Ki te hanga, ki te hokahokai i tētahi wāhi moe, wharau rānei Build or extend a sleepout or cabin

Under the NZ Building Regulations there is a lot of building work you can do yourself. The website for the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is also helpful.

Before checking whether you need a consent for your detached stand-alone building, you need to know:

• dimensions of the project (height, total area)
• location on property where the project will go
• size of the property in square metres. The net floor area in a building is measured to the inside of the enclosing walls or posts/columns. 
• total area of your property currently covered by buildings
• total area of your property currently covered by hard surfaces, for example concrete or paved areas.

Depending on the size and design of your structure,  the work (design and/or construction) may be required to be carried out by a Chartered Professional Engineer and/or Licensed Building Practitioner (LBP).   

From 31 August 2020, several new building consent exemptions are in place regarding new sleepouts, cabins and other detached stand-alone dwellings.

The latest guidance on these exemptions can found on the MBIE website.

To avoid delays in processing your application you should:

• make sure your application is complete (including all plans and technical documents)
• engage a professional (architect or consultant) to prepare your application.

• The project description must be accurate and describe all work involved in the project.
• Provide evidence of ownership or rights over the property. If you are not the owner, provide authorisation to apply for a consent.
• All drawings and plans need to have:
  • drawing number and title
  • designer's name
  • address of property
  • date.
• Drawings need to have an appropriate scale and clarity. Freehand sketches are not accepted. If supported by a producer statement, the plans must also be signed by the design specialist.

• Design engineers who provide PS1 , PS2 and/or PS4 must be registered with council as a producer statement author. Design engineers who provide a producer statement – design (PS1) must also provide design calculations, specifications and construction details. Producer statements must be dated no older than 90 days.

• All producer statement (PS3 and PS4) authors need to be listed in the Producer Statement Agreement form. If you do not know yet who they will be, list the producer statements that will be required. Authors need to supply the producer statements (certificates, etc.) after the work has been completed on site.
• Construction specifications must be provided in all cases. Where relevant, product certification and manufacturers' specifications must be provided.
• Where relevant, provide evidence of approval from the asset owner (such as Watercare or Auckland Transport) for water meters, vehicle crossings, work near or under high voltage power lines, and work near or over stormwater and sewer mains. Approval may include documents and / or video evidence.
• If you apply for an amendment to an existing building consent, the description of building work must accurately summarise changes. Any changes to the plans need to be clearly shown.
• If the design includes a waiver or modification of the building code, reference the section of the building code in question and why this modification is requested.
• Use the lodgement checklist (PDF 1.28KB) to ensure you provided all the relevant information. Incomplete applications will lead to delays.

• All plans are drawn at 1:100 or 1:200 scale and show a north point, boundary dimensions and bearings, adjoining legal descriptions, street numbers and metric scale bars, datum point, site contours including spot levels on the relevant boundaries.
• Provide an assessment of what you want to do against the matters set out in part 2 of the RMA and any relevant provisions of the documents referred to in section 104(1)(b) of the RMA.
• Complete an assessment of environmental effects (AEE).
• Provide descriptions of:
  • the activity
  • the site at which the activity will occur
  • any other activities that are part of the proposal to which the application relates
  • any other resource consents required for the proposal to which the application relates.
• Provide the full name and address of each owner or occupier of the site.
• Identify who might be interested in or affected by the activity and how they might be affected.
• Provide written approval from all affected parties.
• Complete a checklist to make sure you have all required information.

We reccommend you engage a proffessional to complete your application form.

The consent fee depends on the value and complexity of your project.

There are separate fees for resource and building consents.

Visit Building consent fees and charges and Resource consent and Private Plan Changes fees and deposits.

We will return incomplete applications and ask for the missing information. ​

We will process your application within 10 working days.

We will let you know the decision by email or post.