the licensing regime

Types of licence

Historic Scotland issues four types of licence for the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973:

• the Visitor licence is sufficient where an applicant’s primary motive is to ‘look but not touch’;
• a Survey licence covers non-intrusive investigations such as photography, geophysical survey, measuring, drawing, and biological recording;
• a Surface Recovery licence allows recovery of archaeological material exposed on the seabed that can be removed without significant disturbance of any underlying archaeological material or sediments;
• an Excavation licence is required for more serious disturbance of the site. This includes collection of samples for analysis (e.g. wood samples for tree-ring dating) and large-scale removal of sediments by excavation.

Applying for a licence

Anyone can apply to Historic Scotland for a licence which will be issued if it will be of benefit to the care, understanding or public appreciation of the site.

To apply for a licence, please:

1. download an application form;
2. contact Historic Scotland’s Inspectorate if you require assistance;
3. send your completed application form by post to the address given on the form;
4. note that you will be informed of the results of your application in writing.