Te hātepe whakaaetanga - ratonga ā-hoa mātanga Consent processing - Qualified Partner Service

The Qualified Partner Service is a relationship-based service between the council and developers involved in large programmes of building work. It involves working together to improve the quality of consent applications and construction.

The service generally applies to standard, repeat, often residential new build projects, or to selected customers with approved quality assurance plans.

Our Qualified Partners usually already have a good understanding about development, building and resource consents.

What this service brings is specific advice on their work programme, improving quality to speed up the process, and resolving issues.

Our Qualified Partner Service offers:

• a partnership with us based on our understanding of your business, co-developing a strategy and regular two-way performance discussions
• help in resolving issues ahead of consent applications and advice on making better submissions
• more efficient resource, building and engineering consent processing and compliance timeframes
• prioritised building consent approval and resource consent approval within statutory timeframes (whether processed through Premium, Custom or Streamline processing teams)
• experienced resource consent and building consent advisors as your key points of contact, to manage your work programme – project by project
• one point of contact.

You may be eligible for this service if you:

• undertake a high volume of development projects across the Auckland region
• regularly require more than 50 building or resource consents a year
• have a strong focus on quality
• want to work collaboratively with us to achieve continuous improvements.

To become a qualified partner, you will need to:

• sign a partnership document with us that sets out expectations for both parties
• attend our workshop on quality expectations
• have a quality assurance approach in place that meets our requirements
• regularly provide information on the planned work programme
• hold regular meetings with us on performance and ongoing improvement
• consistently meet quality expectations and take advice to enable improved consenting performance.

Existing Qualified Partners include: Fletcher Residential, Kāinga Ora, Universal Homes, Maddren Homes, Finesse Residential, and many more.

If you want to be considered for the next intake, and your company fits the criteria, send an overview of your business to qualifiedconsent@aklc.govt.nz and include contact details.

You can become a Qualified Partner when you complete the enrolment process.

We will actively work with our Qualified Partners to help them make quality consent applications and developments. Once the expected quality levels are reached, applications will become subject to faster time frames.

If the Qualified Partner consistently fails to meet expectations set out in the joint agreement, we may end the partnership.

Charges will be based on project complexity.

On account payments are available for credit-approved customers.

​*Premium applications are excluded from the above fees.

There are two charging categories due to the diverse consent types with varying levels of involvement from the Qualified Partner Leads:

Category 1 is $200 (excl GST) and would include applications for:

• boundary permitted activity
• bylaw exceptions
• cancel amalgamation / easement
• certificate
• change of condition
• extension of lapse date
• outline plan of works
• right of way
• subdivision survey plan (s223)
• tree consent
• vary or cancel consent notice.

Category 2 is $500 (excl GST) and would include applications for:

• coastal consents
• discharge consents
• land use stream consents
• land use consents
• subdivision consents
• subdivision completion certificates (s224c)
• water consents
• bundled applications.

Email qualifiedconsent@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz for more information.