Subdividing land outside a municipality

Once a preliminary application is made, ministry staff assess the application for potential impacts to public interests, including public health and safety, environmental and heritage values and land use planning.

This assessment involves specialized ministry technical expertise and, in some cases, referral to other provincial agencies. Applicants will typically have retained professional expertise to prepare their applications. The ministry may advise the applicant to get additional expert advice from land surveyors, engineers, archaeologists, biologists or other environmental scientists.

Complete the Permission to Act as an Agent - H1275 (PDF) form if you are a landowner and have hired a consultant to act on your behalf.

The Ministry of Transportation and Transit will review health, safety, environmental and land use considerations when reviewing and approving a subdivision application.

The ministry will refer applicants and forward information to relevant agencies that may require further approvals.

Use the guidance and checklists to prepare your proposal:

• Subdivision Approval Manual (PDF)
• Preliminary Subdivision Application - H0164 (PDF)

The Ministry of Transportation and Transit will review your application and refer it to other relevant agencies, such as the regional health authority or the regional district, for their recommendations or approval.

You will receive notice of which agencies have been asked to respond to your proposal.

After receiving all referral agency responses and reviewing the application to meet all requirements, the approving officer will review the application for preliminary consideration.

Once the subdivision plans are submitted for examination and decision the approving officer will review the subdivision application and give a decision of either approval or refusal with reason.

If the subdivision application is approved, the applicant can register the plans with the Land Title & Survey Authority.

For simple plans (subdivisions that do not require the deposit of related plans or charges on title) the approving officer may sign the subdivision plan and give it to the applicant for registration with the Land Title & Survey Authority (LTSA).

In other cases, the signed subdivision plan application and other required documents may be released to your lawyer or notary to register the approved survey plans and documents with the Land Title & Survey Authority as described in an undertaking.

Before the Land Title and Survey Authority of British Columbia (LTSA) accepts a digital survey for registration, a lawyer, notary public or B.C. land surveyor must attest to having the originally-signed application forms, or true copies of them, from each signatory listed on the application form, in their possession.

Once the requirements of the preliminary layout review have been completed the subdivision survey plan may be submitted for examination and final approval.

Include the following with your submission to the Ministry of Transportation and Transit district office for final approval:

• The subdivision plan and its certification form
• The application form to deposit plans at the Land Titles Office
• Plan examination fee
• A current tax clearance certificate
• Any other documents required as a condition of approval

All of the plans and documents that are required as a condition of approval must be submitted as a complete package to the Provincial approving officer for final approval. Applications for registration are processed more quickly if they are submitted in electronic format.

• $350 per lot or shared interest created, including remainders, up to a maximum of $70,000 (equivalent to 200 lots) payable upon application
• If after the application there is a minor change in the number of lots, additional lots require additional fees and are required at the time to proceed. If the number of lots goes down, there is no refund.
• If there is a wholesale change in the application, requiring re-start of the review, a new application and associated fee payment may be necessary.

• $50 per examination
• $100 per lot, including remainders, on the final plan payable upon final subdivision plan submission

• $100 per examination
• $100 per lot, including remainders, on the final plan payable upon final subdivision plan submission

• $100 to examine Form P for any phased development, payable upon application
• $100 to issue a certificate of approval for each phase of a building strata development, payable upon certificate issuance

You may incur the cost of site investigations if required by the approving officer. Common assessments are:

• Geotechnical
• Archaeological
• Environmental
• Hydrological
• Soils

You are responsible for all costs related to the subdivision and development of the property, for example:

• Road and drainage works
• Utilities
• Survey
• Covenants and other legal documents