Priority work programmes
Last updated: 2 July 2026
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) has a building reform programme underway to deliver an efficient, fair and fit for purpose building system that drives long term housing supply and economic growth.
MBIE's building reform programme resets how risk, responsibility and regulation are balanced across the building system. The reforms aim to make it easier and faster to build new homes and buildings, and improve fairness, accountability and consistency across the building sector.
Over time, the reforms will help reduce compliance costs, improve speed and consistency of building consent decisions, and enable the system to perform well during periods of high demand.
Self-certification for plumbers and drainlayers
The Government is introducing self-certification schemes to streamline consenting for lower-risk building work. The self-certification for plumbers and drainlayers scheme will remove the need for Building Consent Authority (BCA) inspections for certain types of eligible building work. It allows plumbers and drainlayers, who hold an endorsement from the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board, to certify their own work complies with a building consent.
The intent of these changes is to speed up the building consent process and allow BCAs to focus on higher-risk work.
The Building and Construction Sector (Self-certification by Plumbers and Drainlayers) Amendment Bill was passed earlier this year and the scheme is expected to be up and running before the general election.
Learn more about self-certification for plumbers and drainlayers
Occupational licensing
The Government is strengthening occupational licensing regimes across building professions. The changes will improve complaints and disciplinary processes and penalties, clarify the Boards' and Registrars' roles, simplify relicensing, enable codes of ethics, and make information easier to access.
These changes support professional accountability, transparency, and public confidence in the building sector.
This work is being progressed through the Building and Construction Sector (Strengthening Occupational Licensing Regimes) Amendment Bill.
Learn more about Improving occupational licensing to help homeowners
Earthquake-prone building system
The Government is reforming the earthquake-prone building system to create a more proportionate, risk-based system.
The changes will reduce costs for building owners while addressing life-safety risks in the most vulnerable buildings where risk is greatest.
This work is being progressed through the Building (Earthquake-prone buildings) Amendment Bill.
Proportionate liability, professional indemnity insurance and home warranties
The Government is rebalancing responsibility across the building sector by moving from joint and several liability to proportionate liability. Under proportionate liability, each party is liable only for their share of the work and the loss they contributed to, rather than potentially being held liable for the full cost of defects caused by others. These changes will strengthen accountability and reduce dependency on regulatory oversight as a back stop.
To support the move to proportionate liability, the changes also include mandating professional indemnity insurance for professionals who contribute to building design (for example, architects and engineers). Home warranties will be required for new residential buildings and renovations $100,000 or above (including GST) involving restricted building work and a building consent.
These changes strengthen accountability and help ensure homeowners are protected under the new liability settings.
This work is being progressed through the Building Amendment Bill.
Building levies and building research
The Government is combining the building levy and the building research levy into a single building levy under the Building Act 2004. A ring-fenced portion of this levy will fund building research. MBIE will be responsible for setting a building research strategy and administering contestable funding, with input from the building sector.
These changes will improve government oversight of how building sector levies are used, enable greater competition and promote value for money.
This work is being progressed through the Building Amendment Bill and through changes to the building levy regulations.
Building Consent Authority (BCA) voluntary consolidation
The Government is enabling BCAs to group together to deliver their building consent functions and services by removing the requirement for Territorial Authorities to be BCAs for functions they have transferred and allowing function transfers to stand-alone BCAs, such as council-controlled organisations and independent BCAs. The changes allow arrangements that improve resource sharing, collaboration, and cost efficiency through shared accreditation, IT systems, and standardised processes.
This work is being progressed through the Building Amendment Bill.
Building consent data standards
The Government has asked MBIE to investigate the development of data standards for building consent processes. Data standards are agreed rules that define how building consent data is specified, structured, named, shared, and governed.
The introduction of data standards will support more consistent and standardised processes across BCAs. They will enable reliable national level reporting and, over time, as IT systems improve, support more timely insights to inform system level decision making.
The initial drafts of the data standards are currently being consulted on with the sector.
The Government is considering next steps for progressing these changes.
Faster consenting for eligible homes and Project Information Memoranda (PIM)
The Government is introducing a 10-day fast-track building consent pathway for new residential buildings with solar electricity generation or sustainable attributes. The sustainable attributes include energy efficiency, low embodied carbon, water efficiency and climate resilience.
The changes aim to incentivise greater voluntary uptake of solar and sustainable buildings.
The fast-track pathway is being progressed through the Building Amendment Bill.
Processing times for PIMs will also be reduced from 20 to 10 working days, helping projects move forward more quickly.
Expanding the scope of the granny flats building consent exemption
The Government is expanding the scope of the granny flats building consent exemption to permit off-site constructed dwellings to be built in advance of receiving a project information memorandum (PIM) for the final site. A PIM will still be required before any building work takes place on-site, and all existing exemption conditions will continue to apply to homes built on- or off-site.
This change is being progressed through the Building Amendment Bill.
More about the current granny flats exemption:
Granny flats exemption: resources and guidance
The Government is also separately progressing work to include Structural Insulated Panel systems (SIPs) with a CodeMark certificate in Schedule 1A of the Building Act. Some SIPs may already be permitted under the exemption, however this change clarifies the requirements for homeowners, builders and councils. At the same time as making this change, the Government is also clarifying the scope of work for on-site water systems, and connections to these systems and network utility operating systems.
These changes are intended to be made in quarter 3 2026.
Self-certification for entire residential builds
The Government is introducing a self-certification scheme for companies, trusts or other organisations that build houses for the design and construction of entire residential dwellings. The scheme provides a streamlined consenting pathway for specified residential buildings without the need for a BCA to approve plans or conduct building inspections. House builders will need to meet robust eligibility criteria to enter the scheme which will be overseen by MBIE.
The scheme will speed up the building process and free up BCAs to focus their resources on more complex building work. It will also enable house builders to deliver homes faster and at lower cost.
The Government is considering next steps for progressing these changes.