Permissions (CRR firms)

Subject to any transitional relief, forms and templates applicable before 11pm Thursday 31 December 2020 should be read in conjunction with Supervisory Statement (SS) 2/19, which sets out how the PRA expects firms to interpret EU-based references in reporting and disclosure requirements and regulatory transactions forms.

We have the power to exercise various discretions on capital requirements, using the permissions powers available to us under the Capital Requirements Regulations (CRR) and sections 144G and 192XC of FSMA. We assess applications on a case-by-case basis against the criteria or conditions set out in relevant CRR article title or PRA rule and, where applicable, other policy materials (e.g. PRA supervisory statements). We will also take into account our statutory duty to promote the safety and soundness of firms.

Dual regulated firms (firms regulated by both the PRA and the FCA) must apply to the PRA for permissions. Application fees are only required for permissions for new CRR models. These are set out in the Fees Part of the PRA Rulebook.

Applications should be submitted in good time, and we will try to meet request to respond by a particular date. However, this may not be possible if an application raises complex issues. We acknowledge all applications that we receive.

What should a Permissions application include?

We find it helpful for firms to provide the following information as part of an application for a Permission:

• a list of all the entities which require the Permission, 
• details of the CRR article title or PRA rule under which the application is being made
• detailed information about the rationale for the Permission, including, for example, whether it is part of a wider group transaction/restructure
• detailed responses with respect to the CRR article or PRA rule conditions and relevant Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS), Implementing Technical Standards (ITS) or relevant Policy or Supervisory Statement
• confirmation that the firm is content for the Permission to be published on the Financial Services Register if approved and, if not, an explanation of why it would be inappropriate to do so, addressing the requirements set out in HMT Regulation 43 
• important timelines.

Application forms and notes

Permissions (CRR firms): general application form

Permissions (CRR firms): general application form

Send your completed application form, together with any supporting documentation required, to PRA-waivers@bankofengland.co.uk.

Firms are not required to provide details of a precedent written notice when applying for a Permission.

We have set out the format and content of the supporting documentation we expect to receive for certain types of Permissions application in the documents below:

When making an Art 26(3) application, firms are required to submit a pre-issuance notification (PIN) form as part of the application. The PIN form can be found on the Capital instruments – pre/post-issuance notification (PIN) page. 

Model change notifications

Where CRR permissions have been granted for the internal ratings based (IRB) approach, the internal model method (IMM) or the internal model approach (IMA), we expect firms notifying us of changes to such approaches to complete the following pro-forma:

Pro-forma for the notification of changes to IRB, IMM and IMA permissions under the CRR

Please send the completed pro-forma, together with any required supporting documentation to CRRModelPermissions@bankofengland.co.uk. 

Please copy in your supervisory contact when submitting the pro-forma, including the firm’s FRN in the subject.

What happens once a decision is reached?

If we decide to grant a Permission, we will issue an approval letter and a written notice setting out the permission, which entities it applies to and the time period for which it is valid.

In some cases, the approval of a CRR permission may mean we need to impose or vary a firm’s requirements under section 55M of the Financial Services and Markets Act (FSMA). We will consult the FCA before we do this. These requirements will be set out in the written notice. 

Published Permissions

We have a statutory duty to publish details of Permissions we approve, unless we consider it inappropriate or unnecessary to do so.

The majority of Permissions are published in full. Certain permissions are published in abridged form at the affected firm’s request. 

We will also update the Financial Services Register with the firm’s written notice of being granted the CRR permission.

19 April 2021: The consolidated list of Waivers, CRR and Solvency II Permissions granted by us to PRA-authorised firms is no longer being provided. If you wish to discuss your requirements for this report please contact the following address: PRA-Waivers@bankofengland.co.uk. Alternatively, please see the FCA Register which is the primary source of PRA Waivers and EU Permissions data and is available for external parties. Firms are not required to provide details of a precedent direction or written notice when applying for a waiver or modification of PRA rules, a CRR, or Solvency II Permission.