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If you are applying for a collector’s licence or a site licence. You may only apply for one type of licence in each council area, but you can apply to run multiple sites. A site licence lets you buy and sell scrap metal from a fixed location within the council area.
A collector’s licence allows you to travel within the council area to collect scrap metal. You may not take this metal back to a site that you run within the council area in order to sell it.
Complete this section if you are an Individual (Sole Trader)or in a Partnership and want a collector’s licence, or a site Licence. It should be filled out in the name of the person who will hold the scrap metal dealer’s licence.
You and every person listed on the application form needs to submit a Basic Disclosure Certificate. You can apply for this certificate.
Complete this section if you intend to operate the business as a limited company, full details of any directors and Company Secretary who are involved in the business including their home address. We also need to know the address of site or sites you want the licence for, as well as the details of each site manager responsible for that site. These details are required by law and also so that you can be contacted if there are any problems
From 4 April 2022, the rules changed if you are applying for a licence for a scrap metal site or scrap metal collector and a tax check must be completed in certain circumstances. A tax code must be provided with this application to allow the Authority to complete a tax check on you before it can issue a licence.
The HMRC has powers to obtain information from licensing authorities. Schedule 23 to Finance Act 2011 (Data Gathering Powers) and Schedule 36 to Finance Act 2008 (Information and Inspection Powers), grant HMRC powers to obtain relevant information from third parties. This includes licensing bodies being required to provide information about licence applicants
If you are in partnership and do not need to complete a tax check, one partner can sign the declaration. However, if your partnership needs to complete a tax check, then both partners need to provide their own tax codes. If you are not sure if you need to provide a tax code you can find out on the GOV.UK site.
Each site where a person carries on a business of buying/selling scrap metal (e.g. a scrap yard), within a Local Authority area must be listed on a Site Licence granted by that Local Authority. Each site must also have a named site manager recorded on the licence. A Site Licence authorises the holder to transport scrap metal to and from licensed sites and collections from business.
A director and Company Secretary are people who have or shares legal responsibility for the operation of the company, including filing returns at Companies House.
In order to carry on your business, you may need to hold other environmental permits or licences that we should know about. For instance, if you carry waste as part of your business it is a legal requirement to register as a waste carrier. This includes transporting waste while travelling from job to job, to a storage place for disposal later, or to a waste disposal company or waste site. For more information on this, or to register call: 03708 506 506 or visit: Register or renew as a waste carrier, broker or dealer.
This section asks if you will be salvaging motor vehicles as part of your work. The Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 brings together the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 1964 together with Part 1 of the Vehicles (Crime) Act 2001, which means you now only need a scrap metal dealers licence.
A site manager is the person who will be in charge of the site on a daily basis. You will probably need a different site manager for each site on the licence. however (An individual may be named in a licence as site manager at more than one site; but no site may have more than one site manager).
We also want to know if you operate or propose to operate a site in another local authority area, along with details of this site, the council which has licensed it or to whom you have applied for a licence.
If your site(s) were established after 1990, then you are required to have planning permission from the council. You will need to tell us if this is the case, and it will be checked with the council planning department.
You need to submit a Basic Disclosure Certificate from Disclosure Scotland along with the application form.
You can apply for this certificate.
This section also asks for details of any other scrap metal licences you hold. Please make sure you include the licence number so that we can check this against the national register.
To be completed if applying for a collector’s licence. – A collector’s licence authorises the licensee to carry out business as a mobile collector in the licensing authority’s area only.
It should be filled out in the name of the person who will hold the scrap metal dealer’s licence. You are asked to provide other details, including the place where you live, so that the council can get in touch with you if necessary.
You need to submit a Basic Disclosure Certificate along with the application form.
You can apply for this certificate.
We also ask for the place where you will store any collected scrap metal before taking it to a licensed site to dispose of it. Please note that you are not allowed to Buy or Sell any metal at this storage site this is a criminal offence.
You will need to ensure that all your vehicle(s) are roadworthy and are properly taxed, insured and otherwise meet the legal requirements to be on the road to carry waste / scrap metal
All applicants are required to supply a passport size photograph of themselves without headgear (except where headgear is worn as part of a religious belief).
A person who has known you for not less than two years and is not a member of your family must endorse the photograph at the rear. The endorsement shall be as follows:
“I (insert name and address) certify that this photograph is a true likeness of (Insert name of applicant)” then sign and date.
This is because the Home Office has decided that you need to tell the council if you have been convicted of certain crimes. Possessing a conviction may not automatically prevent you from having a licence if the offence was unrelated to being a scrap metal dealer or it was a long time ago, and you can convince the council that you are a suitable person.
A Basic Disclosure Certificate is considered to be only valid for a limited time, but can be used to apply to as many types of council as you want within that time. Typically, three months is the longest that you can expect your check to be considered valid.
Disclosure and Barring Service or call: 03000 200 190.
You are asked for the bank details which you will use to pay people for the scrap metal you receive or sell. This is to check that you are not selling the metal for cash, which is illegal. These details will be kept securely by the council
This section asks you to set out any relevant convictions or enforcement activity that has been undertaken against you by the Environment Agency any Local Authority or Natural Resources Wales. It is an offence under the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 to make or recklessly make a false statement. The information listed here will be checked against the Basic Disclosure Certificate from Disclosure Scotland that you are required to submit with the application, along with information retained by the police and the Environment Agency or Natural Resources Wales.
If you intend as part of your business to collect motor vehicles whether full or part motors vehicle(s) you should indicate on the form.
The person(s) who will hold the scrap metal dealers licence needs to sign and date the declaration, as do the other people named on the form. Other than the site managers who need to sign in the Site Manager section in Section 2 of the application form. This section also explains that the council has to share some of these details with the police, Environment Agency, or Natural Resources Wales when checking whether the applicant(s) is a suitable person to hold a licence. Some of the information will also be displayed on a public register with the Environment Agency
There is a fee to apply for the licence (as above) and details are on the application of how you can pay this fee. The fee varies from council to council as it reflects their costs of processing the form and checking that people are doing what the licence requires. Applications cannot be accepted unless the correct fee has been paid.
Two from Box A (one of which must to a Photo ID) and one from Box B.
Box A
| Documents | Notes | Issue date and validity |
|---|---|---|
| Passport | - | Must be still valid |
| Photo Driving Licence | UK EEA | Must be still valid |
| Birth Certificate | - | - |
Box B, proof of address
| Documents | Notes | Issue date and validity |
|---|---|---|
| Telephone bill | UK (Not mobile telephone) | Issued in last 3 months |
| Utility Bill: water, electric or gas | UK | Issued in last 3 months |
| Council tax statement | UK and Channel Island | Issued in the last 12 months |
| HMRC document | - | Issued in the last 6 months |
| Mortgage statement | UK or EEA | Issued in the last 12 months |
| Bank or building society statement | UK and Channel Island or EEA | Issued in last 3 months |
| Bank or building society account opening confirmation letter | UK | Must be still valid |
| Credit card statement | UK or EEA | Issued in last 3 months |
| Financial statement eg pension or endowment | UK | Issued in the last 12 months |
| P45 or P60 statement | UK and Channel Islands | Issued in the last 12 months |
| Work permit or visa | UK | Issued in the last 12 months valid up to licence expiry date |
| Benefits statement eg child benefit, pension | - | Issued in last 3 months |
| Central or local government or government agency or local authority document giving entitlement eg from the Department from Work and Pensions, the employment service HMRC | UK and Channel Islands | Issued in last 3 months |
| EU National ID Card | - | Must be still valid |
| Card carrying the PASS accreditation logo | UK and Channel Islands | Must be still valid |
Please use this list to check you have the requested documentation to submit with your application.
Basic Disclosure Certificate (original copy)
Please note that where applications are being made on behalf of a company, all directors, company secretaries and site managers are required to submit a Basic Disclosure
Relevant fee
For further help contact the Licensing team – licensing@salford.gov.uk
Photographic ID for each person
For example driving licence or passport
Proof of address
For example bank statement, council tax bill
Evidence of bank account details
For example a bank statement
For collectors licences we require you to supply a passport size photograph duly signed on the back.
For collectors’ licences we require your vehicle registration documents (V5 logbook & MOT), insurance certificate and waste carriers licence. All valid at time of submission.