# Building Regulations (Northern Ireland) Order 1979, Article 13: Plans deposited with a district council


(1) Where plans of any proposed works are deposited with a district council in accordance with building regulations, the district council shall, subject to paragraph (3)—
(a) if the plans are neither defective nor show that the proposed works would contravene any building regulation, pass the plans; or
(b) if the plans are defective or show that the proposed works would contravene any building regulation, reject the plans.
(2) Building regulations may—
(a) make provision for requiring district councils in such circumstances as may be prescribed to consult any prescribed person before taking any prescribed step in connection with any work or other matter to which building regulations are applicable;
(b) authorise a district council to accept, as evidence that the requirements of building regulations as to matters of a prescribed description are or would be satisfied, certificates to that effect by persons of any class or description prescribed in relation to those matters or by a person nominated in writing by the Department in any particular case;
(c) provide for the issue by a district council of certificates to the effect that, so far as the council concerned has been able to ascertain after taking all reasonable steps in that behalf, the requirements of building regulations as to matters of any prescribed description are satisfied in any particular case, and for such certificates to be evidence (but not conclusive evidence) of compliance with the regulations;
(d) make provision—
(i) for prohibiting, in prescribed circumstances, the carrying out of proposed work of any prescribed class involving matters of any prescribed description unless there has been deposited with the district council a certificate such as is mentioned in sub-paragraph ( b);
(ii) for enabling, in cases where such a certificate is required by virtue of the preceding provision, any dispute as to whether a certificate ought to be issued to be referred to the Department;
(iii) for enabling the Department on any such reference to give such directions as it thinks fit;
(e) authorise district councils to charge prescribed fees for or in connection with the performance of prescribed functions of theirs relating to building regulations.
(3) A district council with which plans are deposited in accordance with building regulations shall notify the person by or on behalf of whom the plans were deposited whether the council has passed or rejected the plans.
(4) For the purposes of paragraph (3)—
(a) a notice passing the plans shall state that the passing operates as an approval of those plans only for the purposes of the requirements of building regulations; and
(b) a notice rejecting the plans shall specify the grounds of the rejection.
(5) Building regulations may provide that the council shall comply with paragraph (3) within the prescribed period from the deposit of the plans or within such extended period as may, before the expiration of the prescribed period, be agreed in writing between the person by or on behalf of whom the plans were deposited and the council.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisi/1979/1709/article/13 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/building-regulations-northern-ireland-order-1979/article-13
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.