Building (Prescribed Fees) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2013

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Building (Prescribed Fees) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997 (the 1997 Regulations).

The principal changes to the 1997 Regulations are as follows-

1.  Regulation numbers which make reference to the principal regulations are amended to keep them aligned with the principal regulations which are the Building Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012.

2.  The fee payable to a district council when an application for building regulations approval is made to erect one or more small domestic buildings (Schedule 1) or to extend or alter a small building (Schedule 2) is increased by 20% for the erection of up to 10 dwellings in an application and for works to a single dwelling. The increase is gradually lessened to approximately 11% for applications up to and over 20 dwellings in an application depending on the mix of dwelling types in the application.

3.  Schedule 2 is extended to include installation, replacement or extension of certain services in a dwelling which previously would have attracted fees calculated in accordance with Schedule 3.

4.  Consideration of an application to a processing council for type approval is included in regulation 5 as a prescribed function; regulation 6 authorises a district council to charge a fee for this function; regulation 7 states how the fee may be calculated and regulation 9 identifies when the fee is due. Type Approval Fee and Processing Council are defined in regulation 2.

5.  As provided for in the principal regulations, regulation 10 authorises a district council not to issue a completion certificate until the relevant fee payable has been paid in full.

6.  A Regulatory Impact Assessment has been carried out in respect of the amendment to the Building (Prescribed Fees) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997. Copies may be downloaded from www.buildingregulationsni.gov.uk or alternatively be obtained from– The Department of Finance and Personnel, Properties Division, Building Standards Branch, Level 5, Causeway Exchange, 1-7 Bedford Street, Belfast, BT2 7EG.