City extends amnesty on legalizing secondary suites through 2023

There are about 32,000 homes currently zoned for secondary suites in the city.

CALGARY — The city is extending its secondary suite amnesty program through 2023 in order to give owners extra time to legalize their suites at minimum cost and bring up to minimum safety requirements.

That means the city will continue to waive development permit and registration fees through 2023, allowing existing suite owners to take advantage of relaxed building code requirements.

For those whose suites were built prior to March 2018, owners must ensure they meet minimum safety requirements, including: providing a bedroom window exit; smoke and carbon monoxide alarms; a protected exit route from the basement to the exterior; drywall barriers between suites; and drywall barriers in the mechanical room.

"Extending the amnesty until the end of 2023 encourages property owners to bring existing suites into compliance, creating safer communities and more affordable housing options for Calgarians," said Calgary's building services diretor Brenda Desjardins.

At the moment, there are around 6,700 legalized secondary suites in Calgary. To determine if yours is one of them, renters can go to the Secondary Suites Registry, which shows all the legalized secondary suites in the city.

For more information about developing a new secondary suite or legalizing an existing one, go to calgary.ca/suites.