Guidance

Appeal a decision by the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) about residential property or agricultural land and drainage

Updated 5 December 2024

About this guide

This guide helps you appeal a decision made by the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) about a residential property or agricultural land and drainage case.

The guidance explains how to:

• correct minor errors
• apply to have the decision cancelled – known as having the decision ‘set aside’
• appeal the decision – appeals are made to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber)
• apply to delay enforcement of the decision during an appeal – sometimes known as a ‘stay’
• get further help and guidance

Correct a minor error

The tribunal can correct minor errors, for example:

• minor mistakes, such as misspelt names or addresses
• accidentally not including something in a decision, instruction or document

If you believe that the tribunal has made a minor error that you want to be corrected, complete and send a copy of Form Order 1 to the tribunal office that has been dealing with the case. Send a copy of the form to all other parties.

If the tribunal agrees that there should be an amendment, it will either re-send the document as corrected or it will send a correction certificate.

Have the decision cancelled

If the tribunal makes a final decision that closes the case, you can ask it to cancel that decision (or part of it). This is known as ‘setting the decision aside’.

If the tribunal agrees to set aside a decision, it will then issue a new decision. However, it will only do this if it is in the interests of justice. In some cases, it might be necessary for the tribunal to rehear the case.

Before setting aside, the tribunal will also need to be satisfied that one or more of the following conditions is met:

1. A document relating to the proceedings was not sent to, or was not received at an appropriate time, by a party or a party’s representative.
2. A document relating to the proceedings was not sent to, or was not received by the tribunal at an appropriate time.
3. A party, or a party’s representative, was not present at a hearing related to the proceedings.
4. There has been some other procedural error in the proceedings.

To ask the tribunal to cancel the decision, or part of it, you must send a request on Form Order 1. The tribunal must receive your form within 28 days of the date that either:

• the notice of decision was sent to you
• the date the reasons for the decision were sent to you, if not sent with the notice

The date that the notice of decision or reasons for the decision were sent to you will be in the covering letter or email.

You should also send a copy of the request to all other parties.

Appeal the decision

Before you can appeal to the Upper Tribunal, you must first apply for permission to appeal from the First-tier Tribunal.

Apply for permission to appeal

To apply for permission, complete Form RP PTA. Send your completed form to the relevant regional tribunal office, as listed in the form. You must also send a copy of your application to the other parties.

You can apply to delay the effect of the tribunal’s decision or any actions required by the decision – this is sometimes called a ‘stay’. If you want to do this, you must apply at the same time as your request for permission to appeal.

Time limits

The tribunal must receive your application to appeal within 28 days of the date they sent their reasons for the decision to you.

If you miss the time for appeal then you can ask the tribunal to extend the time. Any request to extend the time must be made as soon as possible and should explain the delay saying why the application was not received in time.

What to include

The application must:

• identify what decision of the tribunal you want to appeal
• explain why you think the decision was wrong and why you want to appeal
• say what result you wish to achieve
• confirm that you have sent a copy of your application to the other parties

The First-tier Tribunal’s review

Once the First-tier Tribunal receive your application for permission to appeal, it will decide whether to review the decision in whole or in part. The tribunal will only review the decision if it believes that the appeal is likely to succeed.

If the tribunal decides to review the decision

The First-tier Tribunal may:

• correct accidental errors in the decision or in a record of the decision
• amend the reasons given for the decision
• cancel (‘set aside’) the decision and re-decide the matter (or refer it to the Upper Tribunal)
• decide no changes to the decision are needed

The tribunal may ask for further information or evidence from any of the parties before making a decision on review. If they decide without asking other parties for further information, they will tell them they can apply to cancel the action and ask for the decision to be reviewed again.

If the tribunal make a new decision on review, or corrects an earlier decision, you can also apply for permission to appeal that decision. The same time limits apply.

However, you cannot ask for permission to appeal the tribunal deciding to:

• review or not to review an earlier decision
• take no action or not take a particular action following a review
• not cancel an earlier decision
• refer or not to refer a matter to the Upper Tribunal

If the tribunal decides not to review the decision

The tribunal must then decide if it will grant you permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal. They will grant permission if they believe there is a chance your appeal will succeed. They will tell you once they have made their decision.

Appeal to the Upper Tribunal

How you can appeal to the Upper Tribunal depends on whether the First-tier Tribunal gave you permission to appeal.

If you got permission to appeal, you can file notice of the appeal using Form T601. The Upper Tribunal must receive this within one month of the First-tier Tribunal sending the permission. The date it was sent will be on the covering letter or email.

If you did not get permission to appeal from the First-tier Tribunal, you can ask the Upper Tribunal for permission. Use form T602 to ask for permission to appeal from the Upper Tribunal. The Upper Tribunal must receive this within 14 days of the First-tier Tribunal sending their refusal of permission. The date it was sent will be on the covering letter or email.

You can file the notice or send your application for permission using the HMCTS E-Filing service or by post to:

Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber)
5th floor, Rolls Building
7 Rolls Buildings
Fetter Lane
London
EC4A 1NL

For more information read the full guidance about how to apply or appeal to the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber).

Apply to delay enforcement of the decision during an appeal

When you apply for permission to appeal, you can also apply for any enforcement of the decision to be delayed until after the appeal is decided.

This is sometimes called a ‘stay’ of implementation or enforcement. If successful, it will suspend the effect of the tribunal decision and stop any action that has been ordered.

You must apply to delay enforcement at the same time you apply for permission to appeal. Apply in writing, giving your reasons why the delay is necessary. You must also send this to the other party or parties.

Get help or guidance

For more information and links to application forms, see the guide about how to solve a residential property dispute.

If there is anything about the process that you do not understand, contact the regional tribunal office.

The tribunal’s procedures are governed by statutory rules called the Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (Property Chamber) Rules 2013.

Tribunal decisions are published on GOV.UK, unless a party makes a written request that this should not be done.

For advice on how to present your case, or if you need to understand more about the law, you can consult a solicitor or Citizen’s Advice.

Citizens Advice

A charity and network of local charities, offering free, confidential advice online, over the phone, and in person. They offer advice on housing issues, such as tenants’ rights and responsibilities.

www.citizensadvice.org.uk