How to Get a Renovation Permit in BC: Drawings & Intake

Whether you are removing interior load-bearing walls for an open-concept kitchen, legalizing a basement suite for rental income, or expanding your living space with a second-storey addition, major renovations in British Columbia require a municipal building permit.

Because you are working with an existing structure, the permitting and inspection rules depend heavily on whether your project is an interior-only remodel or a structural footprint expansion.

Understanding the difference between an interior renovation and an exterior addition prevents you from paying for unnecessary reports or facing unexpected delays:

You cannot design a new transformation until you know exactly what exists today. Old homes often have out-of-square walls, unpermitted past renovations, and structural surprises hidden behind drywall:

1. Pulling City Archival Blueprints: We submit a request to your local municipal archives for the property's original Record Drawings to verify the legal history of the home. See our city-by-city Original Drawings Guides. 2. On-Site 3D LiDAR As-Built Scanning: We deploy precision LiDAR laser scanning across your entire home to capture exact room dimensions, ceiling heights, door/window locations, and structural beam spans down to the millimeter. 3. Zoning & Setback Verification: For home additions, we verify allowable Floor Area Ratio (FAR / FSR), lot coverage limits, and height restrictions to ensure your expansion is 100% compliant.

Phase 01 3D LiDAR Scan

Precision As-Built Laser Scanning: Capturing existing interior wall geometry, ceiling heights, and beam spans down to the millimeter before permit design begins.

With accurate as-built drawings in place, we begin designing your new layout:

• Open-Concept Living: Identifying load-bearing walls and designing flush-mounted steel or engineered wood (LVL) beams to create open, airy spaces.
• Secondary Suite Legalization: Designing secondary suites that satisfy BC Building Code life-safety rules—including minimum ceiling heights (6'7" / 2.0m), interconnected smoke alarms, independent heating controls, and dedicated egress windows.
• Seamless Additions: Designing room expansions or upper-floor additions that blend naturally with your home's existing roofline and exterior style.

Phase 02 Structural Design

Open-Concept Structural Alteration: Designing engineered glulam beams, steel posts, and open layouts to maximize living space while preserving structural integrity.

Visualizing structural changes before construction begins gives you complete confidence in your design:

• Before vs. After 3D Walkthroughs: Walk through an interactive 3D model of your home to see exactly which walls are removed and how natural light flows through the new layout.
• Addition Massing & Sightlines: Check exterior views, roof pitches, and window placements to ensure the new addition complements your property.

Canadian Blueprint creates the complete technical drawing package required for municipal permit intake:

• Demolition vs. Proposed Plans: Clear side-by-side floor plans showing existing walls, walls to be demolished (dashed lines), and new construction.
• Structural Engineering (Schedule B): For bearing wall removals, foundation underpinning, or roof additions, we coordinate directly with registered structural engineers to supply stamped engineering calculations and beam sizing.
• Fire & Sound Separation Details: Highlighting 1/2″ or 5/8″ Type X drywall assemblies, resilient channel spacing, and acoustic batts meeting the BC Building Code.

Phase 04 Technical Blueprints

Demolition vs. Proposed Drawing Sets: Comprehensive vector CAD drawings, sound/fire ratings, and structural engineer schedules formatted for municipal digital intake.

We package your drawings into single-layer vector PDFs formatted to municipal digital intake standards:

• Digital Portal Upload: Submitting via Vancouver ePermits, Surrey MySurrey, Burnaby MyPermits, Richmond ePlan, or Coquitlam QFile.
• Deficiency List Resolution: When plan examiners issue comment letters, simply forward the notice to Canadian Blueprint. We update the CAD files and coordinate fast revisions.
• Complete Process Guide: Read our master 8-Step BC Building Permit Approval Process for full details on municipal review timelines.

Once your Building Permit is issued and the stamped paper set is on site, inspections are called prior to concealing any trade work:

For Interior Renovations & Secondary Suites:

1. Plumbing Rough-In: Domestic water line pressure test and drain, waste, and vent (DWV) piping tests. 2. Electrical Rough-In: Wiring and junction boxes passed by Technical Safety BC or City inspectors. 3. Framing Inspection: Structural beams, posts, point loads, and fire stops inspected against approved plans. 4. Insulation & Vapour Barrier: Thermal batts and sealed 6-mil poly checked before drywall. 5. Fire Separations Inspection: Fire-rated Type X drywall inspected before taping and mudding in secondary suites. 6. Final Plumbing & Final Building: Smoke/CO alarms, guardrails, egress windows, and final fixtures approved.

Additional Inspections for Home Additions:

• Excavation & Footing Forms: Inspected before pouring new concrete footings.
• Foundation Forms & BCLS Survey: Certified legal survey verifying addition setbacks before pouring foundation walls.
• Drain Tile & Damp-Proofing: Perimeter weeping tiles inspected before backfilling.
• Rain Screen Drainage Plane: Exterior weather barrier and window/door flashing mockup checked before siding installation.

For a full chronological checklist of all municipal inspection milestones, read our Home Renovation & Addition Inspections Guide.

Whether you are legalizing a suite, renovating your main floor, or adding a second storey, Canadian Blueprint delivers permit-ready blueprints that streamline municipal approvals across British Columbia.

• Get Started: Request a Free Project Review →
• Explore Master Guides: 8-Step Permit Approval Process • Renovation Inspections Guide