Building regulations completion certificates for a commercial re-roof
Updated 23 October 2026 · SEO Dons Editorial
Check your re-roof against the rules ↓
Which certificate does a commercial re-roof end with?
That depends on how the work was signed off, which the building control routes guide explains. A roof that renovates a thermal element is building work, so one of three documents should exist when the job ends.
| Route | Document | Given by | Timing in the Regulations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Council building control | Completion certificate | The council | Within eight weeks of receiving the completion notice |
| Registered building control approver | Final certificate | The approver, to the council; the council may reject it within ten working days | When the approver is satisfied the work is complete |
| Competent person scheme | Self-certification certificate (the NFRC scheme calls it a Building Regulations Compliance Certificate) | The registered contractor, to the occupier, with a notice or certificate to the council | Within 30 days of completion |
All three are evidence, but not conclusive evidence, that the requirements were met.
How do you get a completion certificate from the council?
The certificate is the last step of a sequence that starts before the roof is touched.
- Apply before starting. The person doing the work gives the council notice of intention to start and waits at least two days. A commencement notice follows within five days of starting.
- Notify stages when asked. The council may require notice that specified stages have been reached, so that it can inspect them.
- Give the completion notice. Within five days of completion, the person carrying out the work notifies the council. The notice names the client, the principal contractor (or sole contractor) and the principal designer (or sole or lead designer), states that the work is complete, and carries three signed statements: the client’s that the work complies to the best of its knowledge, and the principal contractor’s and principal designer’s that they fulfilled their Part 2A duties. If a statement cannot be included, the notice must give the reasons.
- Wait for the decision. Where the council is satisfied after taking all reasonable steps, it gives the certificate within eight weeks of receiving the notice. GOV.UK says you will usually get it within eight weeks of completion, as long as the work complies.
Councils apply the five-day rule differently in practice. Cheshire East, for example, says it need not issue a certificate where notification is late, aims to issue one within two weeks of a satisfactory completion inspection, and charges more where no inspection has taken place for between 12 months and five years. Ask your council early rather than after the contractor has left site. The Building Safety Act guide explains the Part 2A statements.
Does a completion certificate expire?
Regulation 17 says when a certificate is given and what it is worth as evidence; it sets no expiry date. The time limit that does exist is on the approval: if work is not commenced within three years from the end of the day the application was made, the approval is treated as if it had not been given.
What is the certificate used for?
GOV.UK says that without approval you will not have the certificates of compliance you may need when you sell your home, and Cheshire East says you may be asked for a completion certificate when you sell or remortgage. The NFRC scheme adds that solicitors carry out searches because a defect that only becomes apparent after a sale can lead to claims against their own professional indemnity insurance. A lease event, an insurance review or a guarantee claim may prompt the same request, so keep the certificate with the roof’s other records and ask the party concerned what it expects.
What if the certificate is missing or was never issued?
First work out which problem you have.
The work was signed off but the paper is lost
- Scheme certificate. The NFRC scheme says you can apply for another copy for an administration charge. The scheme also publishes its own fee schedule for contractors, which includes a duplicate certificate fee. Ask the contractor or the scheme which charge applies to you.
- Council certificate. Cheshire East says it can issue further copies for a small charge where appropriate.
- Approver’s final certificate. The approver gave it to the council, and Cheshire East says copies come from the approver, so contact the approver named on the initial notice.
No certificate was ever issued
The route is regularisation: retrospective approval of work carried out without consent. GOV.UK says it is available from a local authority only, and only for work carried out after 11 November 1985. The council may require the applicant to lay the work open for inspection, make tests and take samples. If satisfied, it may give a regularisation certificate, which is evidence, but not conclusive evidence, that the relevant requirements were met. Some points from Cheshire East’s published approach:
- the fee is at least 120% of the approval fee for the same work, and there is no refund if no certificate can be issued;
- solicitors and buyers may accept a regularisation certificate, but it is not the same as building regulations approval, and a limited certificate may not be acceptable to potential buyers;
- work for which approval was applied for but no completion certificate was issued cannot be regularised, so go back to the council about the original application.
The building control costs guide shows how councils publish regularisation charges. Cornwall Council warns that indemnity insurance policies do not protect anyone from prosecution and generally do not pay for works to be rectified, so ask the council before relying on one.
Why it matters
Contravening the Building Regulations is an offence, and GOV.UK says the person doing the work could be prosecuted and fined. A council can also require non-compliant work to be removed or altered by a notice given within 10 years of completion, and Cornwall says it can serve that notice on the property owner even if the owner has changed. Where a roof’s compliance history is uncertain, that is one more input to the decision set out in the repair or replace guide.
Sources
- The Building Regulations 2010, regulations 16, 17, 18 and 20, legislation.gov.uk, checked 22 October 2026
- legislation.gov.uk: Building Act 1984 (sections 32, 35, 51), Building Safety Act 2022 (section 39) and SI 2024/110 (regulation 13), checked 22 October 2026
- GOV.UK: How to apply and Penalties and problems, checked 22 October 2026
- NFRC Competent Person Scheme: property owner FAQ, commercial and fees pages, checked 22 October 2026
- Cheshire East Council: Completion certificates (page last reviewed 28 July 2026) and Regularisation; Cornwall Council: Making an application, checked 22 October 2026
Common questions
Can the roofer issue the completion certificate?
Only a roofer registered with a competent person scheme can issue a self-certification certificate, and only for work within the scheme’s scope. Otherwise the council gives the completion certificate, or a registered approver gives a final certificate to the council.
Who tells the council the roof is finished?
The person carrying out the work must give the completion notice within five days of completion. The client signs a statement within it, and Cheshire East puts the responsibility for informing the council of completion on the applicant.
Will a regularisation certificate satisfy a buyer?
Cheshire East says solicitors and buyers may accept one instead of a completion certificate, but it is not the same as building regulations approval. A limited certificate, covering only part of the work, may not be acceptable.
Does a patch repair need a certificate?
It depends on what the work replaces. A new layer provided solely as a means of repair to a flat roof is excluded from the definition of renovation, but replacing an existing layer is renovation, and renovating a thermal element is what brings the notice requirements into play. Ask the council or the scheme before work starts; the building control routes guide explains the test.
Related guides
Check your re-roof against the rules
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