You can’t undertake any building work that needs a building consent without getting written approval from a Building Consent Authority.

As an accredited Building Consent Authority (BCA), we will grant a building consent if your proposed building work meets the requirements of the New Zealand Building Act, Building Regulations and Building Code.

Note that

  • a building consent can’t be issued retrospectively for work already completed – for any work completed without a building consent you can apply for a certificate of acceptance or you may be required to rectify the work (eg demolition)
  • if you make changes to the design while you are building, you’ll need to apply for an amendment to your consent, which can cause delays and additional cost for processing the changes to your consent
  • as the owner it is your responsibility to ensure inspections happen – therefore check that they are being carried out if you have delegated this responsibility to a builder, architect or project manager
  • any person engaged in building work has a duty under s223 of the Act to assist inspections, this includes the provision of scaffolding, etc to enable access to inspect building work.

Types of work that need a building consent

You need a building consent for most work including

  • structural building - including additions, alterations, re-piling and some demolitions
  • plumbing and drainage where an additional sanitary fixture is created (some repair and maintenance may be exempt)
  • relocating a building
  • installing a woodburner or air-conditioning system
  • retaining walls higher than 1.5 metres (3.0 metres in rural area if designed by a chartered professional engineer)
  • fences or walls higher than 2.5 metres, and all swimming pools and their associated fences
  • decks, platforms or bridges more than 1.5 metres above ground level
  • sheds greater than 30 square metres in floor area (sheds between 10 and 30 square metres will still need the help of an LBP or engineer or must use lightweight material in accordance with Acceptable Solution (B1/AS1)
  • some earthworks.

You can apply for a building consent here.

Note that some building work may be exempt from needing a building consent.