Fees & Charges
In this section
Fee schedule to 30 June 2024
Project Information Memorandum (PIM) only | $300 |
Building consent applications for minor works: | |
Freestanding solid fuel heater / sewer connection | $505 |
If the fee is exceeded by more than 30% the excess time and cost will be charged. | |
Building Consent application | Deposit $1,500* Charged on an actual time and cost basis |
* Note that although the fees schedule includes a deposit for building consent applications, at this time Selwyn District Council will at their discretion continue with no deposits on building consent applications, with payment in full at issue of the consent. | |
Code Compliance Certificate | Charged on an actual time and cost basis |
Certificate of Public Use | $500 fee for receiving the application Charged on an actual time and cost basis |
Compliance Schedules & Compliance Schedule Statement - including amendments, administration and on-site BWOF auditing | Charged on an actual time and cost basis |
Levies - Building Research Levy (set by the Building Research Levy Act 1969) | $1.00 per $1,000 value (or part thereof) of building work valued at $20,000 or more) |
- Building Levy (set by the Building Act 2004) | $1.75 per $1,000 value (or part thereof) of building work valued at $20,444 or more) |
- Quality Assurance | $0.80 per $1,000 value (or part thereof) of building work - capped at a maximum of $10,000 |
Territorial Authority Discretionary Exemptions (e.g. marquees, etc) | $580 minimum charge, with charges based on actual time and cost |
Annual base fee for administering a Building Warrant of Fitness (BWOF), includes a single specified system | $150.00 |
Annual variable fee for administering a Building Warrant of Fitness (BWOF) per specified system - multiple features i.e. a Type 2 and a Type 4 fire alarm system within one compliance schedule is under the same specified system and recognised as one charge. | $40.00 |
Residential swimming pools inspections - fencing of swimming pools inspections are mandatory and must be conducted every 3 years | $215 fixed fee (includes the time to conduct the onsite inspection and associated administration) |
Certificate of Acceptance | $1,800 flat fee for receiving the application and issuing a PIM
|
Notice to Fix - Fee is based on historical data and allows for 2 investigation inspections – 1 to verify the non-compliance and 1 to verify compliance to enable the notice to be lifted, plus associated administration | $645 |
Infringement Notices | Maximum fee set by regulation depending on degree of offence - refer to Schedule 1 of the Building (Infringement Offences, Fees and Forms) Regulations 2007 |
Section 73 Building Act – entry on Certificate of Title - for land subject to flooding etc Section 77 Building Act – building on two or more allotments - relates to requirement to hold titles together Section 83 Building Act – removal of entry - relates to removing a Section 77 entry from titles where the requirement no longer applies | On-charged at cost |
Research to provide information relating to building records - e.g. staff time, photocopying, postage etc | Time and cost |
All chargeable work under the Building Act for carrying out Council’s responsibility is charged at actual cost - i.e. extensions of time, specified intended life, change of use, etc | Time and cost |
Issuing Notices under the Building Act for carrying out Council’s responsibilities to ensure the safety of the built environment - i.e. dangerous and insanitary buildings, earthquake prone buildings, etc | Recovery of reasonable time and cost Note: these functions generally relate to public good and maintaining the safety of buildings for the community e.g. monitoring of earthquake prone signage is for the benefit of the community, whereas assessment of an engineering report would be to the benefit of the building owner and therefore would be charged at an hourly rate |
| Issuing Certificate under the Sale and Supply of Liquor Act 2012 (S100f) | $215 |
Hourly charges | |
- Building Advisory staff | $150 (per hour) |
- Planner | $165 (per hour) |
- Building Surveyors | $215 (per hour) - residential $250 (per hour) - commercial |
- Re-inspection | $215 (per hour) - residential $250 (per hour) - commercial |
- Infrastructure fee | $50 |
Other (for example): - Consultants - Peer review - Fire reports - Acoustic reports | On-charged at cost |
If you have any questions please contact the customer service team on 0800 SELWYN (735 996) or email contactus@selwyn.govt.nz
What the fees cover
The cost of your building consent depends on the type of application, cost of work involved and the level of detail provided.
Our charges are based on the length of time it takes to process an application and include costs such as
- levies payable to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (if applicable)
- levies payable to BRANZ (if applicable)
- levy to cover BCA accreditation costs and overheads
- administration time – loading, vetting, incoming document control
- time spent processing the application
- number of Inspections required (type and number vary depending on application)
- issue of code compliance certificate
- issue of compliance schedule (if applicable)
- development contribution (if applicable)
We can provide an estimate of the fees to you, however the final cost won’t be known until your application is processed.
In cases where the processing of a building consent is getting beyond the normal expectations, a progress invoice may be issued to ensure all parties aware of the escalating costs.
Further fees may apply if during your build an inspection failed and requires an additional inspection over and above the number included with your building consent.
Estimated value of building work
It’s important that you supply us with an accurate estimated value of your building work. This should take into account all actual costs and any additional materials or labour provided free of charge to the project.
Please ensure you provide an accurate estimated value, as this information is needed to work out what levies are due to the Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment, and BRANZ (Building Research Association New Zealand).
Anything with an estimated value of $20,444 or more includes both levies. The levies will be included with your invoice to be paid by you before your building consent is granted.
The value of building work may also affect your total property valuation as QV use this information for establishing the rateable value of your property. This information may also be required for the insurance value and mortgage requirements for your project, while banks and insurance companies sometimes ask us to confirm the value of work submitted on the consent.
Levies Explained
BRANZ Levy
In the late 1960s the building and construction industry asked for a compulsory levy on building work to fund relevant research into improved techniques and materials for the good of the industry.
The Building Research Levy Act 1969 sets the levying of building contractors at $1.00 per $1,000 value (or part thereof) of the contract value of building work valued at $20,000 or more of every construction project put forward for building consent.
The levy is payable by the builder to the Building Research Association of New Zealand Inc. In practice, it is charged and collected by Building Consent Authorities and then paid to BRANZ on behalf of the builder.
Money raised by the levy is used by BRANZ for
- carrying out construction industry-related research and other scientific work
- allocating grants to people and organisations carrying out construction industry-related research
- publication of information
- establishing and maintaining a library of resources
- holding lectures, seminars, exhibitions and public meetings to distribute information about building research
- proving advisory services
- purchase of land and premises for the BRANZ activities
- payment of staff salaries and honouraria of directors.
Use of levy funding and what it how it can be used for is set by the legislation. The amount of actual levy funds collected each year can vary significantly with changes in the level of building activity.
BRANZ therefore has no direct control over the levy income it receives. They smooth out the high and low years by putting reserves aside in high levy income years to be used in times of low levy income.
Details about BRANZ approach to Levy stewardship can be found on the BRANZ website.
Building Levy (MBIE)
This government levy depends on the value of the project. The levy contributes to the development and management of national building regulations (Building Act and Building Code).
The Building Act sets the levy at $1.75 per $1,000 value (or part thereof) of building work valued at $20,444 or more of the contract value of every construction project put forward for building consent.
It is payable to the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment. In practice however the levy is charged and collected by Building Consent Authorities when the building consent is granted and then paid to the ministry.
Where building work is completed in stages the levy is calculated taking into consideration section 57 of the Building Act 2004. This is to establish the appropriate estimated value of work to calculate the levy for each subsequent stage.
Quality Assurance Levy
The quality assurance levy is set by council through the annual fees and charges process. It goes towards covering the costs of meeting criteria under the Building (Accreditation of Building Consent Authorities) Regulations 2006 for BCA Accreditation, and ensuring quality management systems are in place across all aspects of the building teams’ workflow as TA Functions are also reviewed by MBIE in a similar manner.
This levy is currently set at $0.80 per $1,000 value (or part thereof) of building work, the levy is capped to a maximum rate of $10,000 per project.
Responsibility for payment of fees
You, as the owner, are responsible for paying the fees, unless your contract with your agent states otherwise. Ultimately you are still responsible for the payment.
If you withdraw an application at any stage a cancellation fee may apply. This is to cover time already spent on your application.
You can make payment to us via
- internet banking using the details provided at the bottom of your invoice
- through our online transaction processing service - please read our terms and conditions for using this service
- dropping into our customer services area at our Rolleston headquarters.