Metal detecting permission in England
How to ask — and a free agreement to print and fill in
In England there is no land without an owner, and you need the landowner's permission before you detect — on farmland, "public" land and everywhere else. It is the one rule that underpins all the others. This page covers how to ask for permission the right way, and gives a short written agreement you can print and fill in together — free, with no sign-up. It is not a legal requirement and not legal advice, just a practical starting point you can adapt.
In short
- You need the landowner's permission on every piece of land — there is no "free to detect" land in England.
- Permission can be verbal, but a short written agreement protects you both and avoids disputes later.
- Agree what land, for how long, and how any finds and treasure reward are shared before you start — a 50/50 split with the landowner is common.
- Record significant finds with the Portable Antiquities Scheme; report possible treasure to the coroner within 14 days under the Treasure Act 1996.
How to ask a landowner
Most permissions come from a polite, direct ask. Work out whose land it is first — Muld shows parcel boundaries and can look up the owner, and our guide to where you can metal detect in England covers farmland, commons, the foreshore and the places that are off-limits. Then:
- Approach in person where you can — a farmer is far more likely to say yes to a face than a leaflet.
- Say who you are, that you detect responsibly, that you fill every hole and record what you find, and that you'll keep clear of livestock and crops.
- Offer a written agreement and a fair split of anything of value — it reassures a landowner you're straight.
- Keep to the ploughsoil, follow the PAS Code of Practice for Responsible Metal Detecting, and leave the land as you found it.
Permission is yours to keep by being reliable: the detectorist who fills holes, shares finds and shows up when they said they would is the one invited back.
Press Ctrl + P (or ⌘ + P on a Mac) to print the agreement below or save it as a PDF.
Metal detecting permission agreement
Landowner / occupier
Name
Address of the land
Phone or email
Detectorist
Name
Phone or email
NCMD / club membership (if any)
The agreement covers
Fields or area
Period
How finds & any treasure reward are shared
The detectorist agrees to
- search only the agreed land and only within the agreed period;
- fill in every hole and leave the ground, crops, hedges and gates as found;
- keep away from scheduled monuments and other protected sites — detecting one without written consent from Historic England is a criminal offence;
- search the topsoil only and dig no deeper than needed to recover a find;
- respect livestock, growing crops, fences and anyone else on the land;
- record significant finds with the Portable Antiquities Scheme through the local Finds Liaison Officer;
- report anything that may be treasure to the coroner within 14 days, as the Treasure Act 1996 requires.
The landowner confirms
- granting permission to search on the terms above;
- the agreed share of finds and of any treasure reward;
- that this permission can be withdrawn at any time.
On private land in England, finds that are not treasure belong to the landowner unless you agree otherwise — so agree the split in writing before you start. Where a find is declared treasure under the Treasure Act 1996, any reward is normally shared between finder and landowner.
Date
Landowner's signature
Detectorist's signature
Made by Muld — a metal-detecting app for England · muld.dev
How to use it
Print the agreement, or save it as a PDF, and fill it in together with the landowner — keep one copy each. Before you go, it's worth knowing the rules cold: read our guide to the metal detecting laws in England and to where you can legally detect, so your agreement matches what the law actually requires.
Keep track of your permissions with Muld
Save each field, note who you've asked and from whom you have permission, and see it all on the map — alongside LiDAR terrain, historic maps and scheduled monuments in one focused detecting app for England. Your finds and your permissions stay on your own phone. The core app is free.