Vancouver has a municipal Building By-law with its own energy requirements. The City’s home-energy page covers new, purely residential buildings from one to three storeys and expressly includes laneway homes and secondary suites. That description helps identify the subject matter, but it does not decide whether a particular conversion or renovation is treated as new building work.

Start with Vancouver’s permit date

The City says the 2025 Vancouver Building By-law took effect on September 15, 2025. Its energy changes include revised Thermal Energy Demand Intensity targets and updated building-envelope, heat-recovery ventilation, and airtightness metrics. The same page links to the current by-law and to energy checklists organized by permit-application date.

As of October 17, 2026, the City lists a checklist for applications after September 1, 2026, alongside older checklists for earlier periods. Use the version that matches the application date and confirm it on the City’s energy requirements and resources page. A checklist is an application aid; it does not determine the classification or compliance path for an existing building.

Separate the City by-law from the provincial code

The City’s 2025 VBBL is a municipal code path. British Columbia’s BC Building Code 2024 and its permit-date rules do not replace Vancouver’s by-law. The City page also describes separate updates to the 2019 VBBL that took effect on March 1, 2025, before the 2025 by-law took effect. Do not combine those dates into one transition rule. Identify which by-law applies to the application and whether the project is a new home, an addition, or work to an existing building.

The City’s energy page includes both new-home and existing-building resources. If the proposal converts a basement, adds a suite to an existing house, or changes heating and ventilation, check the relevant existing-building guidance and ask the City which requirements apply to that work. The general code-edition guide explains why project type and authority matter.

Questions to resolve before filing

Bring the property address, proposed work description, permit history, and intended suite configuration to the City’s building-permit process. Confirm:

  • whether the City considers the work within the one-to-three-storey new residential scope on its home-energy page;
  • the applicable VBBL edition and energy-checklist version for the application date;
  • whether a separate existing-building, mechanical, or energy-modelling path applies; and
  • which plans, calculations, and professional sign-offs the City requires for that classification.

This guide identifies where the City publishes its current path. It does not calculate energy performance or establish permit approval.