Please note: Forms must be submitted electronically via the Building Control Management System website as paper copies are no longer accepted.
In accordance with the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations S.I. 9 of 2014, you are obliged to submit a Commencement Notice prior to commencement of a development and it must be received by the Building Control Authority not less than 14 days and not more than 28 days before you wish to commence.
You need to submit a Commencement Notice if you are:
- Constructing a building
- Making a Material alteration to a building
- Extending a building
- Materially changing the use of a building
- Carrying out any works in connection with the material alteration of a shop, office or industrial building.
How to submit a commencement notice?
You must submit a commencement notice through the online National Building Control Management System before you start building work for which you have received planning permission.
To apply for a Commencement Notice each party (owner, designer, builder and assigned certifier) to the notice must first register with the National Building Control Management System - BCMS.
When is a 7 Day notice required and what is it?
A 7 Day notice is a fast track notification of commencement, prior to the granting of a Fire Safety Certificate. The standard fee for a 7 Day notice is €250 or €5.80 per square metre of floor, whichever is the greater. This is double the amount for a standard Fire Safety Certificate application.
The 7 Day notice must be accompanied by a valid Fire Safety Certificate application and a Statutory Declaration form in respect of the work proposed, but only the fee for the 7 Day notice applies
The name of the applicant on the Statutory Declaration form must match that of the applicant on the 7 Day Notice form along with the description of works on the Statutory Declaration which must match the description provided on the 7 Day Notice application form. The Statutory Declaration must be signed, addressed, dated and stamped by a Commissioner of Oaths. The introduction of the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2021 (S.I. No. 229 of 2021) states that “Where a copy of the 7 day notice statutory declaration referred to in Article 20A (2)(a)(ii)(II), has been submitted via the Building Control Management System, the applicant shall retain the original 7 day notice statutory declaration and shall produce the original 7 day notice statutory declaration for inspection where required to do so by the building control authority."
View the online register for Laois
Visit the publicly available register of building control activity to see all building control activity for Laois
Further information
Should you have any further queries, please contact the Planning Department by email on planning@laoiscoco.ie or telephone 057 866 4039