Planning permission checker: Northern Ireland
Your shed, cabin, summerhouse or garden sauna against the outbuilding rules for Northern Ireland; each result names its paragraph.
Result for Northern Ireland
Likely permitted development
10 of 10 rules within the limits
Building Regulations: exempt
Schedule 2, Class 7(c)
- Within the rules: Height 2.4 m: limit 4 m D.1(c) Limit 4 m You 2.4 m
- Within the rules: Eaves 2 m, within 2 m of the boundary: limit 2.5 m D.1(d) Limit 2.5 m You 2 m
- Within the rules: Not forward of a wall facing a road D.1(b)
- Within the rules: Not in front of or beside the house in a conservation area or similar protected area D.3
- Within the rules: Not within 3.5 m of a road boundary behind the house D.1(e)
- Within the rules: Buildings cover no more than 50% of the curtilage D.1(a)
- Within the rules: No listed building without consent D.1(i)
- Within the rules: No protected-area limit exceeded D.2
- Within the rules: No balcony or veranda, and no deck or platform over 0.3 m D.1(f), I.1(a)
- Within the rules: Use incidental to the house D, D.1(h)
All 342 listed garden buildings that state a height likely need no planning permission in Northern Ireland even close to the boundary, going by their height and eaves (eaves up to 2.5 m within 2 m).
Section: house, garden building and boundary
Drawn to scale from your height and eaves; the distance to the boundary follows your answer, the dashed line is the height limit that applies.
The building or enclosure must not exceed 4 metres in height.
D.1(c)
This is a check against the national rules, not legal advice. Your council may have removed permitted development rights for your area or your house. A deck of up to 0.3 m has its own conditions under Class I, for example not forward of a wall facing a road. If in doubt, ask your council's planning office before you build.
Rules for outbuildings in Northern Ireland
From Class D of Part 1 of the Schedule to the Planning (General Permitted Development) Order (Northern Ireland) 2015. A building that meets every condition needs no planning application. Northern Ireland limits the eaves near the boundary, not the overall height.
| Rule | Paragraph |
|---|---|
| The building or enclosure must not exceed 4 metres in height. | D.1(c) |
| Within 2 metres of the boundary of the curtilage, the eaves height must not exceed 2.5 metres. | D.1(d) |
| Buildings or enclosures (other than the original house) must not cover more than 50% of the curtilage, excluding the ground area of the original house. | D.1(a) |
| No part may be forward of a wall that faces onto a road and forms the principal elevation or a side elevation of the original house. | D.1(b) |
| In a conservation area, World Heritage Site, National Park or area of outstanding natural beauty: no part may be on land between a wall forming the principal or a side elevation of the house and the boundary of the curtilage. | D.3 |
| No part may be within 3.5 metres of a boundary of the curtilage with a road opposite the rear wall of the house. | D.1(e) |
| No deck, balcony, veranda or other raised platform as part of the building; a deck or other raised platform of not more than 0.3 metres above ground level is permitted separately under Class I. | D.1(f), I.1(a) |
| The building must be required for a purpose incidental to the enjoyment of the house and must not be for use as a dwellinghouse. | D, D.1(h) |
| Not permitted within the curtilage of a listed building unless listed building consent has been granted. | D.1(i) |
| In a World Heritage Site, National Park or area of outstanding natural beauty: buildings, enclosures and pools more than 20 metres from any wall of the house must not cover more than 10 square metres in total. | D.2 |
Building Regulations
Planning permission and Building Regulations are separate. In Northern Ireland, Schedule 2 of the Building Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012 exempts small detached buildings:
| Exemption | Paragraph |
|---|---|
| A detached single-storey building of not more than 15 m² with no sleeping accommodation is exempt if it is not less than 1 metre from a dwelling. | Schedule 2, Class 7(c) |
| A detached single-storey building of not more than 30 m² with no sleeping accommodation is exempt if it is built substantially of non-combustible material, or if no point is less than 1 metre from a dwelling, a road and the boundary. | Schedule 2, Class 7(a) |
What is different in Northern Ireland
- Northern Ireland has no single-storey rule and no lower height limit near the boundary: the building may be up to 4 m high anywhere in the garden (D.1(c)), but within 2 m of the boundary the eaves may be at most 2.5 m (D.1(d)).
Other nations
Each nation of the UK has its own order for permitted development (all four side by side). Near the boundary:
- England: height up to 2.5 m within 2 m of the boundary (Class E, E.1(e)(ii))
- Wales: height up to 2.5 m within 2 m of the boundary (Class E, E.1(f))
- Scotland: height up to 2.5 m within 1 m of the boundary (Class 3A, 3A(2)(e))
Buildings likely fine close to the boundary in Northern Ireland: garden building finder (filter "Planning permission"). Garden saunas by power supply: sauna finder.