Building

A 'Building Consent' is a document authorising specified building work to occur. Some work (as specified in Schedule One of the Building Act 2004) is exempt from the requirement to obtain building consent, but building consent must be obtained for all other building work.

A building consent is necessary for;

• plumbing and drainage work
• structural building (including new buildings)
• relocation of existing buildings
• various other categories of building work

For further information, please contact our building consents team between the hours of 8:45am and 4:30pm on 0800 801 350.

If the necessary information is properly submitted, together with accurate and well-presented drawings, then applications will be processed quickly and efficiently.

Please note: No building work may be started until a building consent has been issued.

What needs to be provided:

In all cases, we require a fully completed Building Consent application together with the correct application fees, which are calculated in accordance with Council's Schedule of Fees.

Separate checklists also describe additional information that will need to be provided. See our Building Consent Forms and Checklists page for copies .

Design work involving building structure, weathertight elements or fire safety systems for residential buildings must generally be done by a licensed designer and a certificate of design work provided to Council.

Before Council accepts an application for a building consent, it is checked by our building control staff to make sure that it contains all of the information necessary to comply with the Building Code.

Applications that are sent by post to Council, or dropped in to one of our service centres can only be checked when they reach the Regulatory Services section at our head office in Balclutha.

Applicants wishing to personally deliver their applications will need to wait until an officer is able to see them and check that the application is complete. This avoids avoid unnecessary delays further on in the process. If applicants do not have time to wait, it is suggested that they phone and make an appointment to ensure a staff member is available to see them.

The information needed for a complete application is outlined in Council's application checklist. See our Forms & Guides page for various copies.

Once an application is checked to make sure that it is complete, it is entered into Council's computer system. Provided that nothing is missing and that no further information is needed, a Building Consent will normally be issued within 20 working days. Where a national approval has been issued (multi-proof), applications will be processed within 10 working days.

The first step in processing an application for Building Consent is to produce a PIM (Project Information Memorandum) or TA assessment for the project. This includes details of the property, the planning and other rules that apply to the project and the location. This information enables us o check that the application information is correct. It must also meet both local and regional planning rules. There may be special characteristics that the building work must meet because of wind, earthquake, snow, corrosion or hazard zones. These checks enable us to see if any other approvals are needed before work can start. If these issues are identified during the PIM or TA Assessment process, the applicant will be informed. If the issue is not resolved, a conditional certificate (Sec37) will be placed on the building consent.

A Project Information Memorandum (PIM) provides an applicant with information relevant to the proposed building work, other than the normal requirements under the Building Act 2004. This information enables the applicant to assess the feasibility of the project before proceeding with a Building Consent application.

PIMs are voluntary, but we recommend you apply for one as they assist you in providing the information required to obtain a Building Consent.

Please note: building work can only start once your building consent has been issued.

What you need to provide:

• A completed PIM application form
• Site plan scale is 1:200 with a north point showing
• Site (legal) boundaries clearly defined on the plan with dimensions
• The drawing including a plan view accurately locating and dimensioning the new building works relative to the boundaries
• Bulk and location drawing
• Show building outline and the layout of the rooms
• Show the elevations of the main exterior walls with heights above ground level
• Show setback distances from the boundaries and other buildings
• Show floor areas (in m2) of all existing and proposed buildings, separate areas are to be given for detached buildings and any top floors.
• Show the area of the site on the plan.

The PIM may identify that you need to obtain other authorisation, e.g.

If your proposed building does not comply with the District Plan then a Resource Consent will have to be obtained.

If you intent to build in a flood-prone area, you will require a report from the Otago Regional Council.

After the planning checks have occurred and any additional steps or approvals have been identified, the application is passed to the Processing Officer to check that the application complies with the requirements of the Building Code. Usually only one Building Officer will be carrying out application processing, and any matters regarding an application must be discussed with the Processing Officer or the Building Manager. Our other Building Officers may not be involved in approving the application.

If the plans and specifications fail to satisfy the requirements of the Building Code, the Processing Officer will contact the applicant or their agent to ask for more information. You may choose to comply with the "approved documents" of the New Zealand Building Code, use an engineer to produce a specific design, or apply to have an alternative solution accepted by the Council. The application will be provided to Council at this stage if initial documents did not comply with the Building Code. When applications have complex or unusual building types or methods, they may not be able to be processed by Council staff, and we will arrange for a specialist to assess compliance. Once the Processing Officer is satisfied the project will comply with the Building Code, plans will be stamped and signed, and approval will be given to grant the Building Consent.

BWOF, Compliance Schedule and Specified System forms and guidance documents can be found here.

What is a Compliance Schedule?

A Compliance Schedule is a formal document required by the Building Act 2004 which lists:

• A building's Specified Systems, and
• The inspection, maintenance and reporting procedures needed to keep them in good order.

All buildings, other than single residential buildings, require a Compliance Schedule and annual Building Warrant of Fitness (BWOF), if they contain:

• Automatic systems for fire suppression (for example, sprinkler systems).
• Automatic or manual emergency warning systems for fire or other dangers.
• Electromagnetic or automatic doors or windows (for example, ones that close on fire alarm activation).
• Emergency lighting systems.
• Escape route pressurisation systems.
• Riser mains for use by Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ).
• Automatic backflow preventers connected to a potable water supply.
• Lifts, escalators, travelators or other systems for moving people or goods within buildings.
• Mechanical ventilation or air-conditioning systems.
• Building maintenance units providing access to exterior and interior walls of buildings.
• Laboratory fume cupboards.
• Audio loops or other assistive listening systems.
• Smoke control systems.
• Emergency power systems for, or signs relating to, a system or feature specified for any of the above systems or features.
• Any or all of the following features:- Systems for communicating spoken information intended to help evacuation. - Final exits (as defined by clause A2 of the building code).- Fire separations.- Signs for communicating information intended to facilitate evacuation.- Smoke separations.

All buildings that have a cable car, including single residential buildings, must also have a compliance schedule.

A final check is made to ensure that the application satisfies all of the relevant parts of the Building Code, that any other necessary approvals have been obtained, and that all relevant conditions and advice notes have been added into the consent. The Building Consent will then be issued.

The building consent is sent to the applicant, with a copy of the approved plans, a list of the inspections that will be needed during construction, and any conditions, advice notes or certificates relevant to the consent.

Please note: No building work may be carried out until the Building Consent has been issued.

If building work is not started within 12 months from the time the consent is issued, the Building Consent may lapse. A 12 month extension on Building Consents can be sought.

Building work on foundations, structure and weather tightness systems for residential buildings must be carried out or supervised by a licensed builder, and a record of work provided.

A list of the inspections that will be needed during construction is included when the consent is issued. Two working days notice is required of the intended commencement of construction, and a minimum of one working day's notice for all other inspections. Inspections must be booked by phoning Council's Regulatory Services Clerk (03 419 0232). Occasionally inspection visits will not be able to be made at the requested time if they conflict with other appointments. If the owner/agent or tradesperson has a particular time that the inspection must occur, it is recommended that they give a longer period of notice when booking the inspection.

The inspection sheet gives details of the various stages at which inspections are necessary. If the work is not ready when the inspection takes place, another visit will be required and additional charges may be imposed. If work has progressed beyond any of these stages, it may not be possible to fully inspect.

Without a full inspection record, or if acceptable an alternative means of certifying work, a Code Compliance Certificate will not be issued. Specialist inspections may be required for complex work. You may nominate your own engineer to carry out the inspection and provide a certificate to Council. If this is not arranged during application processing, Council will arrange the inspection at your cost.

The Building Officer will check that the building work is in accordance with the Building Consent application, and the requirements of the Building Act 2004 and Building Code. All building sites must be safe to visit.

The approved consent documents must be on site at the time of the inspection so that they can be referred to, and it is expected that the owner/agent or tradesperson will also be on site. The outcome of the inspection will be recorded on the Council's inspection record with the consent documents, and discussed with the site representatives attending the inspection.

If the approved consent documents on site do not show that the inspection has been signed off and approved, and the owner/agent or tradesperson is not advised by the Building Officer of a satisfactory outcome to the inspection, then it is the responsibility of the owner to contact the Council and check that the inspection has been signed off and approved before proceeding with further building work.

Building work that does not comply with the consent documents can result in a verbal or written instruction from the Building Officer. In some cases, an amendment application may be made to reflect the actual building work, and provided it can be shown that the requirements of the Building Code and other requirements are met, this is likely to be issued. Major amendments (involving the building footprint or multiple building code clauses) are not able to be approved through the amendment process, and must be processed as a new application. When the Building Code is unlikely to be met, a stop work direction may be given, or a notice to fix issued.

Normally the first step towards obtaining a Code Compliance Certificate (CCC) is for the owner to complete and give to the Council an application for Code Compliance Certificate (Form 6). This form is supplied to the applicant when the building consent is issued and should be returned as soon as possible after building works have been completed.

The form is;

• First - A statement that all or part of the building work that is relevant to a particular building consent is completed; and
• Secondly - A request to issue a Code Compliance Certificate

When the building work has been completed, it is the responsibility of the property owner to apply to the Council for a CCC. In order for the certificate to be issued, all inspections must have been satisfactorily completed, all fees must be paid and all necessary supporting information must be provided. Examples of supporting information could include an electrical certificate of compliance, producer statements or "as built" plans.

Applications for CCC must normally be processed by the Council within 20 working days. Where outstanding inspections have yet to be completed, or supporting information has still to be supplied, Council will normally put an application 'on hold' rather than issue a refusal.

A Code Compliance Certificate is a statement by the Council that, at the time of issue, the building work included in the consent complied with the requirements of the Building Act and the Building Code as they applied when the consent was issued. The certificate does not cover work that was not included within the consent, and so is not a general statement that all building work on the property complies with the Building Act or Building Code.

You should note that if an application for a Code Compliance Certificate is not received by Council within two years of the Building Consent being issued, Council is required to make a decision to grant or refuse the Code Compliance Certificate.

Selling a building without a Code Compliance Certificate

A very commonly used standard form of agreement for the sale and purchase of real estate contains a vendor's undertaking that if the vendor has been responsible for any building work, the necessary permits and consents were obtained and "where appropriate, a code compliance certificate was issued for those works". See the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand/Auckland District Law Society Agreement for Sale and Purchase of Real Estate, 6th Ed cl 6[8]).

If a declaration in a sale agreement misrepresents the facts, the consequences for the vendor, as well as for the purchaser, can be serious, and the agreement may be contested. The principle of "buyer beware" does not apply to agreements containing such undertakings by the vendor. A building can be sold without a certificate but this needs to be acknowledged by both parties.

Note: There is no provision under the Building Act for territorial authorities to issue retrospective consents for work that has been undertaken without the necessary building consent.

The changes in legislation relating to earthquake-prone buildings. As the Clutha District Council moves forward with its processes this section will be updated to reflect actions taken and next steps.

The approach for identifying and managing potentially earthquake-prone buildings is governed by the provisions of the Building (Earthquake-prone Buildings) Amendment Act 2016.

The system, which came into effect on 1 July 2017, is consistent across the country and focuses on the most vulnerable buildings in terms of people's safety. It categorises New Zealand into three seismic risk areas and sets time frames for identifying and taking action to strengthen or remove earthquake-prone buildings.

The Council's footprint is entirely located within the medium seismic risk area. This means we must identify potentially earthquake-prone buildings (EPBs) within 10 years, and building owners must strengthen or demolish earthquake-prone buildings within 25 years.

More information can be found on the MBIE Building Performance Managing earthquake prone buildings page.

What Earthquake-prone means?

A building, or part of a building, is earthquake prone if it will have its ultimate capacity exceeded in a moderate earthquake, and if it were to collapse, would do so in a way that is likely to cause injury or death to persons in or near the building or on any other property, or damage to any other property.

The Council will determine if a building or part of a building is earthquake prone using the EPB methodology, a document setting out how territorial authorities identify potentially earthquake-prone buildings, how engineers undertake engineering assessments, and how territorial authorities determine whether a building or part is earthquake prone, and if it is, its earthquake rating.

More information can be found on:

MBIE's Building Performance Managing earthquake-prone buildings page - Determining if a building is earthquake prone

MBIE's Building Performance Managing earthquake-prone buildings page - What earthquake prone means

What structures are covered by the Act?

The Act applies to commercial buildings and some residential buildings.

Residential buildings are only covered under the Act if they:

• comprise two or more storeys and three or more household units, or
• are used as hostels, boarding houses or other types of specialised accommodation.

The Act does not apply to:

• farm buildings
• stand-alone retaining walls
• fences
• statues and other monuments that cannot be entered
• wharves
• bridges
• tunnels
• storage tanks

What is a priority building?

Priority buildings are those that:

• potentially pose a high risk to life safety due to their location or use, or
• are considered to be critical to support response and recovery operations in an emergency.
• We must consult with the public when a building is considered a priority due to its higher risk to safety (ie unreinforced masonry), and its location, such as in areas where there is a high level of pedestrian traffic. Identification of these buildings is expected to be started by the end of 2018.

The process of identifying priority buildings that could support (ie welfare centres) or impede (ie buildings which could collapse onto a strategic route) an emergency response in an earthquake, involves consultation and discussions with the emergency services and civil defence agencies. This stage is nearing completion.

What happens when a building is assessed as earthquake-prone

If your building is rated as earthquake-prone you will:

• be issued with a statutory Earthquake-Prone Building (EPB) notice, which you must display in a prominent place in your building;
• have the details of your building added to a new national register of earthquake-prone buildings;
• have 12 1/2 years for a priority building and 25 years for other buildings from the date of the EPB notice to strengthen your building so that it is no longer earthquake-prone, or if you carry out a substantial alteration or change of use, have to strengthen your building at the same time.

Earthquake-prone buildings with multiple unit titles

When a building with multiple unit titles is deemed earthquake-prone, the owner of each title will be issued with a separate earthquake-prone building notice.

Extension to complete strengthening for heritage buildings

You can apply for a 10-year extension to complete strengthening works for an earthquake-prone building that is:

• a Category 1 listed building, or
• on the National Historic Landmarks list.

Exemption from strengthening for isolated buildings

You can apply for an exemption from strengthening works for an earthquake-prone building that is:

• used infrequently,
• poses a low risk of injury to people and damage to other property in the event of an earthquake.

Who does what?
Territorial authorities, engineers and buildings owners have key responsibilities for managing earthquake-prone buildings (EPBs). This is outlined in the diagram below.