Your building consent will be granted after we finish a thorough review and check of your application. For that to happen:

  • we have to be satisfied on reasonable grounds that the requirements of the building code will be met if the building work is completed as shown on the plans and specifications with your application, and
  • all fees due need to be paid in full.

We will let you (the owner) and your nominated contact person (if any) know when your consent has been granted, give you a copy of the invoice to be paid.

Your approved building consent will include (as relevant)

  • advice notes
  • schedule of required inspections
  • conditions
  • stamped approved plans, specifications and building construction documentation
  • the PIM, where this was applied for
  • any development contribution notice (section 36)
  • an RMA certificate as required (section 37)
  • draft compliance schedule if your building includes specified systems
  • a list of documents required during construction process
  • construction monitoring to be carried out by third parties (where relevant)

Your building consent is granted on the condition of you allowing the building work to be inspected. A copy of all consented documents must be kept on site for all inspections.

If your application has been refused then you’ll be formally advised, along with the reason for refusing.

Starting your build

You can’t start building until your consent has been granted. If your building consent is granted before your resource consent, no inspections will take place until your resource consent has been granted. A section 37 certificate will be attached to your building consent where a resource consent is required but not yet issued. This certificate will state that either

  • no building work can proceed until the resource consent has been issued, or
  • advise the extent of building work that can be carried out until the resource consent has been issued.

There might be a number of authorisations that you need to obtain for your project.

Public information

Once your building consent is granted it becomes public information. This means it is able to be viewed as part of your property information.

Building consent authorities are required to supply information on all granted building consents to Statistics New Zealand, who maintain official statistics. A list of all building consents issued in the last month is also emailed through to people who subscribe to this service.

Consent validity period

Your building work must start within 12 months from the date your building consent was granted. If you haven’t started within this timeframe your consent will automatically lapse and be of no effect. This means that you’ll need to reapply for a new building consent if you decide to carry on with your build project.

Generally we aim to let owners and their nominated contact person know a couple of months before your consent is due to lapse. This is via email and you will need to make a decision on whether to apply for

  • an extension of time – this needs to be made in writing to us, or
  • a new building consent to proceed with the work later.

Where we receive no response, your consent will lapse by the due date – so it’s important to keep your contact details up to date.

All building work should be completed within two years from the date that the building consent was granted. If your project has been delayed, it may be possible to apply for an extension to this time.

If you need to extend the time of your consent you can apply in writing with

  • a reason for requesting an extension, and
  • the time frame you require to complete the work.

You’ll be advised of our decision in writing after your request has been reviewed.