Development Engineering Permits

How to apply for a development engineering permit.

Some renovation, construction or demolition projects require a development engineering permit. 

You need a permit to make sure your project follows the requirements of the Ontario Building Code, the Town of Oakville Zoning By-law and any other approvals you may need.

Your project must meet zoning regulations even if it doesn’t require a building permit.

It is illegal to start construction before receiving a building permit. 

Development Engineering Permits are required for:

Private property projects

  • Site alteration – residential rebuild, pool, landscaping, addition less then 50 metres in a DESP zone
  • Site alteration – commercial, subdivision, site plan, condos
  • Pool enclosures – new or retrofit
  • Private tree protection/removal

Municipal right-of-way projects

  • Excavation - utility road cuts, service connection road cuts, and boreholes
  • Residential driveway (curb modification) - residential (new and modification)
  • Commercial/multi-residential driveway (curb modification) – multiple residential & non-residential (new and modification)
  • Minor temporary street occupation - bins, rubber tired equipment, materials, and vehicles
  • Major temporary street occupation for cranes, tracked equipment, hoarding, shoring, and lane closure
  • Municipal tree protection/removal

Please review the Development Engineering Permit Guide before continuing to Step Two

Development Engineering Permit Guide

Development Engineering Site Plan approvals are required when:

Use our Interactive Zoning Map to determine whether Development Engineering Site Plan (DESP) approval is required for residential rebuilds and major additions on lots which are zoned RL”X”-0.

Major additions are defined as increasing the first floor footprint of a residence by 50 square metres or more. If the footprint of the dwelling is not increasing, then a DENG permit is required.

Refer to the Development Engineering Site Plan (DESP) Guide for Submission page for submission and plan requirements.

Please review the Development Engineering Site Plan Guide before continuing to Step Two

Development Engineering Site Plan Guide

The Development Engineering Permit/Approval Applications are reviewed and approved in accordance with the town’s procedures and guidelines, brochures, and by-laws. 

Prepare your application using the applicable guides

Procedures and guidelines

Brochures

  • Erosion and Sediment Control brochure (pdf)
  • Swimming Pool Enclosure brochure (pdf)
  • Understanding Lot Grading and Drainage (pdf)
  • Guide to Fence (pdf)

By-laws

  • Pool Enclosure By-law 2006-071
  • Private Tree By-law 2017-038
  • Municipal Tree By-law 2011-137
  • Site Alteration By-law 2003-021
  • Site Plan By-law 2019-114

Submission standards

Help us process your application faster by following the document submission standards. These standards allow for easy identification of drawings by naming convention and vector file types for most efficient review.

  • Organize drawings and documents as separate files. Each document file can contain multiple pages like site plan drawings.
  • Orient drawings in landscape. Orient forms and documents in portrait.
  • Save all files in Vector PDF format, unlocked/editable, greyscale, flattened into a single layer and free of comments. Tip: To convert drawings created in AutoCAD to vector PDF, use Autodesk Vector Graphic Converter “DWG to PDF.pc3 plotter”.
  • Submit searchable PDF files for calculations, reports and other supporting documents (non-drawing files), when possible.
  • If including scanned documents, resolution of 1-bit black-and-white 300 dpi is usually acceptable. For plans and drawings with fine lines and detail, 600 dpi resolution is required. Full-colour renderings and photos may be submitted, but only as supplements to a sufficient set of plans. Grayscale is preferred.
  • Naming conventions: Please name your files according to the standardized naming conventions.  
  • Resubmissions: In the event you are requested to resubmit materials, please provide the documents requested only. Please do not resubmit the entire application package at this time, unless otherwise requested to do so.

Remember to have drawings, schedules and general review forms signed and dated by the appropriate designers. Make sure drawings are ready for review and are free of markings such as “not for construction”, “for reference only” or “preliminary”

Final inspection and release of securities

Final inspections are required prior to releasing site securities and are intended to confirm that work has been carried out in accordance with the approved plan.

  • Securities are collected prior to issuance of approval. 
  • Upon completion of your project, a request for inspection may be submitted using the online services.   
  • Prior to requesting a final inspection, a final Lot Grading Certification (pdf) is required from the site surveyor to verify they have been on site within the past 30 days of the dated letter, and that the works have been carried out in accordance with the plan. Site photos must be included with submission of the LGC.
  • Application fees include a maximum of two inspection visits. Additional inspection fees will be charged after the two failed inspections.

Securities forms and guides

Application process

Use the online services to submit all Development Engineering Permit/Approval Applications and all required supporting documents. 

If you are applying for a permit on behalf of the property owner, please fill out an Authorization of Property Owner form (pdf). You will need to upload it during the application submission.

To avoid delays, please ensure you have all the required information and documents for your permit application. We will review your application within five business days to check we have everything required. 

If your application needs more information or documents uploaded, you will be notified by email what is required to proceed. Once we have all the required information, you will be notified what fees are to be paid online. 

After payment, depending upon complexity, your application will be circulated for technical review and approvals which may take six to eight weeks.

Submitting your application online

Follow these steps or watch our How to Apply for a new Development Engineering Application video on YouTube.

To submit a new Development Engineering permit application;

  1. Sign into your town account on our online services and visit the Construction & Renovations page.
  2. Select “Development Engineering Application” to start your permit application.
  3. On the “My Development Engineering Permits and Applications” page, select the “Add new permit/application” button.
  4. Provide a description of the proposed work.
  5. Search and select the property address for the proposed work.
  6. Choose the activities you are planning on conducting and answer all the required questions based on the activities you have selected.
  7. Provide the required project contact information.
  8. Upload the required permit application documents.
  9. Submit your application for pre-screening.

Submit your DENG Permit Application

What's next?

Pre-screening

Your application will be pre-screened within five business days to ensure all required information has been provided.

  • If the criteria has been met, the application will be accepted.
  • If information is insufficient or missing, you will be notified of the missing requirements that you will need to provide. To avoid delays, ensure all documentation meets the requirements and reapply as soon as possible.
  • Once we have all of the required information, you will be notified by email what fees are to be paid online.

Pay permit fees

After payment, depending upon the complexity of the application, your application will be circulated for technical review and approvals which may take six to eight weeks.

When fees and securities are owed, you will be notified via email with the amount owed and instructions on how to pay them. Applications will not be issued if there are any fees outstanding.

All application fees (up to $5,000) will now be paid online by:

  1. Sign into your town account, access the “My Development Engineering Permits and Applications” page and select the “Pay Fees” button beside the applicable permit application.
  2. Select the “Pay Selected Fees” button and pay your fees using your credit card.
  3. To access a copy of your receipt, select the “Application Documents” tab.

Application fees and securities over $5,000 can be paid by:

  • e-Transfer to devengrequests@oakville.ca, which is an automatically depositing email (Note: do not use security questions or passwords). For e-transfers the maximum daily limit is $10,000. (Multiple daily transfers are acceptable.)
  • Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) to accountsreceivable@oakville.ca.
  • Securities may also be paid by Certified Cheque or Bank Draft, which should be mailed to “The Town of Oakville, 1225 Trafalgar Road, Oakville ON  L6H 0H3”, or dropped off in the secure drop box at town hall “Attention: Transportation Engineering DENG/DESP”.  Please ensure you write the name and address of the payee on the front of the cheque.

Wire transfer payments are not a preferred payment method and are subject to additional fees which may cause permit processing delays.

Please contact service@oakville.ca for assistance.

Mandatory reviews

Once payment is received, your application will progress through a series of mandatory reviews. Once all examinations are complete and mandatory requirements are satisfied, your application will be approved.

Resubmissions

If, during your permit application circulation, it is deemed that more information is required you will be notified via email. A letter will outline the additional information or documents that are required to be resubmitted and instructions on how to submit them using online services. 

Follow these steps or watch our How to Complete a Resubmission for Your Development Engineering Permit Application video on YouTube.

  1. Sign into your town account and access the My Development Engineering Permits and Applications page. Select the “Re-submit” button beside the applicable permit application.
  2. Select and upload the document(s) that is required to be re-submitted. Once you upload all required documents, select “Continue” to proceed to submit your application for circulation again.

When your project is complete, request an inspection

Upon completion of your project, a request for inspection may be submitted using our online services.   

Follow these steps or watch our How to Request and Inspection for your Development Engineering Application video on YouTube.

Grading inspections cannot take place if the ground is snow covered and tree inspections cannot be completed until trees are in full leave (approximately May to October).

  1. To request an inspection for an already issued/approved Development Engineering Permit, select the “Activity” button beside the applicable permit.
  2. Select the “Inspections” tab and select the applicable inspection type you wish to request.
  3. Upload the required inspection documents. A final Lot Grading Certification (pdf) is required from the site surveyor to verify they have been on site within the past 30 days of the dated letter, and that the works have been carried out in accordance with the plan. Site photos must be included with submission of the LGC.
  4. Provide any special instructions to the inspector(s).
  5. Your inspection request has now been provided. Grading inspections cannot take place if the ground is snow covered and tree inspections cannot be completed until trees are in full leave (approximately May to October).
  6. Once your inspection has taken place, you will be notified via email of the results. If the results of the inspection is “Not Passed”, you will need to address any deficiencies noted in the email provided and then request a new inspection following the steps provided above.

Application fees include a maximum of two inspection visits. Additional inspection fees will be charged after the two failed inspections.

Securities collected on the permit will only be released once all required inspections have passed.

Need more time?

If you need to renew you permit to provide more time to complete the approved work, you can apply for a permit renewal by using the online services.

Follow these steps or watch our How to Renew Your Development Engineering Permit video on YouTube.

  1. To request a renewal to an already issued/approved Development Engineering Permit, select the “Activity” button beside the applicable permit.
  2. Select the “Renew” button.
  3. Proceed to submit your renewal application to the town. Once your renewal application is accepted, you will receive an email notifying you of fees owing.

Make changes to a permit

If you need to revise an approved permit or if you wish to add any new activities to an already approved permit, you can do so by using the Town of Oakville online services.

Follow these steps or watch our How to Request a Revision Development Engineering Permit video on YouTube.

  1. To request a revision to an already issued/approved Development Engineering Permit, select the “Activity” button beside the applicable permit
  2. Select the “Revision or Add New Activity” button.
  3. Select the type of activity you are revising or select any new activities you wish to add to the already issued permit.
  4. Answer all the required questions based on the activities you have selected.
  5. Upload the required permit application documents
  6. Once all application documents have been unloaded, proceed to submit your revision application to the town for pre-screening.

Older permits

If you submitted permit application or you have an approved permit prior to the launch of our online application system, you can access the permit by creating a Town of Oakville account.

  1. Go to the Online Services page and select "Sign in or Create an Account" from the list of options.
  2. Click “Create account”. Please note: If you have ever used our report a problem tool, you may already have an account and will be notified if an email match exists.
  3. Complete all of the required fields. When you are done, select “Create an account”. NOTE: When creating your account, use the same email that was submitted with your permit application.
  4. You will receive a message directing you to check the email used to create your account, where you should get a link to create your password. You must complete this step within 24 hours to activate your account.
  5. Check your email and click the link to create your password.
  6. Once you have created your password, you will be redirected to the Town of Oakville online services page. You should already be signed into your account.

If you created an account and you do not see the permit on your “My Development Engineering Permits and Applications" page, contact service@oakville.ca or 905-845-6601.

Questions?

You are able to view your application at any time through our online services.

If you have questions, please contact ServiceOakville at 905-845-6601 or service@oakville.ca.

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