Service Areas
Greater Montréal
Design-Build & Commercial Renovations in Montréal
In Montréal, the thing that decides your permit timeline isn't a city-wide rule — it's which of the 19 boroughs you're in. Each runs its own permit process, sets its own fees, and pulls its own triggers for design review. A fit-out that's routine in one borough hits an extra approval layer two neighbourhoods over.
The City now caps how long a borough can take
Effective January 2025, the Ville de Montréal holds all 19 boroughs to a 120-day maximum permit-issuance period — piloted from 1 November 2024 in Ville-Marie, Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie, Le Plateau-Mont-Royal, Le Sud-Ouest, LaSalle, and Verdun. Read it as a ceiling the City now holds boroughs to — not a promise that your permit will take 120 days, and not a guarantee every borough is hitting it in practice. A complete, well-scoped application still clears well inside it.
Current as of 2026 — confirm with the borough.
Historically, boroughs varied by roughly three to one
Before that cap, processing times spread by about a factor of three across the island — on 2017 figures, from roughly three weeks in the fastest boroughs to over ten weeks in the slowest. We use that older picture only to know which boroughs have tended to run heavy; it has shifted since (Ville-Marie in particular deteriorated after 2019, which is part of why the cap exists) and is not a current service level.
2017 data, relative ordering only.
Don't confuse a new-construction timeline with a fit-out
The long figures you'll see quoted are for new construction, not interior work. In 2023, Ville-Marie averaged about 18 months to authorise new construction — against roughly seven months pre-pandemic — and Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve averaged over 20 months. An interior commercial fit-out runs a faster track than new-build authorisation, and we won't let a new-construction number set your fit-out expectations.
2023 figures, new construction; confirm with the borough.
PIIA is where a Montréal project quietly gains weeks
The detail that actually shapes a schedule here is site planning and architectural integration (PIIA) review, required before permit issuance in many cases. It carries fees that differ by borough and it adds review time, because files route through the borough's comité consultatif d'urbanisme (CCU), which recommends to borough council — a calendar you don't control. A general trigger that appears across borough by-laws: construction or expansion over three storeys or over 925 m², with exceptions in certain commercial zones. Two boroughs to know:
- Ville-Marie: PIIA reaches façade renovation, expansion, and sign installation — and applies even if the project already required another authorisation (demolition, minor derogation, conditional use, specific project). Some interventions are subject regardless of zone, notably all new construction and expansions.
- Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie: work affecting a street-visible façade, or site development, may require PIIA (Règlement d'urbanisme 01-279).
Current as of 2026 — confirm with the borough.
If you're a retailer or restaurant in Ville-Marie, your sign is a permit
This is the one commercial tenants discover late: in Ville-Marie, installing a sign can itself trigger PIIA — the CCU-to-council path, added time, and added fees — before you're allowed to mount it. If your build hinges on an opening date, the signage approval belongs in the schedule from day one, not the last week.
Current as of 2026 — confirm with the borough.
One platform, and who leads the design
Montréal applications are centralised on the Allégo platform (permis.montreal.ca). On design: interior modifications that don't change use or affect structure, fire separations, or the envelope stay outside the Architects Act and we carry them in full; subject buildings and all new construction get an OAQ-member architect directing the design from the outset. Our designers are APDIQ members; we build under our own RBQ licence.
The services behind this
Same services everywhere — here's where they matter most in Montréal.
Frequently asked
Montréal — permits & approvals, answered.
How long does a building permit take in Montréal?
It depends on the borough — Montréal has 19, each running its own process. Effective January 2025 the City holds all boroughs to a 120-day maximum issuance period (piloted from November 2024 in six boroughs), so read 120 days as a ceiling the City enforces, not a promise your permit takes that long; a complete application clears well inside it. Historically boroughs varied by about a factor of three. Confirm the current figure with your borough. (Current as of 2026.)
Does putting up a store sign in Montréal need design review?
In some boroughs, yes. In Ville-Marie, a sign installation can itself trigger site planning and architectural integration (PIIA) review — routed through the borough's advisory committee to council, with added time and fees — before you can mount it. Retail and restaurant tenants routinely discover this late. If your opening date depends on signage, put the approval in the schedule from the start. (Current as of 2026 — confirm with the borough.)
Why do permit rules feel different across Montréal?
Because they are different: each of Montréal's 19 boroughs sets its own permit process, fees, and PIIA triggers. A general PIIA trigger appearing across by-laws is construction or expansion over three storeys or over 925 m², with commercial-zone exceptions — but the specifics vary. Ville-Marie reaches façade work, expansions, and sign installation and subjects all new construction regardless of zone, while Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie reaches street-visible façade work. We confirm the rules for your borough before designing. (Current as of 2026.)
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