How to apply for a building consent

Find out everything you need to know about applying for a building consent.

Before you apply

If you’ve never applied for a building consent before, you may find it a time-consuming and complex process. We recommend that you:

  • ask a professional – such as an architect, engineer or builder – to prepare the design, drawings, specifications and documentation, and apply for a consent on your behalf. This is the approach that most people take.
  • get in touch with us to arrange a pre-application meeting. We recommend this for any commercial or complex residential projects.
  • read our guide to getting a building consent (PDF 229 kb) – it covers most of the things you need to know
  • use our online building consent application guidance
  • familiarise yourself with your obligations under the Building Act 2004, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) building performance guidelines and the New Zealand Building Code. Your building consent and your building project must comply with their requirements.

Documentation

You will need to supply all of the documentation relating to the proposed work when you apply for a building consent through Objective Build. If there is information missing, we may decline to accept your application under section 45 of the Building Act 2004.

The minimum information required is:

  • a completed and signed application form (completed in Objective Build)
  • plans and specifications
  • any other information that the building consent authority reasonably requires (supporting documents)
  • the PIM, if one has previously been issued
  • a list of the specified systems (if any)
  • the names of each Licensed Building Practitioner (LBP) undertaking or supervising restricted building work
  • certificate of design work if the work includes restricted building work.

Additional documents

To accompany your application, you should provide

The plans you provide could include:

  • architectural plans
  • structural plans
  • mechanical plans
  • landscaping plans.

Please make sure that all plans are provided in a clear, easy to read format, landscape orientation and are no larger than A1 in size.

The specifications documents can include those for:

  • manufacturer product data/specifications, including any appraisals/certifications
  • plumbing and drainage information
  • structural specifications
  • mechanical services.

The supporting documents include documents that support your application and are not covered by the other categories. They include:

  • structural engineering design package including producer statement/s, calculations, inspection schedules certifying the completed works will comply with the New Zealand Building Code.
  • reports, such as fire, accessibility, geo-technical
  • a copy of the Fire Engineering Brief (FEB), if applicable
  • refer to the applicable checklist for any other relevant information.

For further information on building consent application documentation - Building Performance Documentation Guidance. This information includes guidance on the order in which documents should be lodged in your application for a building consent.

Lodging your application

In most cases, your architect, designer or builder will act as your agent and lodge the building consent application on your behalf. However if you feel comfortable doing this yourself, you can do so.

Please ensure that all of your documents are named as per our naming conventions to make your application easier for our team to assess, ie  Standard Document Naming Conventions Guidance - documents submitted with BC or CCC applications

When you have all of the required documentation and are ready to lodge your application, you can do so through Objective Build.

Lodgement of hard copy (paper) applications

Read our information about hard copy (paper) applications.

Payment for your building consent application

Once we have completed a vetting check to confirm that we have received a complete application, we will send you an initial invoice for the fees for your application via Objective Build.

This invoice will include:

  • our initial fee for administration time, processing time, a specified number of inspections and issuing the code compliance certificate for the proposed building work
  • if more time or inspections are required, additional fees will be charged before the building consent or Code Compliance Certificate is issued
  • Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and BRANZ levies
  • a Building Consenting Authority (BCA) accreditation levy
  • compliance schedule fee (commercial consents)

See our list of building consent charges and fees and our estimated fee calculator.

To make a payment, go to your application in Objective Build to see the available payment methods.

Application types not available in Objective Build

While Objective Build provides a one-stop for our main application types, not all of our services are provided through the Objective Build platform.

If you cannot find what you want to apply for through Objective Build, please lodge it below and our team will be in touch with you via email.

https://kiteworks.huttcity.govt.nz/form/property#/