THE City of Surrey launched a new Multi-Family and Complex Building Permit Portal on November 18. This initiative represents a significant step in the City’s dedication to offering fully online, end-to-end permitting services. By expanding online permitting capabilities to include multi-family and complex building permits—alongside earlier offerings for electrical, plumbing, and sign permits—the City is fulfilling an important objective outlined in the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) Action Plan.

“The launch of the Multi-Family and Complex Building Permit Portal is a significant milestone for the City of Surrey,” said Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke on Thursday. “This innovative online permitting system reflects our commitment to improving processes and increasing transparency and efficiency in the permitting process. By embracing technology, we are enhancing the applicant experience and streamlining approvals, ultimately paving the way for more diverse housing options in our city. Together, we are taking significant strides towards our goals outlined in the Housing Action Plan, ensuring that Surrey remains a vibrant and accessible place to call home for everyone.”

After registering through Planning and Development’s Client Services Centre, multi-family and complex (commercial, industrial, institutional and tenant improvement) building permit applicants will receive access to:

• real-time updates on their permit status;
• a detailed list of plan review deficiencies;
• any outstanding payments and the flexibility to make online payments for eligible fees; and
• request an inspection following permit issuance.

The expansion of online permitting services is part of a phased and progressive effort to achieve the City’s newly endorsed proposed Development and Permit Approval Targets that aim to reduce permit approval timelines by a minimum of 30%. The new targets, which will be on the City website in early 2025, will include townhouses, low-rise, and high-rise projects and aims to challenge the status quo in reducing the overall time for development. This new approach focuses on the applicant experience from submission to approval, streamlining the development and permitting process and demonstrating the City’s continued commitment to service excellence.

For more information on the HAF Action Plan and the City’s actions to date, visit surrey.ca/housingaccelerator.