Skip to content.
Return to Department of Building and Housing home page.

Internal walls

This is a new exemption, introduced in October 2008.

Exemption (ca) of Schedule 1

A building consent is not required for the following building work:

(ca) the construction, alteration, or removal of an internal wall (including the construction, alteration, or removal of an internal doorway) in any existing building if—

(i) compliance with the provisions of the building code relating to structural stability is not reduced; and

(ii) the means of escape from fire provided within the building are not detrimentally affected; and

(iii) the wall is not made of units of material (such as brick, burnt clay, concrete, or stone) laid to a bond in and joined together with mortar.

Guidance

This exemption allows owners of buildings to alter, remove or construct certain internal walls. To qualify such internal walls cannot affect:

  • structural stability (in relation to alteration and removal). This means that the internal wall cannot be load-bearing or contain a bracing element
  • means of escape from fire. If building work of or on the internal wall affects the means of escape for occupants from fire, then a building consent will still need to be obtained. The reason for including this limitation is that building new internal walls could compromise existing requirements (eg, by making it more difficult for someone to escape from the building if it is on fire)
  • brick, burnt clay, concrete or stone. The construction, alteration and removal of internal masonry walls will still require a building consent. Masonry walls are walls that are made of units held together by mortar, for example brick, and concrete block or stone. These walls can be very heavy and if they are not adequately supported the consequence of the wall collapsing would be greater than that of a timber-framed wall.
Examples where this exemption could apply Examples where building consent is required
  • An owner of a residential dwelling wishes to remove a small section of internal wall to accommodate a new kitchen installation. The owner is satisfied (through discussions with a licensed building practitioner) the section of wall is not load-bearing and is not a bracing element. This building work does not require a building consent.
  • An owner of a commercial property wishes to install a wall to provide privacy to an open area. The owner obtains advice from an expert that the wall does not affect the means of escape from fire, and therefore will not require a building consent.
  • The owner of a building wants to cut a new opening in an existing wall to create an open-plan lobby and reception area. The owner seeks guidance from the local authority (council) and an architect. Historic plans are reviewed and the owner discovers the wall is load-bearing. The proposed alteration will affect the structural stability of the wall. Means of escape may also be altered as a result of the proposed work. A building consent is needed as the building work does not meet the exemption criteria.
  • An owner of a building wishes to install a door in an internal wall that is not load-bearing. However, the wall is made out of reinforced concrete block, so a building consent is required.