Do I need a permit for a verandah in Victoria?

Key points

• A roofed verandah attached to your house almost always needs a building permit in Victoria.
• The exemptions in Schedule 3 of the Building Regulations 2018 cover small freestanding sheds and open pergolas, within strict limits.
• Adding any waterproof roof generally turns a pergola into a verandah.
• Overlays, easements and siting rules can add council approvals.
• The building surveyor makes the final call, so check before you build.

The short answer

In Victoria, the Building Act 1993 requires a building permit for building work unless the work is exempt. The exemptions are listed in Schedule 3 of the Building Regulations 2018. They cover a handful of small, low-risk structures, and a roofed verandah attached to a house is generally not one of them.

So if you're planning a verandah, outdoor room or patio cover that is attached to the house and has a roof, plan on needing a building permit. That is true for a small verandah over the back door as much as for a large outdoor living area.

What Schedule 3 does exempt

The exemptions most relevant to backyard structures are for:

• Small freestanding sheds (class 10a buildings) within limits on floor area and height, built from non-masonry materials and sited no further forward than the front of the house.
• Open pergolas within limits on height and area, and sited no further forward than set distances from the front of the house.

Each exemption has several conditions, and all of them must be met. A structure that is small enough but too tall near a boundary, or sits too far forward, is not exempt. The exact numbers are in Schedule 3 of the regulations, linked below.

Even when a structure is exempt, it must still comply with the building regulations, including the siting rules. An exemption removes the need for a permit, not the need to build it properly.

Why a roof changes everything

The difference between an exempt pergola and a verandah that needs a permit is usually the roof. Once a structure has a waterproof covering, such as Colorbond, polycarbonate, glass, a fabric canopy or opening louvres, it is generally treated as a verandah, and the pergola exemption no longer applies.

This catches out a lot of people who build an open pergola and add a roof later. If there is any chance you'll want a roof, it is usually better to design and permit it as a roofed structure from the start. See pergola vs verandah permits for more.

When a verandah needs more than a building permit

Some verandahs also need extra approvals:

• A planning permit, if your property has a Heritage Overlay or another overlay or zone that controls buildings and works. See building permit vs planning permit.
• Report and consent from council, if the verandah doesn't meet a siting rule, for example it is too high close to the boundary.
• Consent to build over an easement, from the authority that owns it.

These add time, so it is worth finding out early. We check for all of them before anything is lodged.

How to check your own design

1. Find out what is on your title. Your title plan shows easements and the boundaries.
2. Look up your zones and overlays on VicPlan, the Victorian Government's planning map.
3. Measure your design against the boundary. Note the distance from each fence and the height at that point.
4. Run the free check. Our free design check loads your real property boundary, places the structure and tests it against the Victorian rules, naming the rule behind each result.

If it flags a problem, the fix is often simple: lower the roof near the fence, shorten the structure, or move it slightly.

Common myths

"It's under 10 square metres, so it's fine." The size limits apply to particular exempt structures, such as small freestanding sheds. An attached roofed verandah is not exempt just because it is small.

"It's not attached to the house, so it doesn't count." A freestanding roofed structure is still a roofed structure. It generally needs a permit unless it fits within an exemption.

What happens next

If your verandah needs a permit, we can handle the whole thing: the site plan, a licensed building surveyor, any extra approvals (quoted first) and the inspections. You only pay when your permit is ready to issue. Read more about permits in Victoria.