How long does planning permission last in Ireland?

Planning permission normally lasts five years from the date of the grant. If you will not finish in time, apply for an extension before it expires; the ordinary extension route requires work to have started and substantial works to have been carried out.

Read the period on your own permission and check the expiry date with your council or planning consultant. The Planning and Development Act 2000 is being amended and replaced in stages by the 2024 Act, so the rules affecting your dates need checking before you rely on them.

The default: 5 years

Section 40 sets the usual period at 5 years beginning on the date of the grant. The council can fix a different period in the permission, so use the grant itself when making your programme.

What happens at expiry depends on how far you got:

• Not commenced: the entire development loses its permission.
• Commenced but not completed: the part not completed within the period loses its permission. Expiry does not invalidate work lawfully done under the permission before then.

Section 40 has exceptions, including permission to keep an existing structure (retention) and certain supporting works for completed buildings. Ask your planning consultant whether any unfinished work falls within an exception. If your permission is temporary, it still ends on the date stated in it. Expiry does not end a use of the land that is already permitted. Conditions attached to a completed development still apply.

Extending a permission

You can seek up to 5 more years under section 42. The council must extend the period if all these requirements are met:

1. you started the development before the period ended;
2. substantial works were carried out during that period;
3. the development will be completed within a reasonable time;
4. the application follows the regulations and is made before expiry, but no earlier than 2 years before it.

The two-year application limit replaced the former one-year limit on 20 July 2026 (S.I. 330/2026). An older council form may still show the previous rule.

The council may attach conditions, including a financial guarantee to help ensure the works are finished. It aims to give its decision within 8 weeks of receiving a valid application. An extension can be granted at most twice, and the two together cannot exceed 5 years.

Houses not yet started

Section 42(1A) introduced a special extension of up to 3 years for uncommenced housing. Section 28 commenced on 1 August 2025, starting a six-month application window. That application window has closed. Do not plan a new application around it. If you already received an extension under this route, see “If you already have the special housing extension” below.

Worked examples

These are hypothetical examples of the ordinary extension rules. Confirm the law and your actual expiry date before applying.

You have built part of the house

Permission is granted on 14 March 2026, so the 5 years end in March 2031. The grant date is day one: the calculated last day is 13 March 2031, subject to the grant and any duration changes. Use the final grant, not the earlier council decision to grant or the date your application was validated.

You pour foundations in 2029, then run short of funds. In early 2031 the shell is half up. You can seek an extension of up to 5 years within the application window. The council must still be satisfied about commencement, substantial works and your proposed completion time; a half-built shell does not guarantee approval. Without an extension, the part not completed by March 2031 loses permission and needs a new application.

You have not started

Suppose you have the same grant, but hold the site and never break ground. Under section 40(1) the entire development lapses in March 2031, and the ordinary section 42 extension is not available because it requires commencement and substantial works. The special application window for housing not yet started has closed. Discuss a fresh application with your planning consultant.

You have already had one extension

You get 3 years on the first extension. You can apply once more, but only for up to 2 years, because the two together cannot exceed 5 years.

What counts as “substantial works”

There is no universal checklist of building stages that satisfies section 42. You must have carried out substantial works under the permission within its current valid period. Do not assume that clearance, a trench or foundations will satisfy the test for your development. Ask your architect or engineer to describe the actual works and dates, and discuss the evidence with the planning authority. Dated photographs, inspection records and invoices can help support that account; they do not guarantee an extension.

Before you apply

• Timing. The Act requires the application to be made before the period ends. The Planning and Development Regulations (Article 41) now permit ordinary applications no earlier than 2 years before expiry. Check your permission and any previous extensions before calculating the window.
• Fee. Article 170 and Schedule 10 set the application fee; confirm the current amount and payment method with the council before submitting.
• Environmental screening. An extension cannot be granted if it requires an environmental impact assessment (a formal assessment of significant environmental effects) or an appropriate assessment (an assessment of effects on protected European wildlife sites). Ask your planning consultant to check whether these apply and what information the council needs to decide.
• What to submit. Use the council form and Articles 42–43: give permission details, explain whether you own the land or what other legal right you have over it, and describe works carried out and proposed, the extension sought and expected completion date. Check the supporting evidence and screening information required for your application.
• Security. The council can require a financial guarantee to help ensure the works are finished, and can add to or vary conditions under section 34(4)(g). Ask what form and amount it requires, and check how you would fund it before relying on an extension.

If you already have the special housing extension

For a permission already extended under section 42(1A):

• The special extension ends if you have not started building before 1 February 2027. Section 42(9) gives 18 months from 1 August 2025, counting the starting day. Confirm the deadline with your planning adviser now.
• You cannot use the ordinary section 42(1) route afterwards. A further extension under section 42(4A) can be sought once, before expiry and no earlier than 2 years beforehand.
• You must have started and carried out substantial works under the permission before the special extension expires, and show that you can finish within a reasonable time. The combined extensions under (1A) and (4A) cannot exceed 5 years, and the environmental assessment restriction still applies.

If the permission has already lapsed

A new section 42 application must precede expiry. If you applied in time but are awaiting a decision, ask the council and your adviser about your position before continuing work. If the permission has expired without an extension and part of the house is built, the unfinished part is no longer authorised by that permission. You would need a new application for the remainder, and for anything built outside a valid permission you may need retention. Talk to a planning consultant before building further, and budget for a new application fee and a fresh decision period.

Common mistakes

• Counting the 5 years from the date you applied, or from the date the appeal period ended.
• Applying a few days after expiry. Once the permission has ceased, section 42 cannot revive it.
• Relying on site clearance as “substantial works”.

Law in transition

The Planning and Development Act 2024 is being brought into force in stages. Its replacement for section 42 is not yet in force; do not assume the change will restart your permission’s clock. Ask your planning consultant which rules apply and have the expiry date confirmed. If the permission was challenged in court (judicial review), section 180 of the 2024 Act can affect its duration through a formal notification procedure. Ask your consultant and council to confirm the required notices and resulting expiry date rather than simply adding 5 years to the grant.

Plan a fresh application if needed

See how to apply for planning permission and the fee. Retention of an unauthorised build is a separate route.