What is a Compulsory Purchase Order?
A compulsory purchase order (CPO) lets a council, government department or other body with legal powers buy land or property without the owner's agreement. Owners are paid compensation.
Article updated: November 2026
What Exactly is a Compulsory Purchase Order?
A compulsory purchase order is a legal order which can be used to acquire land and property from its owner whether they wish to sell it or not. A compulsory purchase order is known as a CPO for short.
A compulsory purchase order can be used to take land where it is in the public interest or for the greater public good as it is sometimes known. They can be used for projects such as new roads, new railways and new housing amongst other things.
Who Can Do This?
A compulsory purchase order can only be made by certain organisations that have the legal power to do so. They can be issued by both public and private organisations.
Compulsory purchase orders can be used by local councils, development authorities, Government departments, utility companies and transport operators amongst other bodies.
Organisations that use CPOs are known as acquiring authorities.
Compulsory purchase orders are not always used when an organisation needs to acquire land. It can be done by agreement instead, where the owner sells their property voluntarily without a formal CPO procedure. Government guidance expects acquiring authorities to try to buy the land by agreement where possible.
An authority must have a confirmed CPO before it can use that order to take the land. The acquiring authority must be able to demonstrate why a CPO is needed and follow a specific legal process to use one.
Examples
Compulsory purchase orders can be made in the case of new infrastructure projects. This can include new roads, road widening schemes, new railways and airport expansion schemes.
They can also be used for projects such as power stations, telecommunications networks, reservoirs, water supply networks and flood defences.
Compulsory purchase orders can be used in connection with official schemes to regenerate an area. This can include demolishing old housing and building new houses.
How a CPO is Made
Property can only be acquired using a CPO when a specific legal procedure is followed. The Acquisition of Land Act 1981 sets out procedures for CPOs. Compulsory purchase powers can also come through an order under the Transport and Works Act 1992, a development consent order under the Planning Act 2008, or a Hybrid Act of Parliament.
The CPO process has six main stages:
- The acquiring authority makes preliminary enquiries to find out if and where land may need to be acquired to complete its planned project.
Property owners and others who may be affected may be required to give certain information about their interest in the land.
The acquiring authority may hold a consultation on their plans. - The acquiring authority must formally resolve to use its compulsory purchase powers. It prepares the CPO documents.
The CPO has no effect until a confirming authority approves it. The confirming authority is generally the relevant government minister or an inspector appointed by that minister.
- The acquiring authority gives formal notice that its CPO is about to be sent for approval.
The authority will usually invite owners to negotiate a sale without using the CPO.
The property owner will also have the opportunity to make representations and objections to the CPO to the confirming authority.
- The confirming authority considers the CPO. If an owner, tenant or occupier of the land, or someone who may be entitled to compensation because of the scheme, still objects, and the objection has not been withdrawn or set aside, the confirming authority either holds a public inquiry or gives each of those objectors a hearing. It can choose to deal with them in writing instead, but only if all of those objectors and the acquiring authority agree.
- A decision is made. The confirming authority will decide whether to confirm, reject or modify the CPO.
- Once a CPO is approved, the authority can begin the process of taking the land.
An objector has six weeks from the day the confirmation notice appears in a newspaper to challenge the CPO's validity in the High Court.
How to Object
You can object to a compulsory purchase order being used to compulsorily purchase your land or property.
The formal notice of the CPO says where to send a written objection and gives at least 21 days to do so. An objection only about the amount of compensation may be disregarded.
Before a CPO is made, affected owners can raise concerns with the acquiring authority about its plans.
Can I be Forced to Sell?
Yes. A property owner can be forced to sell after the CPO is confirmed and the authority follows the legal steps to take the property.
Being told that an authority has made a CPO does not mean it can take your property straight away.
It can take several years from the first notice until the authority takes the property.
A blight notice may require the acquiring authority to buy your home earlier than it planned. In England, an owner who lives in the home may be able to serve one if the home is included in a CPO. A landlord who owns it only as an investment cannot.
Compensation
When land is acquired through a CPO, its owner has a right to compensation. The rules for working out the amount are often called the compensation code, but there is no single document by that name.
The provisions for compensation differ depending on whether the property is residential, business or agricultural property.
The land is valued at what it would sell for on the open market. The aim is to leave the owner no better or worse off financially once all compensation is taken into account.
Compensation may also cover moving costs. If only part of an owner's land is taken, it may cover a fall in the value of the land they keep. An owner who does not live in their investment property has a limited right to claim fees and other costs linked to buying a replacement property. People living in a property may qualify for a home loss payment. Businesses may be entitled to compensation for the cost of relocation or business closure.
Reasonable professional fees for preparing and negotiating a compensation claim can generally be reclaimed. The cost of objecting is normally paid by the objector, though a successful objector may be awarded reasonable costs.
If the owner and the acquiring authority cannot agree on compensation, the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) can decide the dispute.
Further Advice
Property lawyers and chartered surveyors with CPO experience can explain an owner's rights, including how to object, respond to the authority and claim compensation.
Compulsory purchase orders are used in England and Wales.
Compulsory purchase system guidance on GOV.UK
Scotland also uses CPOs, but its rules differ from those in England and Wales.
Compulsory purchase orders introduction on gov.scot
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