Victoria's fee math is simple. Its development-permit map is not. Here's both, in plain English.
First, jurisdiction: the City of Victoria services only the immediate city footprint. Saanich, Oak Bay, and Esquimalt each run their own building departments with their own fees and timelines. If your property is outside the core, stop reading and find your actual municipality on our BC map — or use the Permit Finder.
New construction, additions, and accessory buildings; secondary and garden suite modifications; structural changes; interior alterations that touch plumbing or framing; exterior modifications; demolition; and solid-fuel appliance installations (yes, your wood stove). Electrical and gas work runs through Technical Safety BC — a separate provincial process your municipality doesn't handle.
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Application fee | $100 |
| Standard permit fee | 1.4% of construction value |
| Unpermitted work penalty | 2.8% on first $20,000, then 1.4% |
| Extension / reactivation | $100 |
| Post-issuance revisions | $100, 10% of original fee, or $125/hr staff time |
| Development Permit (where required) | $3,000–$7,500 base |
Simple residential renovation: 4–8 weeks. Larger renovations: 8–16 weeks. New construction that also needs a Development Permit: 4–9 months all-in. If your property sits in a heritage area or one of the 16 designated development-permit areas, check VicMap before you budget a single week — DP review happens before building review, and it's where projects stall.
| Purpose | Contact |
|---|---|
| Permit counter | City Hall, 1 Centennial Square, Victoria, BC V8W 1P6 |
| Phone | 250-361-0344 |
| Permits | permits@victoria.ca |
| Zoning questions | zoning@victoria.ca |