What is a fire safety certificate and does a house need one?

How it works in Ireland

Under the Building Control Regulations 1997 the owner of certain new buildings and works must apply to the building control authority for a fire safety certificate before starting. The authority checks the design drawings and reports against Part B (Fire Safety) of the Building Regulations. If satisfied it grants the certificate, sometimes with conditions, and the work must then be built to match.

A building used as a dwelling, other than a flat, is on the list of buildings that do not need one, so a typical self-build house does not apply. The same article exempts a single-storey domestic garage and certain small single-storey garden buildings. Our guide on fire safety and access rules for your new house gives the detail.

The exemption removes the application, not the duty. The house must still comply with Part B, which in the Technical Guidance Document for dwelling houses covers warning and escape, internal linings, structure in fire, external spread and access for the fire service. Compliance is shown through the design and construction records, normally through the assigned certifier route or the owner’s agreed inspection arrangements.

The exemption stops in some common cases. A flat is separate premises in a building divided horizontally, so an upstairs and downstairs split, or a block of apartments, needs a certificate. A change of use, such as turning a barn into guest accommodation, can bring it in. A two-storey outbuilding or one used for business or habitation falls outside the garden-building exemption. A granny flat attached to a house should be checked with building control before design is fixed, because the answer depends on how it is arranged.

If a certificate is needed, the application has its own fee, drawings and processing time. A fire safety certificate application cannot be added at the end, and building without a required certificate is an offence. Plan for several weeks in the programme.

A common mistake

Assuming the exemption covers everything on the plot. It covers the house, not a separate flat or commercial element. Ask building control early when the design includes a rentable unit.