How long it takes to get a building permit
The real timeline of each stage of the planning process, and what can be done while you wait.
The question that delays projects most is not how much it costs, it is when we can start. And the answer depends almost entirely on the council.
A prior information request takes 30 to 60 days and is not mandatory. It is worth it when there is doubt about what the plot allows: 60 days of waiting costs less than a design redone from scratch.
Permitting a single family house takes, on average, 4 to 8 months from submission to the licence being issued. The engineering packages come after the architecture is approved, and that is where most applications stall: an incomplete engineering package sends the file back to the end of the queue.
Works of minor urban relevance and simple maintenance need no permit. Replacing a roof with the same roof is maintenance; changing its pitch is not.
While you wait, some things can move: ground investigation, contractor quotes, choice of finishes. Reaching the permit with these decisions made takes four to six weeks off the total project timeline.