Building Consent Authority

The Boards role

Under the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Act 2006, the Board is responsible for:

• Licensing and registration of plumbers, gasfitters and drainlayers
• Setting competence and supervision requirements
• Investigating concerns about licensed and unlicensed work
• Taking regulatory or disciplinary action where required

The BCAs role

BCAs are responsible for building consent processing, inspections, and code compliance under the Building Act 2004.

How we support BCAs

The Board supports BCAs by:

• Confirming licence status and registration details
• Providing guidance on licence classes, scope of work, and supervision
• Receiving notifications about unsafe or concerning work
• Assessing whether regulatory action is required

What to look for when checking a licence

Registration numbers

Registration numbers are unique identifiers issued by the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board. These numbers are classed as private information, used for internal purposes only, and must not be shared. To prevent misuse, such as someone using another person's number to sign off official documents, the Board does not publish these numbers. This approach follows the Privacy Act 2020, which requires organisations to minimise the risk of misuse of unique identifiers.

Photos

The Board does not have legal authority to compel provision of a photo for an authorisation under the Act or Regulations.

Check the register

Search the register

A certifier in a trade may supervise another person carrying out work in that trade. A certifier/supervisor can appoint a registered plumber, gasfitter or drainlayer in the relevant trade to supervise their supervisee on their behalf.

People who must be supervised

The following people must only work under supervision:

• Plumbers, Gasfitters, Drainlayers
• Restricted plumbers, gasfitters, and drainlayers
• Provisional licence holders Limited certificate trainees (trainees)
• People working under exemptions under supervision (exempt people).

For a trainee in their first 12 months or an exempt person in their first 24 months, a supervisor must ensure they only work in their presence (eyesight and earshot) or in the presence of another licensed certifier or Plumber, Gasfitter, Drainlayer they have nominated to supervise them.

For more information, see the Supervision policy or the supervision page.

Supervision information on the register

The register lists the names of supervisees under a supervisor. Search by the supervisor's name to check the supervision status of a person who must be supervised.

The Board can only get involved in consent matters when they point to a wider issue. If the concern is purely about the consent itself, that sits with the BCA. But if the consent issue suggests there may be problems with a practitioner's competence or compliance, then it can become part of our investigation.

See MBIE's Building Performance website for more information:

Producer statements | Building Performance

Guides for building officials | Building Performance

Unsafe gasfitting work can present serious risks to life and property. Early identification and information sharing helps manage those risks.

If there is an immediate risk to life or property, BCAs should take appropriate action under their own processes and contact WorkSafe New Zealand where required, including for notifiable events.

Contact WorkSafe

Please also contact compliance@pgdb.co.nz within 5 working days with details of the incident.

Self-certification changes how certain plumbing and drainlaying work is inspected, but it does not remove a building consent authority’s (BCA) role in the building consent system.

BCAs will still:

• assess building consent applications for Building Code compliance
• issue building consents
• issue code compliance certificates.

It is the building owner’s choice about whether they want to use self-certification or not.

Building consents can have a mixture of work that has self-certifiable plumbing and drainlaying and work that follows the standard building consent inspections process.

More information for BCAs is on MBIE's website.

Councils and Building Consent Authorities (BCAs) can contact the Board in two ways, depending on the issue.

Notify the Board of a concern

Use this option to share information without making a formal complaint.

This may be suitable where:

• Work appears unsafe or non‑compliant
• There are concerns about licensing, supervision, or scope of work
• You are unsure whether the matter meets the threshold for a complaint

Notifying the Board:

• Does not require you to be a complainant
• Does not automatically start an investigation
• Helps the Board assess risk and decide next steps

Notify the Board of a concern

Make a formal complaint

Use this option where you believe regulatory or disciplinary action may be required, for example where concerns are serious, repeated, or systemic.

A formal complaint:

• Requires the complainant to be identified
• May lead to an investigation under the Act

Make a complaint

Not sure which to use?

If you are unsure, you can start by notifying a concern.
The Board can discuss next steps if further action is required