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The Government has announced it will be expanding its consent-free granny flat rules.
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The new regulations for granny flats came into force in January and allowed for units up to 70 square metres that met clear national standards to be built without consent.
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Today, RMA and Housing Minister Chris Bishop, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk and Associate Finance Minister Shane Jones announced an expansion to the scheme.
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The first of the changes, expected to be made in Q3 of this year, would allow for consent-exempt granny flats to be built off-site before a Project Information Memorandum (PIM) is issued, provided all conditions are met.
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“That means homes can be built in advance, giving buyers the ability to inspect them before purchase and reducing overall construction time,” Penk said.
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A PIM would still be required before any on-site work begins, so the home can be checked to ensure it is suitable for the land on which it will be placed.
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“Homeowners will continue to have flexibility in how they build. People can still choose to build entirely on-site using the exemption or go through the standard building consent process if that better suits their project,” Penk said.
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Meanwhile, the exemption would be expanded to include Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) with a CodeMark certificate as a building material.
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SIPs are pre-fabricated building panels that consist of rigid foam between two structural boards.
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Penk said that including the material recognised a “wider range of proven building materials while maintaining confidence they meet Building Code requirements”.
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The Government also said it would include “minor technical improvements” to ensure the rules were practical.
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The changes were expected to be made by Order in Council in Q3 of 2026.
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Bishop said the expansion was “building on” January’s changes to “give homeowners even more choice, while maintaining strong safety and quality standards”.
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Jones said that for those who needed housing immediately, a granny flat was a “commonsense decision”.
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“These changes allow homeowners to have a range of options available to them and I look forward to seeing a boost in productivity in the construction sector this will bring.”
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The new regime
Under the new rules that came into force at the start of the year, granny flats must have a simple design and meet the Building Code.
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Work must also be carried out or supervised by licensed building professionals.
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There were also other conditions to a consent exemption.
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Bishop said in mid-January: “If you read the details carefully, there’s a variety of rules in there. Site-to-boundary coverage around the area that you can use of the site, for example.
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“It’s not a complete free-for-all. You can’t just go and build something out the back. You’ve got to follow the Building Code. You’ve got to follow the standards set out.”
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The same restrictions that apply to ordinary dwellings will apply to granny flats, meaning they cannot be built in flood zones where houses currently cannot be built.
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“It’s not an opportunity for them to say no, so it’s not a consent per se, but it’s an awareness on the part of the council of what is being built,” he said.
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Source-1News
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