Apply for an amendment to an issued building consent

You can make changes to your approved plans during construction.

Minor and major variations

Minor variations

If the impact is minor then it can be dealt with as a minor variation by one of our building officers. This may be on site during an inspection or by contacting the duty building officer.

Examples of minor variations would include relocating a window or minor bracing changes. No new consent documents are required to be issued for minor variations but a record of changes will need to be kept / detailed.

No charge is made for this service.

For further information on minor variations, follow the link below to the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE).

Minor variations (Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment website)

Notification of minor variation

It is the Owner's or Authorised Agent's responsibility to notify Council of any changes to the approved plans.

This variation must be submitted to and approved by a Building Control Officer before work proceeds.

  1. Please download and complete the form.

    Minor variation record application(PDF, 179KB)

  2. Upload the completed form and supporting documentation for the relevant Building Consent to Objective Build Portal.

    Objective Build building consents portal

Note: If the change is more than a minor variation, then an amendment application will need to be made.


Major variations or amendments

If the impact of the change is significant, you will need to apply for an amendment to the building consent.

Applications must be made on the appropriate application form or via the consent portal, depending on how the original application / consent was processed. 

It must be accompanied by amended plans and specifications showing the item(s) that have been changed.  

This may mean that work will have to stop work pending issue of the new plans.  A "block" on inspections may be applied in some cases.

Assessment of an amendment follows a similar path to a normal building consent.

A planning check will be undertaken to ensure that the project continues to meet the requirements of the District Plan and an assessment of code requirements will be undertaken.

The "20 day Assessment clock" applies and this may be suspended if further information is required and new documents will be issued.

Examples of significant changes could include changes of internal layouts affecting structural components / considerations, cladding changes, changes in building footprints or heights.

A charge is made for processing formal applications for amendments. The deposit fee will be calculated when the application is submitted. As with other applications, further fees may be charged after assessment.

If the impact is greater than could be considered as an amendment then you will need to apply for a new consent.

Examples of such changes may include changes to the envelope of the building or adding new buildings to the consent. In such situations we will also need to review the inspection procedures for the project.

Major variations (Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment website)

Online

Only use this process if your building consent was issued on or after 1 September 2021 and you applied via the building consents portal.

Step 1.Log in to our online building portal

You must have an account in our online building portal. which is called 'Objective Build'.

Once you have logged in, you can submit online applications, upload documents or track the status of your application.

Objective Build building consents portal

Step 2.Complete the application form

Complete the 'Amendment' application in Objective Build and upload amended plans and specifications that support the change.

If you are not ready to submit, you can save your application and complete it at a later stage.

Step 3.Cost

There will be a charge for processing the amendment. The deposit fee will be calculated when the application is submitted.

Building control fees

Payment is required before the application is processed. As with other applications, further fees may be charged after assessment.

An invoice will be emailed to you. You can either pay online, in person or call us with your details.  We accept Visa and Mastercard payments via our Contact Centre.

Online: Pay an application fee or invoice

Phone: 09 430 4200

Step 4.Assessment

Assessment of an amendment follows a similar path to that of a building consent, to ensure compliance with the regulations and the District Plan.

If the impact is more than significant and cannot be considered as an amendment, you will be notified, and may need a new application for consent.

Step 5.Processing time

The 20-working day period applies to assessing amendments and may be suspended if further information is required.

Step 6.Issuing an amendment

On completion of processing the amendment, new documentation will be issued to support the change.

By email

Only use this process if your building consent was issued before 1 September 2021 or you have not used the building consents portal.

Step 1.Complete the application

Download and save a copy of the form to your computer and fill it in.  Please ensure you save it once it is filled in.

Apply for an amendment(PDF, 260KB)

Gather the amended plans and specifications that support the change.

Step 2.Email to us

Email your application and supporting documents to:

Email:  mailroom@wdc.govt.nz

Step 3.Cost

There will be a charge for processing the amendment. The deposit fee will be calculated when the application is submitted.

Building control fees

Payment is required before the application is processed. As with other applications, further fees may be charged after assessment.

An invoice will be emailed to you.  You can either pay online, in person or call us with your details.  We accept Visa and Mastercard payments via our Contact Centre.

Online:  Pay an application fee or invoice

Phone:  09 430 4200

Step 4.Assessment

Assessment of an amendment follows a similar path to that of a building consent, to ensure compliance with the regulations and the District Plan.

If the impact is more than significant and cannot be considered as an amendment, you will be notified, and may need a new application for consent.

Step 5.Processing time 

The 20-working day period applies to assessing amendments and may be suspended if further information is required.

Step 6.Issuing an amendment

On completion of processing the amendment, new documentation will be issued to support the change.

In-person

Only use this process if your building consent was issued before 1 September 2021 or you have not used the building consents portal.

Step 1.Complete the application

Download and save a copy of the form to your computer and fill it in.  Please ensure you save it once it is filled in.

Apply for an amendment(PDF, 260KB)

Gather the amended plans and specifications that support the change.

Step 2.Bring into us

Bring in your application form and supporting documents to one of our service centres.

We will check that the information is sufficient for the application and, if not, will advise what is missing.

Te Iwitahi (civic centre)
9 Rust Avenue, Whangārei
Hours: Monday to Friday – 8:00am to 4:30pm
Closed public holidays

Ruakākā service centre 
9 Takutai Place, Ruakākā
Hours: Monday to Friday – 8:30am to 4:00pm
Closed public holidays

Service centre at isite
92 Otaika Road, Raumanga
Hours: Monday to Friday – 9:00am to 12:00pm and 12:30pm to 4:30pm
Closed public holidays

Step 3.Cost

There will be a charge for processing the amendment. The deposit fee will be calculated when the application is submitted.

Building control fees

Payment is required before the application is processed. As with other applications, further fees may be charged after assessment.

Step 4.Assessment

Assessment of an amendment follows a similar path to that of a building consent, to ensure compliance with the regulations and the District Plan.

If the impact is more than significant and cannot be considered as an amendment, you will be notified, and may need a new application for consent.

Step 5.Processing time 

The 20-working day period applies to assessing amendments and may be suspended if further information is required.

Step 6.Issuing an amendment

On completion of processing the amendment, new documentation will be issued to support the change.

If you wish to make a complaint, please follow the link below. 

Log a formal complaint