A legal secondary suite in the City of Nanaimo is one built under a City building permit, and no one moves in until the City issues a Certificate of Occupancy. Here’s the zoning, the 2026 parking bylaw, the permits, plans, fees, the BC Building Code 2024 suite rules and each inspection, with two short videos.
This guide covers adding a secondary suite to a house in the City of Nanaimo, or bringing an existing suite up to a legal or authorized status. The City says a permit is required for the construction of a new suite or the upgrade of an existing suite (City of Nanaimo, Secondary Suite Permit). The City issues building and plumbing permits under Building Bylaw 2016 No. 7224; electrical and gas permits come from Technical Safety BC. Construction follows the BC Building Code 2024, which has a table of alternate methods for adding a suite to an existing house. Every figure below was checked on September 30, 2026 against the City’s suite pages and guides, its bylaws and the BC Building Code, listed under Sources.
General information only. This page is not legal or building-code advice, and it is not published by the City of Nanaimo. Your building official has the final say. Confirm the rules for your address with the City before you design or build.
Nanaimo Secondary Suite Permit: Zoning, Parking, Plans, Fees & Inspections, Step by Step (2026)
A step-by-step walkthrough of getting a legal secondary suite approved in the City of Nanaimo, checked against Zoning Bylaw 4500, the 2026 Parking Bylaw, Building Bylaw 7224 and the Fees and Charges Bylaw. Planning a basement or in-house suite in Nanaimo? Only a suite built under a City building permit is legal, and no one can move in until the City issues a Certificate of Occupancy. This walkthrough covers how the zoning bylaw defines a suite, size limits and the two-suite rule, parking under the new 2026 Parking Bylaw, the permits you need (City and Technical Safety BC), plans, applying online, fees with a worked example, inspections, and occupancy.
Download the video (MP4) · Watch on YouTube (BC Trades & Permits)
Narration uses a synthetic (AI-generated) voice.
Is my project allowed? Zoning decides setbacks, height, lot coverage and whether a suite is allowed on your lot. Check it before you draw or apply for the permit: look up your address on the map, then read your zone in the bylaw.
Checked October 26, 2026 (City of Nanaimo): NanaimoMap · Zoning Bylaw No. 4500 (PDF)
Suite rules are in Zoning Bylaw No. 4500, Part 6, section 6.15 (Part 6 General Regulations, PDF; City of Nanaimo, zoning).
The City’s pages disagree on the suite count. The Secondary Suite Permit page (last updated March 14, 2025) still says only one suite is allowed per dwelling, for example no carriage house if you have a basement suite (source). The bylaw section above was amended on 2024-JUN-17 to allow two in the case described. We follow the bylaw. Confirm with the City’s Current Planning staff before you plan a second suite.
The City’s Secondary Suite Permit page lists a Building Permit Application, an Appointment of Agent if you aren’t the registered owner, and drawings, plus an elevation drawing if window locations are added or changed (source). The Plan Requirement Checklist (revised 2020-Jul-27) says plans must be “designer-quality,” drawn at 1/4″ to 1′ or 1:50 (site plans at 1/16″ = 1′ or 1:250), as a clean PDF with no watermarks (source). For a suite, show:
Hazardous materials: the City’s suite guide says that if hazardous materials exist and will be disturbed by the work, a Hazardous Materials Assessment Report is required before the permit is issued, and its checklist lists a Hazardous Materials Form for renovations to existing construction. Homes built before 1990 may need a hazardous materials consultant (source).
From the Fees and Charges Bylaw 2021 No. 7336, Building Inspection section (consolidated 2026-JUN-01) (Bylaw 7336, PDF):
| Item | Bylaw 7336 |
|---|---|
| Building permit fee | $105 minimum fee and first $1,000 of construction value; plus $10 per $1,000 from $1,000.01 to $100,000; plus $7 per $1,000 above $100,000 |
| Application fee | Where estimated construction value exceeds $20,000: 10% of the estimated building permit fee at application, minimum $175, applied to the permit (kept by the City if you don’t proceed) |
| Plumbing permit | $40 minimum; $8 per fixture |
| Secondary suite authorization | To authorize an illegal suite built before 2005-FEB-07: $500, or the value-based fee if greater |
| Re-inspection | $150 for each subsequent inspection |
| Plan re-stamping or revision | $50 |
| Permit renewal | $100 (construction value $0 to $50,000); $250 (over $50,000) |
Our own arithmetic, not a City quote: at those rates, $60,000 of construction value would carry a building permit fee of $105 + (59 × $10) = $695. Because the value is over $20,000, the application payment would be 10% of that, $69.50, so the $175 minimum applies, credited to the permit. Check your own numbers with the City’s Building Permit Fee Calculator.
Work without a permit: anyone who starts work needing a permit without one pays double the building permit fee (Bylaw 7224 s.30.7).
Development cost charges: the City’s DCC Bylaw 7252 charges a building permit for a building that, not including secondary suites, consists of two or more dwelling units (s.5(1)(b); Bylaw 7252, PDF), so the bylaw doesn’t count the suite. (Note that Bylaw 7252 defines a secondary suite as having not more than two bedrooms, while the zoning definition allows three.) The City’s DCC sheet also says DCCs aren’t payable where the value of work under the permit is $50,000 or less (DCC sheet, PDF). The City’s DCC page also lists Regional District of Nanaimo charges (the Southern Community Sewer DCC Bylaw 1547 and the Solid Waste and Recycling DCC Bylaw 1927), which can apply to building permits for more than $50,000 of work (City of Nanaimo, DCC page). Ask the City whether any of these apply to your suite.
Building a Secondary Suite in Nanaimo, BC: Fire Separation, Exits, Alarms & Headroom (2026)
What the BC Building Code 2024 and the City of Nanaimo suite guides ask for when an existing house gets a secondary suite, including the code table of alternate methods for existing houses. Turning part of an existing Nanaimo house into a secondary suite? This walkthrough covers the BC Building Code 2024 construction rules and the City’s own suite guides: when the code’s alternate methods for existing houses can be used, how the fire separation rating depends on your smoke alarms (15, 30 or 45 minutes), wall and floor assemblies, doors, heating, ventilation and plumbing through the separation, bedroom egress windows and shared exits, smoke and CO alarms, ceiling heights, sound separation, electrical and gas permits from Technical Safety BC, and inspections through to the Certificate of Occupancy.
Download the video (MP4) · Watch on YouTube (BC Trades & Permits)
Narration uses a synthetic (AI-generated) voice.
A secondary suite is built to Part 9 of the BC Building Code. For alterations to an existing building to add a secondary suite (not new additions or new buildings), the code lets you substitute the alternate compliance methods in Division A Table 1.1.1.1.(6) (Sentence 1.1.1.1.(6)). The code’s note says the table isn’t intended to be applied as a retroactive code, nor to new construction (Note A-1.1.1.1.(6)), and an alteration must not decrease the existing level of life safety and building performance (1.1.1.2.(1)). The City adds that these methods may only be used where the existing construction is a barrier to compliance, and must be shown on your plans. These are summaries, not the code wording; your approved plans and inspector have the final say (BC Building Code 2024; City guide, PDF).
| Topic | Code requirement (Division B unless noted) | Existing house: Table 1.1.1.1.(6) alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Fire separation between the units and any common spaces | 9.10.9.16.(4): 15 min when all smoke alarms in the house are photo-electric and interconnected (9.10.19.5.(2)(a)); 30 min when an additional photo-electric smoke alarm is installed in each dwelling unit and common space and interconnected (9.10.19.5.(2)(b)); 45 min when neither is done; no rating required if the building is sprinklered. | — |
| 15 min assembly | 9.10.3.1.(2) permits the 9.11.1.1.(2)(a) construction: joist spaces filled with at least 150 mm nominal sound-absorbing material, stud spaces filled, resilient channel on one side at 400 or 600 mm o.c., and at least 12.7 mm gypsum board on ceilings and both sides of walls. | — |
| 30 min assembly | 9.10.3.1.(3): wood studs, joist and stud spaces filled with the listed insulation, resilient channel on one side at 400 or 600 mm o.c., and at least 12.7 mm gypsum board on ceilings and both sides of walls. The City’s Typical Fire/Sound Separation sheet shows its 30 min floor with wood joists (not wood I-joists) and at least 90 mm of rock, slag or spray-applied cellulose fibre (not fibreglass), and says that where the wall and ceiling have different ratings, the suite separation is considered to have the lesser one (City sheet, PDF). | Item 7: add resilient metal channel at 400 or 600 mm o.c. and another layer of at least 12.7 mm gypsum board to one side of an existing finished wall with at least 12.7 mm gypsum board on each side, or of an existing floor-ceiling with at least 12.7 mm gypsum on the ceiling side. |
| Supporting elements | 9.10.8.3.(1): loadbearing walls, columns and arches carry the rating of the floor they support. | Item 8: light-frame walls, columns, arches and beams and loadbearing steel supporting floors between the units (and common spaces) protected by at least 12.7 mm gypsum board; heavy timber, masonry and concrete excepted. |
| Doors in the fire separation | Every swing door needs a latch (9.10.13.9.) and a self-closing device (9.10.13.10.). A 30 or 45 min separation needs a 20 min closure (Table 9.10.13.1.); a 45 mm solid core wood door conforming to CAN/ULC-S113 is permitted, with no more than 6 mm clearance beneath and 3 mm at the sides and top (9.10.13.2.), in a wood frame at least 38 mm thick if the frame isn’t tested and rated (9.10.13.3.). | — |
| Heating and ventilation | The City says heating and ventilation systems between suites must be separate or be designed and inspected by a Mechanical Engineer, and its suite guide says the main dwelling can’t share a forced-air furnace with the suite unless a Mechanical Engineer is involved in the design and installation (source; source). A system serving more than one dwelling unit is designed to prevent smoke circulation on a signal from a duct-type smoke detector. 9.10.9.9.(6): ducts through fire separations need no fire dampers if noncombustible with all openings in the duct system serving only one fire compartment. 9.33.4.3.(1): where a single heating system serves a house with a secondary suite, each dwelling unit gets its own temperature control. | — |
| Plumbing through the separation | 9.10.9.7.: combustible drain, waste and vent piping through a rated fire separation is sealed by a firestop with an F rating not less than the separation’s required rating (9.10.9.6.(1)(a)). | — |
| Bedroom egress | 9.9.10.1.: unless the suite is sprinklered, each bedroom has an outside window or exterior door openable from inside without keys, tools or special knowledge; a window gives an unobstructed opening of at least 0.35 m² with no dimension under 380 mm; 760 mm clearance in a window well; a well cover openable from inside. | — |
| Shared exit, single stair | 9.9.9.3.(3): where either unit’s egress door opens onto a shared egress facility served by a single exit stair or ramp, a second means of egress isn’t needed if the building is sprinklered or each unit has separate, direct access from each storey to a balcony or to a window with an opening at least 1 m high and 0.55 m wide, its sill no more than 1 m above the floor and no more than 7 m above adjacent ground (9.9.9.3.(3), applying the window rules in 9.9.9.1.(2)(a) and (b)). | Items 5 and 6: protecting openings near unenclosed exterior exit stairs and ramps, and near exit doors, isn’t required when all smoke alarms in the house are photo-electric and interconnected. |
| Smoke alarms | In each dwelling unit and in ancillary and common spaces (9.10.19.1.); on each storey including basements, in each sleeping room and between the sleeping rooms and the rest of the storey (9.10.19.3.); permanently wired with battery backup (9.10.19.4.); a silencing device for no more than 10 min (9.10.19.6.). The City accepts wireless interconnection, but each smoke alarm needs a permanent electrical connection (City alarms guide, PDF). | — |
| CO alarms | 9.32.4.2.: with a fuel-burning appliance in a suite, a CO alarm inside each bedroom or within 5 m of each bedroom door (4); with one in a service room outside the suites, CO alarms in each adjoining suite and in the service room (5); in a house with a secondary suite, CO alarms are interconnected (7). The City’s alarms guide says CO alarms don’t require a permanent electrical connection (source). | — |
| Ceiling height | At least 2.1 m over the minimum area in Table 9.5.3.1. (9.5.3.1.(1)). | Item 2: at least 1.95 m over the required area, with travel between the required areas of all rooms without dropping below 1.95 m; at least 1.85 m under beams and ducting, including over stairs. The City’s guide says that where ceilings are lower, the house may need to be lifted or the floor lowered (source). |
| Doorways and stairs | Doorways for doors at least 1,980 mm high (9.5.5.1.); 1,950 mm clear height over stairs (9.8.2.2.(3)). | Items 3 and 4: doorways within the suite for doors at least 1,890 mm high, except exit doors and doors serving public and exit corridors; 1,850 mm over stairs under existing beams and ducting, except stairs in a public or exit corridor. |
| Sound | 9.11.1.1.(2): the basic assembly above, construction rated at least STC 43, or a separating assembly and adjoining construction rated at least ASTC 40. | Item 9: resilient metal channel at 400 or 600 mm o.c. and another layer of at least 12.7 mm gypsum board on one side of an existing finished assembly, in place of the basic assembly. |
| Grab bars | 3.8.5.1.(2): one bathroom in a suite reinforced for future grab bars. | Item 1: not required in existing bathrooms serving the suite. |
Related: Secondary suite permit how-to (BC) · Victoria secondary suite permit guide · Vancouver secondary suite permit guide · Duncan secondary suite permit guide · Nanaimo building permit guide · Nanaimo deck permit and build guide · 30-second permit quiz
Most houses, suites, decks and garages fall under Part 9 of the BC Building Code 2024: buildings of 3 storeys or less, up to 600 m², with residential or certain other uses (Division A, 1.3.3.3). Bigger buildings fall under Part 3, which always needs registered professionals and Letters of Assurance (Division C, 2.2.7.1).
On a Part 9 project, the Code requires a registered professional (an engineer or architect who seals drawings and signs Letters of Assurance) only for parts outside Part 9. Examples are beams with point loads, girder trusses, engineered products, soil or foundation conditions beyond Part 9, and retaining walls that support a foundation. The province also recommends professional design for other retaining walls over 1.2 m. For the rest, the Code doesn’t say who must draw the plans. The city sets the drawing standard.
Nanaimo asks for “designer-quality” plans drawn to accepted drafting practice. Whether you may draw them yourself isn’t stated, so ask the city.
Checked October 26, 2026: BC Building Code 2024 (PDF) · Guide to Letters of Assurance (PDF) · Letters of Assurance (gov.bc.ca) · EGBC guidelines · AIBC: does your project need an architect? · plan requirement checklist (PDF)
Need someone to draw the plans? See who draws permit plans in Nanaimo: when you need a designer or engineer, how to check a firm, and local firms we checked.
Yes. The City says a permit is required to build a new suite or upgrade an existing one, and only a suite created under a building permit is considered legal (or authorized). Building Bylaw 7224 s.6.1 bans alterations or a change of occupancy without a permit.
Zoning Bylaw 4500 s.6.15.2.1 allows one per dwelling, or up to two with a single residential dwelling if no other principal uses exist, the lot isn’t zoned R2 or R3, and exactly one suite is in an accessory building. The City’s Secondary Suite Permit page still says one per dwelling, so confirm with Current Planning.
In the same building as a single residential dwelling, no more than 40% of the habitable floor space of the principal building, to a maximum of 100 m² (Zoning Bylaw 4500 s.6.15.2.4(a)).
Under the Off-Street Parking Regulations Bylaw 2026 No. 7453, a single residential dwelling needs 2 spaces and a secondary suite 1. The suite’s space can’t be tandem with the house’s spaces (s.4.10), and there’s no minimum in Area 5 on the Schedule A map (s.4.2).
Under Fees and Charges Bylaw 7336, the building permit fee is $105 for the first $1,000 of construction value, plus $10 per $1,000 to $100,000 and $7 per $1,000 above. By our own arithmetic, $60,000 of work would be $695. Plumbing is $8 per fixture ($40 minimum). Confirm with the City.
No. Technical Safety BC issues electrical and gas permits in Nanaimo, and says you must hire a licensed contractor if your property has a suite, whether or not it is occupied.
The City’s DCC Bylaw 7252 doesn’t count secondary suites when it charges buildings of two or more dwelling units (s.5(1)(b)). Regional District of Nanaimo charges can apply to building permits for more than $50,000 of work, so ask the City.
Independent information only. This guide is a planning aid, not legal, engineering or building-code advice. Codes and bylaws change, and the building official for your address has the final say. Confirm every requirement before you design, apply or dig.
This guide relies on the official pages below. Rules, fees and processes change, so check the authority before you apply or spend money.
Links checked October 1, 2026. Found an error or a broken link? Report it.