Apply for a Fire Safety Certificate

A fire safety certificate is granted after the plans and specifications for a new building are assessed by a fire officer for compliance with Part B (Fire Safety) of the Building Regulations.

It is a certification of your proposed fire safety design, not the fire safety design of your finished building. When you receive a fire safety certificate in relation to a proposed design it means that your building, if built in accordance with the proposed design, complies with the fire requirements of the relevant building regulations.

Types of Fire Safety Certificates

There are several types of Fire Safety Certificates that you can apply to Dublin City Council for. Each one is required in different circumstances.

Fire Safety Certificate

This is required where the applicant proposes a new building, a new building extension, material alterations to an existing building or a change of use of an existing building.

Revised Fire Safety Certificate

This is required in respect of works that have already been granted a fire safety certificate, but where significant revisions need to be made for reasons other than fire safety, including conditions attached to planning permission or changes in design.

7 Day Notice 

The submission of a fire safety certificate application can be accompanied by a 7 day notice. This is used where a person intends to commence building works before the relevant fire safety certificate is granted.

Regularisation Certificate

This is required where building works requiring a fire safety certificate were commenced or completed after 1 June 1992 without an associated fire certificate application.

If you build without a fire safety certificate, you will leave yourself open to prosecution under building control legislation. It can also lead to other issues. For example, if you decide to sell the building at a later date, the buyer's solicitor will look for a copy of the building's fire safety certificate. If you are unable to produce one, you may find it difficult to sell. Also, if you build or extend a public house or licensed premises without a fire safety certificate, your licence may not be renewed.

However, if this does occur, you can apply for a regularisation fire safety certificate after building works have been commenced or completed.

Fire Safety Certificate Guidance

Usually a fire safety certificate application is made by a fire safety consultant, architect or engineer who is familiar with the building regulations and the procedure for applying.

The content of the application needs to be comprehensive in nature. A person preparing a fire safety certificate application should have a sound knowledge of building construction and fire safety design. If the application submitted is lacking in information or drawings, then we will consider it invalid and will return it to you together with your fee.

To submit plans for review and apply for a fire safety certificate, applicants must submit the following documentation through the online Building Control Management System (BCMS):

• A completed 7 day notice form accompanied by signed original statutory declaration. Please note that these forms are created in the BCMS and must be printed off, signed and uploaded again.
• A fire safety certificate application.
• The appropriate 7 day notice fee.

With the enactment of S.I 229 of 2021 Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2021, your signed statutory declaration can be submitted through the BCMS system. However, applicants must retain the original statutory declaration and shall produce the original for inspection where required to do so by the Building Control Authority.

Associated Fees

When applying for a Fire Safety Certificate, the following application fees apply and should be made payable to Dublin City Council:

Fee Exemptions

Development works by certain organisations are exempt from paying fire certificate application fees, including certain classes of voluntary organisations and not-for-profit accommodation of homeless persons. You can find the full list of exemptions under Section 22 of the Building Control Regulations 1997 – 2014.

Where a fee exempt application is submitted, the applicant must detail how the proposed building is subject to the conditions set out in the regulations.

Partial refund of fees for subsequent applications

In situations where subsequent applications have been made, for example where a granted fire certificate application is followed within 12 months by a revised application for the same development, there is provision to refund three-quarters of the fee for the subsequent application. In this case, the applicant pays the full application fee, but three quarters of it is later refunded.

The subsequent application must be for works which are substantially of the same design and construction and are located on the same site or same part of the site as the works covered by the first application. Full details of qualifying applications are outlined in Section 26 of the Building Control Regulations 1997, as amended by Section 15 of the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2009.

Any applicant who believes their application qualifies for a refund of fee is advised to notify us when submitting their application.

Appeals

There is provision to appeal to An Bord Pleanála against the decision of a building control authority in relation to a fire safety certificate application. To do this, you will need to view or order a copy of your fire safety certificate application file.

How to View or Copy your Documents

The following information only applies to applications within Dublin City Council's administrative area.

How to View Fire Safety Certificate Application Files

To view your fire safety certificate application files, you should carry out the following five steps:

1. Contact Dublin Fire Brigade using the phone number or email below to request the relevant files number and an estimate of costs for ordering the files.
2. We will then send you a declaration, which must be signed and returned to us.
3. You must pay the fee for ordering your files. You can pay by credit or debit card by calling (01) 222 6600 and giving the reference 'FBFSC', your file number and the amount payable to our customer service agent. Alternatively, you can make a cheque payable to Dublin City Council.
4. Email a copy of your receipt and the file number you're requesting to Dublin Fire Brigade using the email address below.
5. Your files will then be ordered. Once available, you will be sent a link to the requested files by email. You must download the files using this link within 14 days.

In terms of fees, it will cost €60 to order the first file from storage, but the fee for each subsequent file will be €10.

How to Order a Copy of your Fire Safety Certificate

To order a copy of your fire safety certificate, please follow these four steps:

1. Contact Dublin Fire Brigade using the phone number or email below to request the relevant files number and an estimate of costs for ordering your certificate.
2. You must pay the fee before your certificate is copied. Each copy costs €12.50. You can pay by credit or debit card by calling (01) 222 6600 and giving the reference 'FBFSC', your file number and the amount payable to our customer service agent. Alternatively, you can make a cheque payable to Dublin City Council.
3. Email a copy of your receipt and the file numbers related to the fire safety certificates you want copied to the address below.
4. Once we have received your payment, scanned copies of the requested certificates will be sent to you by email. If you would prefer a hard copy to be held for collection, please state this in your previous email.

How Dublin Fire Brigade Can Help

Making Dublin safe from fires is at the heart of Dublin Fire Brigade's work. If you have any questions regarding fire safety, contact us below.