How long will it take? We track what every Vancouver Island building department publishes about permit processing times, including Nanaimo’s live application queue: BC building permit wait times by city.
A development permit is not a building permit, and finding that out late is expensive. Here is the fee table, the paperwork, and what the City says about timelines.
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 Victoria): VicMap · Zoning Regulation Bylaw
A development permit governs what your project looks like and how it sits on the land — form, character, siting, landscaping. A building permit governs whether it is built safely and to code. If your property is in a development permit area, the development permit must be approved first, and only then do you apply for the building permit.
For development permits and heritage alteration permits outside DPA1, the City charges $2,000 per dwelling unit for up to three units, $3,000 for a duplex, $4,000 for a triplex, and $6,000 plus $2.50 per square metre of floor area for more than three units. Non-residential and mixed-use projects are $3,000 plus $2.50 per square metre up to 500 square metres, and $6,000 plus $2.50 per square metre above that. Each variance adds $250.
DPA1 has its own scale: $2,000 for one dwelling unit, $3,000 for two, $12,000 for three to six, and $15,000 for more than six. The jump between two units and three is the one that catches people out.
A delegated permit is approved by City staff rather than going to Council, which is available where the proposal is consistent with the applicable design guidelines and the scope allows it. Applications go to zoning@victoria.ca and need a signed application, a Certificate of Title no older than 30 days, scaled plans, photographs or a materials board, and a Site Disclosure Statement for non-residential properties.
The City states only that timelines vary with the complexity of the proposal, and does not publish a standard figure. Staff-delegated permits are considerably faster than anything requiring Council. A complete application is the single biggest thing within your control.
A development variance permit is $750, which includes one variance. Each additional variance is $250.
Sequencing tip. Heritage Alteration Permits and Development Permits in Victoria usually have to be approved before you apply for the building permit. The heritage / HAP and asbestos items are summarized on the Victoria building permit guide.
| For | Contact |
|---|---|
| Development permits, variances, rezoning | 250.361.0382 · DevelopmentServices@victoria.ca |
| Delegated permit applications | zoning@victoria.ca |
| Building permits and inspections | 250.361.0344 · permits@victoria.ca |
| Official City fee schedule | victoria.ca summary of fees |
Next step. Once your development permit is approved you still need the building permit — fees, the five application types and the penalty for starting early are in our Victoria building permit guide. Not sure your job needs any permit at all? Start with do I need a building permit for this?
Most people land here because someone told them "you'll need a DP for that" and it was the first they'd heard of it. The difference is worth getting straight, because it changes your budget and adds approval steps before your building permit application.
You can easily need two of these, or all three. They are not alternatives to one another.
Victoria's development permit areas are designated in the Official Community Plan, and there is no shortcut that reliably tells you from your address alone. The practical answer is to ask before you spend money on drawings:
The City also recommends a pre-application meeting with a neighbourhood planner. It is free advice from the people who will review the file, and it is the cheapest hour you will spend on the whole project.
If your project means removing trees, check Victoria's Tree Protection Bylaw too: our BC tree-cutting permit checker shows which trees need a permit.
These are the City's published application fees. They are charged on top of your building permit fee, not instead of it.
Victoria fee waiver (verified on 2026-10-05). The City of Victoria’s Development Fee Waiver Bylaw No. 26-020, s.4, sets the building permit fees in Schedule A of Building and Plumbing Regulation Bylaw 17-113 (items a–f: the application fee, the permit fee, the higher fee for work started without a permit, and extension, plan-revision and re-inspection fees) to $0, along with plumbing permit fees (items h–m), City electrical permit fees (Schedule E of the Electrical Safety Regulation Bylaw) and land-use application fees (Schedule A of the Land Use Procedures Bylaw). Under s.3 it applies to complete applications received after its adoption on January 29, 2026, up to and on the day it is repealed; s.5 repeals it 12 months after adoption (the City gives January 29, 2027). It is not limited to housing. The excavation deposit (Schedule A item g) is not waived, and charges under bylaws the waiver does not list, such as development cost charges, are not covered by it. If your permit will be issued after the repeal date, confirm with the City whether the fee is still $0. For this page: the City’s summary of fees says development application fees are set by the Land Use Procedures Bylaw, so the development permit, heritage alteration permit and variance fees below are $0 for complete applications received in the waiver window, and the Board of Variance application fee (Board of Variance Bylaw s.11(1)) is also set to $0. The tables show the normal fees, which apply outside the waiver; confirm with the City which items on your file are covered. Bylaw 26-020 (PDF)
| Project | Application fee |
|---|---|
| Up to 3 dwelling units | $2,000 per unit |
| Duplex | $3,000 |
| Triplex | $4,000 |
| 4 or more dwelling units | $6,000 + $2.50 per sq. m. |
| Non-residential or mixed use, up to 500 sq. m. | $3,000 + $2.50 per sq. m. |
| Non-residential or mixed use, over 500 sq. m. | $6,000 + $2.50 per sq. m. |
| Each variance requested | $250 |
Area 1 is priced on its own scale, and the jump at three units is the one that catches people out.
| Project | Application fee |
|---|---|
| 1 dwelling unit | $2,000 |
| 2 dwelling units | $3,000 |
| 3 to 6 dwelling units | $12,000 |
| 7 or more dwelling units | $15,000 |
| Each variance requested | $250 |
A "delegated" permit is one staff can approve without sending it to Council, when the proposal is consistent with the guidelines. It is dramatically cheaper.
| Permit | Application fee |
|---|---|
| Delegated development permit (general) | $200 |
| Delegated development permit, with parking variance | $200 + $250 per variance |
| Delegated heritage alteration permit | $200 |
| Delegated DP in Area 1, up to 3 units | $3,000 |
| Delegated DP in Area 1, 4+ units | $6,000 + $2.50 per sq. m. |
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Development variance permit | $750, plus $250 per additional variance |
| Resubmission | $500 |
| Site profile (contaminated sites) | $100 |
| Board of Variance | $250 |
| Official Community Plan amendment | $2,500 |
| Public hearing (rezoning or OCP) | $1,800 |
Victoria's development permit application asks for a specific package. Missing pieces are the most common reason a file sits untouched.
Sites larger than 930 m² also fall under the City's Large Project Submission Guidelines.
Straight answer: the City does not publish a processing time for development permits. It says only that timelines vary with the complexity of the proposal. Anyone quoting you a firm number is guessing.
What you can plan around is the number of gates your file has to pass through, because each one adds time:
A delegated permit skips items 4 through 7 entirely. That is the real reason to ask early whether your project can be delegated — the $200 fee is the small part of the saving. Skipping the committee and Council steps is the big part.
BC's 2023 housing legislation (Bill 44) requires municipalities to allow small-scale multi-unit housing in areas that were previously single-family. Victoria can still apply form-and-character requirements through a development permit area, but those requirements must not unreasonably restrict your ability to build at the use and density the provincial legislation permits. If you are being told a design guideline blocks a density the province has mandated, that is worth a direct conversation with Development Services, and possibly with a planner of your own.
How long will it take? We track what every Vancouver Island building department publishes about permit processing times, including Nanaimo’s live application queue: BC building permit wait times by city.
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 September 25, 2026. Found an error or a broken link? Report it.