When consented building work is nearly finished, a passed final inspection is not necessarily the last regulatory step.
For work carried out under a building consent, the owner must apply for a Code Compliance Certificate, usually called a CCC, after all of the building work covered by that consent is completed. (Legislation New Zealand)
A CCC is the BCA's formal decision that the completed building work complies with the building consent.
It is not:
- a SeekSaver certificate;
- the same thing as a final inspection;
- a Record of Building Work;
- a plumbing/drainlaying certificate of compliance;
- a guarantee that no contractual defect exists.
A useful homeowner close-out sequence is:
Check outstanding consent requirements → gather the evidence your actual project needs → confirm required records/certificates → prepare Form 6 → submit the CCC application → respond to any BCA request for further information → record the BCA decision → keep the CCC and supporting records
Jump to the Code Compliance Certificate Readiness & Document Register
What a Code Compliance Certificate actually means
A CCC is issued by a building consent authority under the Building Act.
The BCA generally needs to be satisfied on reasonable grounds that the building work complies with the building consent. Additional statutory considerations can apply where the work involves matters such as specified systems or self-certified plumbing/drainlaying. (Legislation New Zealand)
That means a CCC is a regulatory completion decision.
It is different from:
- your builder saying the job is finished;
- practical handover;
- final payment;
- a single inspection passing;
- resolving every defect or warranty issue.
Use SeekSaver's Renovation Handover Checklist NZ for broader project close-out.
Start with your actual building consent and BCA record
Before preparing the CCC application, work from the actual project file.
Check:
- building consent number;
- issued plans/specifications;
- approved amendments or variations;
- inspection records;
- outstanding BCA items;
- any project-specific certificates or reports required by the consent;
- current correspondence from the BCA.
Do not start from a generic national document list.
The BCA's decision is based on the actual consented work and the evidence available for that project. (Building.govt.nz)
If required construction-stage inspections are still unresolved, return first to SeekSaver's Building Consent Inspections NZ resource.
Make sure all consented building work is complete
Section 92 requires the CCC application after all building work to be carried out under the consent has been completed. (Legislation New Zealand)
That does not mean every wider contractual or cosmetic issue in the renovation must necessarily be resolved before you can even organise the CCC record.
The regulatory question is narrower:
Has the work covered by this building consent reached the point where the BCA can assess the CCC application?
If you are unsure what the BCA still considers outstanding, record the question and check with the BCA.
Do not make the determination yourself.
Form 6 is the prescribed CCC application
The CCC application must use the prescribed Form 6 — Application for code compliance certificate. The current form is prescribed by the Building (Forms) Regulations 2004. (Legislation New Zealand)
Current Form 6 includes information such as:
- building-consent details;
- owner details;
- agent details where applicable;
- personnel involved in the work;
- specified-system information where applicable;
- attachments required for the project.
The 2026 Form 6 was also amended to include:
- endorsed plumber/drainlayer details for self-certified work;
- certificates of compliance for self-certified plumbing;
- certificates of compliance for self-certified drainlaying. (Legislation New Zealand)
SeekSaver's Code Compliance Certificate Readiness & Document Register does not replace Form 6.
It simply helps you organise the real application and supporting evidence.
Separate universal requirements from project-specific documents
One of the biggest risks in CCC guidance is turning examples into a fake universal checklist.
The right approach is to separate three categories.
1. Statutory or prescribed items that apply where relevant
These can include:
- the Form 6 application;
- Records of Building Work where section 92 requires them;
- energy-work certificates where applicable;
- certificates of compliance for self-certified plumbing/drainlaying where applicable;
- specified-system evidence where applicable. (Legislation New Zealand)
2. Project-specific BCA/consent evidence
Depending on the consent, the BCA may also require project-specific evidence such as:
- producer statements;
- engineering records;
- as-built information;
- installation certificates;
- specialist test results;
- current drawings or approved changes;
- other evidence identified by the consent or BCA. (Building.govt.nz)
These are examples only.
3. Useful homeowner records
You may also want to retain documents that are useful for your long-term project file even if they are not universally required for every CCC application.
Examples can include:
- copies of submitted correspondence;
- document-version references;
- storage locations;
- project contacts.
Do not confuse good recordkeeping with a national legal requirement.
Records of Building Work — where restricted building work applies
If LBPs carried out or supervised restricted building work, they must provide Records of Building Work.
Those records identify the RBW each practitioner carried out or supervised and form part of the CCC application where applicable. (Building.govt.nz)
A Record of Building Work does not mean:
- the BCA has issued CCC;
- the LBP has certified the entire project;
- the BCA must automatically issue CCC.
It is one required project record.
If you are still missing a Record of Building Work, record:
- which LBP it relates to;
- what work they carried out/supervised;
- whether it has been requested;
- whether it has been received;
- whether the BCA has raised it as outstanding.
For a fuller explanation of Restricted Building Work and Records of Building Work, use SeekSaver's Restricted Building Work NZ guide.
Energy-work certificates — where applicable
Current Building Act and MBIE guidance require relevant energy-work certificates to accompany the CCC application where the consented work included the relevant electrical or gas work. (Building.govt.nz)
If an energy-work certificate required by the Act is not provided, that can be sufficient reason for the BCA to refuse CCC in relation to that energy work. (Legislation New Zealand)
Record only the certificates relevant to your project.
Self-certified plumbing and drainlaying — September 2026 position
New Zealand's plumbing/drainlaying self-certification framework is now part of the CCC process.
Where the relevant building consent used the self-certification pathway, the CCC application must include the certificate of compliance for the eligible self-certified work. (Legislation New Zealand)
The BCA checks that the certificate is complete and was issued by an appropriately endorsed practitioner. Under section 94, the BCA must accept a qualifying certificate of compliance as establishing that the self-certified work it covers complies with the building consent. (Legislation New Zealand)
Keep the boundaries clear
The plumbing/drainlaying certificate:
- relates only to the self-certified work it covers;
- is not the CCC for the whole project;
- does not remove the wider building-consent process;
- does not remove the BCA's responsibility to make the overall CCC decision. (Building.govt.nz)
One project can therefore contain:
self-certified plumbing/drainlaying evidence
and
other consented work assessed through the normal BCA process.
Producer statements can support the application, but they do not guarantee CCC
A producer statement may be useful evidence from a suitably qualified professional.
MBIE explains that producer statements can support CCC decisions where the BCA accepts them as accurate and reliable. They do not have special statutory status under the Building Act and are not a guarantee of compliance. (Building.govt.nz)
So record:
- producer-statement type/reference;
- author;
- date;
- work/component covered;
- whether the BCA expects or has accepted it.
Do not label:
“Producer statement received = CCC guaranteed.”
Apply as soon as practicable after the work is completed
Section 92 requires the owner to apply for CCC as soon as practicable after completion of all work under the consent. (Legislation New Zealand)
The application usually goes to the BCA that granted the building consent, subject to the limited alternative-BCA mechanism in section 91. (Legislation New Zealand)
Record:
- application date;
- Form 6 version;
- submission/reference number;
- supporting evidence included;
- acknowledgement from the BCA.
The 20-working-day rule
Section 93 requires the BCA to make its CCC decision within the statutory timeframe.
Where a CCC application is made, the normal starting point is:
20 working days from the application date
unless the owner and BCA agree a further period. (Legislation New Zealand)
During that period, the BCA can request further reasonable information.
If it does, the statutory decision period is suspended until the BCA receives the requested information. (Legislation New Zealand)
So:
20 working days is not a guarantee of 20 elapsed working days from submission to CCC issue.
The eventual BCA decision may be:
- issue CCC;
- refuse CCC;
- or remain pending while legitimately requested information is outstanding.
The two-year rule does not mean your CCC “expires”
The two-year rule is commonly misunderstood.
Do not read it as:
“If two years pass, you can no longer get a CCC.”
Section 93 says that if no CCC application has been made by the relevant two-year point after the building consent was granted, the BCA must still decide whether to issue the CCC within the statutory decision period.
The owner and BCA can also agree a further period. (Legislation New Zealand)
The important practical point is:
Two years is a BCA decision trigger, not an automatic expiry of the possibility of CCC.
If your consent is approaching or has passed that point, check the current BCA record rather than assuming the consent has simply disappeared.
Older MBIE guidance also discusses outstanding CCCs, but section 93 itself is the controlling source for this rule. (Building.govt.nz)
What happens if the BCA asks for more information?
The BCA may request further reasonable information before deciding whether to issue CCC.
Record:
- request date;
- exact item requested;
- BCA reference;
- responsible person;
- evidence/document being prepared;
- submitted date;
- version/reference;
- whether another request remains open.
Do not guess what the BCA “really means”.
Use its actual wording.
The statutory processing period is suspended while that requested information is outstanding. (Legislation New Zealand)
A passed final inspection is not the same as CCC
A project may have completed its required inspections and still require the formal CCC application and decision.
CCC is a separate statutory decision under sections 91–95A. (Legislation New Zealand)
So do not treat:
Final inspection passed
as automatically equal to:
CCC issued
Instead record both separately:
Final-inspection / outstanding-inspection status: as recorded by the BCA.
CCC decision status: as recorded by the BCA.
How the BCA decides
Section 94 requires the BCA to issue CCC where it is satisfied on reasonable grounds that the work complies with the building consent and the other applicable statutory conditions are met. (Legislation New Zealand)
The BCA can consider different kinds of evidence depending on the project.
That can include:
- inspection records;
- required Records of Building Work;
- energy-work certificates;
- self-certification certificates;
- specified-system evidence;
- accepted producer statements;
- project-specific technical records.
No single supporting document guarantees the outcome.
If CCC is refused
If the BCA refuses to issue CCC, section 95A requires written notice of:
- the refusal; and
- the reasons for refusal. (Legislation New Zealand)
Record the BCA's actual wording.
Do not turn the refusal into a SeekSaver diagnosis.
For example, do not rewrite:
“BCA requires further evidence about X”
as:
“SeekSaver concludes the builder breached the Building Code.”
Those are different statements.
If the BCA requires project changes or additional regulatory steps, follow the BCA and relevant professional advice.
If the project/contract also needs to be updated, SeekSaver's Renovation Variations NZ resource handles that separate workflow.
Certificate of Acceptance is a different process
A Certificate of Acceptance is not the ordinary substitute for CCC on a normally consented, completed project.
MBIE describes it as a separate process for certain work already done without the required consent, urgent work, or limited specified situations where CCC cannot be issued. (Building.govt.nz)
Detailed Certificate of Acceptance procedure is outside this guide.
When CCC is issued
When the BCA issues the CCC, keep:
- CCC itself;
- building-consent number/reference;
- Form 6 application copy;
- approved/updated project documents;
- relevant Records of Building Work;
- energy-work certificates;
- self-certification certificates where applicable;
- accepted producer statements/project records where relevant;
- BCA correspondence;
- supporting evidence you may need later.
The wider handover file may also contain:
- warranties;
- manuals;
- maintenance information;
- guarantees;
- broader project records.
Those belong to SeekSaver's Renovation Handover Checklist NZ.
What CCC does not prove
CCC is an important regulatory sign-off.
But it does not automatically mean:
- there are no contractual defects;
- no maintenance issue can arise later;
- every workmanship concern is resolved;
- every warranty issue is resolved;
- the homeowner has no other project records to keep.
The BCA's CCC decision and a homeowner's contractual/defect rights are separate matters.
If you later identify a possible building defect, use SeekSaver's Renovation Defects NZ resource.