or drink to eat on or off the premises (section 1 of the Act). The government's pavement licences guidance (published 2 April 2024) lists pubs, cafés, bars, restaurants, snack bars and coffee shops. Salons and shops that do not sell food or drink use a different route under the Highways Act 1980.

What a pavement licence covers (paragraph 1.6 of the guidance):

• tables, chairs, benches and other seating
• counters or stalls for selling or serving food or drink
• umbrellas, barriers, heaters and similar items

All of it must be removable. Fixed structures and advertising boards are not covered: A-boards need separate highways and advertising consent.

What it does not cover:

• Alcohol outside. Your premises licence decides whether you can serve drinks in the outdoor area and until when. See our liquor licence guide.
• Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This scheme is England only. Ask your council which regime applies.

Once granted, the licence also gives you deemed planning permission for the furniture while the licence lasts (guidance, 1.13).

How much does a pavement licence cost?

The law sets a ceiling, and councils set their own fee up to it. Under section 2 of the Business and Planning Act 2020, as amended by the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 from 31 March 2024, the maximum is:

• £500 for a first application;
• £350 for any application from someone who already holds a pavement licence for the same premises, "whether or not it is a renewal application". Adding two tables to an existing licence falls in the cheaper band.

What councils charged when we checked, on 5 November 2026:

Most councils we checked charge the maximum, but not all. Fees are usually not refunded if the application is refused, and the licence length matters as much as the fee: £500 for two years is half the yearly cost of £500 for one. In Leeds, a licence ends on 31 March, so a Leeds terrace needs renewing every year just before Easter.

Budget for insurance too. The Act lets each council set the public liability cover it wants. Oxford and Gloucester both ask for at least £5 million.

Is it worth it? A worked example. A café adds four two-person tables outside for a two-year licence costing £500. If an outdoor cover spends £18 and the café keeps £12 of that after food and drink costs, it needs about 42 extra covers over two years to pay back the fee (£500 ÷ £12). That is about 21 tables of two, fewer than one a week across two six-month seasons. Use your own spend and margin; our menu price calculator works out gross profit per dish.

How long does a pavement licence take?

Up to 28 days from the day you apply, not counting Christmas Day, Good Friday or bank holidays in England. The government guidance mixes "calendar days" and "excluding public holidays"; section 9(5) of the Act settles it by excluding those three kinds of day from both periods.

1. Day 0: you apply. The application counts as made on the day you send it to the council. The same day, fix a notice of the application to the front of the premises where passers-by can read it, and keep it there for the whole consultation. A missing notice is one of the grounds the guidance gives for revoking a licence later, so photograph it on the day.
2. Days 1 to 14: public consultation. The council publishes the application, and anyone can comment.
3. Days 15 to 28: determination. The council grants the licence, with or without conditions, or refuses it. There is no statutory appeal against a refusal (guidance, 5.7), though some councils offer an internal review.
4. No decision by day 28: the licence is deemed granted for two years, starting the day after, subject to the national conditions and any local conditions the council published before you applied.

Working back from Easter 2027. Good Friday is 26 March 2027 and Easter Monday 29 March.

The safe date is early February. An incomplete application can be sent back, and a missing plan or insurance certificate costs you the margin. Apply in January and the licence is in place well before Easter weekend, a more realistic first test of a terrace than Mother's Day on Sunday 7 March, which falls while it is still winter; our Mother's Day guide plans that lunch on indoor covers. If you are opening a new site, put the licence in your opening timeline.

When is it worth having outdoor tables in England?

April is drier and sunnier than most owners assume, but it is still cold.

Our analysis of Met Office HadUK-Grid England monthly series, downloaded 5 November 2026:

Source: Met Office England sunshine, maximum temperature and rainfall series, averaged by month. Contains Met Office data, Open Government Licence.

What it means for a terrace:

• April was the driest month of the year on average from 2016 to 2025, and sunnier than September. It is also 5°C cooler than September. Heaters, blankets and a windbreak decide whether an April table is sold.
• Spring has got sunnier. April averaged 184 sunshine hours over the last ten years against 164 in the 1991 to 2020 baseline.
• May to September is the core season. A two-year licence covers two of them, which is why a council granting the full two years is worth asking for. The guidance expects councils to grant two years unless there is a good reason not to (paragraph 1.13).
• October is the wettest month in the table. If your licence lets you choose days and hours, you do not have to staff the terrace every day to keep it.

What conditions come with a pavement licence?

Every licence carries two national conditions, plus any local ones.

• No obstruction. The furniture must leave a clear route for pedestrians. The guidance points councils to the Inclusive Mobility standard: 2,000mm is the minimum width "that should be provided" in normal circumstances, and 1,500mm "could be regarded as the minimum acceptable distance between two obstacles". Measure your pavement before you choose tables.
• Smoke-free seating. You must make reasonable provision for seats where smoking is not allowed, and the guidance asks for a 2m gap between smoking and non-smoking areas wherever possible.
• Local conditions. Hours, furniture style, barriers and clearing up are common. Read them before you apply: a deemed licence is still subject to them.

The council can serve a notice if you breach a condition, then revoke the licence or remove the furniture itself and charge you. Furniture put out with no licence can be removed, stored and, after three months unpaid, disposed of.

Pavement licence application checklist

PAVEMENT LICENCE CHECKLIST (ENGLAND)

Before you apply
[ ] Confirm the area is public highway, not your own land
[ ] Read the council's local conditions and fee: £___
[ ] Measure the pavement; leave at least 1.5m clear, 2m if possible
[ ] Choose removable furniture; no A-boards in the application
[ ] Plan smoke-free seating (2m from smoking area where possible)
[ ] Public liability insurance certificate (many councils: £5m)
[ ] Premises licence covers alcohol in the outdoor area, if needed

The application
[ ] Site plan with the area outlined in red and measurements
[ ] Furniture layout and photos of the furniture
[ ] Days and hours you want to trade outside
[ ] Sent to the council by email or online form; date: ___
[ ] Site notice fixed to the premises the SAME DAY
[ ] Notice stays up until the consultation ends: ___

After
[ ] Decision due (28 days, excluding bank holidays): ___
[ ] No decision by then? Licence deemed granted for two years
[ ] Expiry date in the diary; existing-holder fee £350 or less
[ ] Staff briefed on the clear route and closing-time pack-down

Can TablePort handle this for you?

The licence is yours to apply for; TablePort helps you use the terrace once it is granted:

1. Add the terrace to your floor plan. Bookings sit on the same floor plan the POS uses, so outdoor tables show next to the dining room.
2. Choose which tables book online. Mark which tables guests can book online, and leave the terrace for walk-ins on uncertain days. Staff can still seat any free table by hand.
3. Let the terrace order for itself. Run QR order and pay on the patio and keep server-led service inside; you choose which sections use it.

The limit: TablePort does not apply for, track or renew your licence, so keep the expiry date in your own diary. See TablePort Reservations.