Upper Tribunal (AAC) Forms UK: UT1 to UT16 Explained

At a glance

• What it hears: appeals from certain First-tier Tribunal decisions — social security and child support, mental health, special educational needs and disability, war pensions and armed forces compensation, General Regulatory Chamber cases, and more — plus some decisions made directly by bodies such as the Disclosure and Barring Service and the Traffic Commissioner. Check GOV.UK's overview for the full list.
• Permission is usually required: under section 11 of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, most appeals to the Upper Tribunal need permission, sought first from the First-tier Tribunal.
• First deadline: GOV.UK states you usually have 28 days from the decision to ask the First-tier Tribunal for permission — check the notice of decision, since chamber rules vary.
• Second deadline: once permission is granted or refused, rule 21 of the Tribunal Procedure (Upper Tribunal) Rules 2008 (SI 2008/2698) generally gives you one month to get your form to the Upper Tribunal — some case types (for example certain immigration and asylum cases) have shorter limits.
• The forms: GOV.UK's Administrative Appeals Chamber collection currently runs from UT1 to UT16, plus judicial review forms JR1, JR2 and JRC1 — each tied to a specific First-tier Tribunal chamber or decision-maker.
• E-filing: for proceedings starting on or after 4 December 2023, cases where a party is legally represented or is a government department, agency or public body must use the HMCTS E-Filing service.
• Beyond the Upper Tribunal: section 13 of the same Act allows a further appeal, with permission and subject to a "second appeals test," to the Court of Appeal or relevant appellate court.

What is the Administrative Appeals Chamber?

The Administrative Appeals Chamber (AAC) is one of the chambers of the Upper Tribunal, the tier that sits above the First-tier Tribunal in the tribunal system created by the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007. GOV.UK's overview explains that you may be able to appeal to the AAC if you think there was a legal problem with a decision made against you by certain lower tribunals and organisations — including cases about social security or child support, war pensions and armed forces compensation, mental health, special educational needs or disabilities, disputes heard by the General Regulatory Chamber, decisions by the Disclosure and Barring Service, and decisions by the Traffic Commissioner. GOV.UK also maintains a fuller table of case types the chamber deals with, since the list above is not exhaustive.

Criminal injuries compensation cases follow a different process, and if your case was heard in Northern Ireland and concerned social security or war pensions, you apply to Northern Ireland Commissioners rather than the AAC. This page covers the England and Wales route.

The forms used in this chamber are the mechanism by which an appellant — an individual, or in some cases a public body such as the Secretary of State, HM Revenue and Customs or a local authority — starts the process. Each form is tied to a particular combination of subject matter and decision-maker, so identifying the right one is a necessary first step, not a formality.

Do you need permission to appeal?

Section 11 of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 gives most parties a right to appeal a First-tier Tribunal decision to the Upper Tribunal on a point of law — but that right can only be exercised with permission. A small category of "excluded decisions" (including certain decisions made under section 9 of the Act about review or setting aside) fall outside this right entirely.

The two-stage permission process

1. Ask the First-tier Tribunal first. You normally ask the tribunal that made the decision you are challenging for permission to appeal. GOV.UK's guidance says this is usually within 28 days of the decision, though the precise deadline depends on the procedure rules of the chamber involved — check your decision notice, or ask the tribunal directly.
2. If refused, apply to the Upper Tribunal. If the First-tier Tribunal refuses permission, does not admit your application, or grants permission on limited grounds only, you can apply to the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber) directly, using the relevant UT form.

If you are appealing a decision made directly by an organisation — rather than by a tribunal — permission is not always needed. GOV.UK notes one significant exception: appeals against a Disclosure and Barring Service decision still require permission from the Upper Tribunal before you can proceed.

Time limits — check these before you do anything else

Deadlines in this chamber are enforced strictly, and there are two separate clocks running at different stages.

Asking the First-tier Tribunal for permission

GOV.UK's guidance states you usually have to ask the tribunal that made the decision for permission to appeal within 28 days of the decision. Because this deadline is set by the procedure rules of the specific First-tier Tribunal chamber that decided your case, always confirm the exact date with the tribunal or on your decision notice rather than assuming 28 days applies universally.

Applying to the Upper Tribunal (rule 21)

Once the First-tier Tribunal has dealt with your permission application, rule 21 of the Tribunal Procedure (Upper Tribunal) Rules 2008 (SI 2008/2698) governs how long you then have to get your application to the Upper Tribunal itself. The general rule, at rule 21(3)(b), is that your application must be received by the Upper Tribunal no later than one month after the date the First-tier Tribunal sent you notice of its refusal of permission to appeal (or refusal to admit your application). A small number of case types have different limits set out in the same rule — for example, certain immigration and asylum cases where the appellant is in the United Kingdom have a 14-day limit, and cases under section 4 of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 have three months.

GOV.UK's practical guidance mirrors this: once you have permission from the First-tier Tribunal, you should send the completed appeal form to the address on the form within one month of getting permission; if you are refused permission, you have one month to apply to the Upper Tribunal directly instead.

Late applications

If you provide your application after the deadline, rule 21(6) requires you to include a request for an extension of time and an explanation for the delay. The Upper Tribunal will not admit a late application unless it agrees to extend time. Do not assume a late application will automatically be accepted — treat every deadline as fixed and seek advice quickly if you are already out of time.

The Upper Tribunal appeal forms: which one applies to you

HM Courts & Tribunals Service publishes a dedicated form for each combination of First-tier Tribunal chamber (or decision-maker) and appellant type. The table below reflects GOV.UK's current Administrative Appeals Chamber forms collection.

| Form | Used for | |------|----------| | UT1 | Individual appellants — First-tier Tribunal (Social Entitlement Chamber): social security, child support, tax credits, housing benefit, council tax benefit | | UT2 | Secretary of State, HMRC or a local authority appealing the same Social Entitlement Chamber decisions | | UT3 | Mental health cases decided by the First-tier Tribunal in England | | UT4 | Special educational needs and disability decisions (First-tier Tribunal, Health, Education and Social Care Chamber) | | UT5 | Care standards and primary health lists cases | | UT6 | War Pensions and Armed Forces Compensation Chamber decisions — individual appellants | | UT7 | War Pensions and Armed Forces Compensation Chamber decisions — Secretary of State | | UT8 | Decisions of the Mental Health Review Tribunal for Wales | | UT9 | Decisions of the Special Educational Needs Tribunal for Wales / Education Tribunal for Wales | | UT10 | Disclosure and Barring Service decisions (England and Wales) | | UT11 | First-tier Tribunal (General Regulatory Chamber) decisions, excluding information rights cases | | UT12 / UT12NI | Traffic Commissioner decisions (UT12NI for Department for Infrastructure goods vehicle operator licensing decisions in Northern Ireland) | | UT13 | Information rights decisions of the First-tier Tribunal (General Regulatory Chamber) | | UT14 | Diffuse mesothelioma payment scheme decisions | | UT15 | Infected blood compensation decisions (First-tier Tribunal, Social Entitlement Chamber) — individual appellants | | UT16 | Infected blood compensation decisions — appeals by the Infected Blood Compensation Authority |

Form numbers, titles and content are updated by HM Courts & Tribunals Service from time to time — GOV.UK's collection page shows the "last updated" date for each document, so always download the current version rather than relying on a saved or printed copy.

Judicial review forms

Separately from the appeal forms above, the AAC also handles judicial review claims using Form JR1 (claim form), with the respondent using Form JR2 (acknowledgment of service), and a dedicated Form JRC1 for judicial review claims relating to criminal injuries compensation cases. Judicial review is a different legal route from an appeal — it is not simply "form JR1 instead of UT1" — so check the guidance carefully or take advice if you are unsure which route fits your situation.

Filing your form — the E-Filing service

GOV.UK confirms that documents must be sent using the HMCTS E-Filing service for proceedings that start on or after 4 December 2023, where a party is either represented by a legal representative, or is a government department, agency or public body. If neither of those applies to you, you can generally still complete a paper form and send it to the address shown on that form. Check GOV.UK's E-Filing guidance and the notes on your specific form before submitting anything.

What the tribunal will look at: error of law

Because most appeals to the AAC only proceed on a point of law (section 11, Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007), your grounds of appeal need to explain what went wrong in legal terms — for example, that the First-tier Tribunal misapplied the relevant legislation, failed to give adequate reasons, or reached a decision no reasonable tribunal could have reached on the evidence — rather than simply repeating disagreement with the outcome. Each form asks for the decision being challenged, your grounds, and what you want the Upper Tribunal to do (such as setting the decision aside or remitting the case to be reheard). This page provides general information only; it does not tell you whether your particular grounds are arguable, and it is not a substitute for advice on your specific case.

Fees

Fee levels and exemptions can change, and some categories of appeal in this chamber carry no fee at all. Rather than relying on a figure you may see quoted online, check the current position on GOV.UK or the notes accompanying your specific form before you submit anything. If a fee applies and the cost is a barrier, our guide to form EX160 explains how to apply for help with court and tribunal fees.

If you lose at the Upper Tribunal: appealing to the Court of Appeal

The Upper Tribunal is not always the end of the road. Section 13 of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 gives a further right of appeal, on a point of law, to the Court of Appeal (or the relevant appellate court for the jurisdiction), again exercisable only with permission. Permission must first be sought from the Upper Tribunal itself; if refused, an application can then be made to the appellate court.

Where the Court of Appeal is the relevant appellate court, a "second appeals test" applies — broadly, permission will only be given if the appeal would raise an important point of principle or practice, or there is some other compelling reason for the court to hear it. This mirrors the test applied to second appeals from the High Court or county court. It is a materially higher bar than the test the Upper Tribunal applies to a first appeal, and decisions at this stage are worth taking advice on.

What to do next

1. Identify the decision-maker and subject area. Was your decision made by the First-tier Tribunal, or directly by an organisation such as the Disclosure and Barring Service or a Traffic Commissioner? This determines which form and which permission route applies.
2. Check your deadline immediately. Confirm the date on your decision notice and count forward — 28 days is the usual starting point for asking the First-tier Tribunal for permission, but always verify against the specific chamber's rules.
3. Gather the paperwork. You will need the First-tier Tribunal decision (or the decision of the organisation), any separate statement of reasons, and — if applying after a refusal — the notice refusing permission.
4. Download the current form from GOV.UK. Use the Administrative Appeals Chamber forms collection to find the form matching your case type, and check whether the E-Filing service applies to you.
5. Set out your grounds of appeal as points of law. Link each ground to a specific part of the decision and explain the legal error, rather than simply restating disagreement with the outcome.
6. State the outcome you want. Each form asks for the order you are seeking — for example, setting the decision aside or remitting it for a fresh hearing.
7. Take advice early if a deadline is close, or you have already missed one. A late application needs a specific request for an extension of time with reasons, and there is no guarantee it will be admitted.

This page provides general information about the Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber) and its forms in England and Wales. It is not legal advice and is not a substitute for advice tailored to your specific circumstances. Form numbers, fees and time limits can change — always check GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk for the current position before you act.