Montreal building permits take a median of 19 days from application to issuance, with an average of 51 days, across 18,249 permits issued in the last 12 months. Simple residential alterations tend to land near or below the median; larger projects drive the average up.
What the gap between median and average means
A median of 19 days and an average of 51 days tells you the distribution is skewed: most permits are fast, but a smaller number of complex or commercial projects take significantly longer and pull the average up. For a homeowner applying for a renovation permit, the 19-day median is the more relevant number. For a developer with a larger project, the average is more predictive.
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See the Permit Compliance Audit, $149 CADData notes for Montreal
The 18,249 permits in this dataset cover all permit types across the city over the trailing 12 months. The dataset includes application date and issuance date, so the figures here measure actual elapsed time, not an official target. Montreal does not publish a single processing-time target the way some other Canadian cities do.
Montreal permit activity at a glance
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Median days to issuance | 22 days |
| Average days to issuance | 48.5 days |
| Permits issued (last 12 months) | 23,716 |
| Average permits per month | 1,824 |
| Average project value | n/a |
| Cross-city median (10 timing cities) | 29 days |
How Montreal compares
The median across the 10 cities in our dataset that publish processing-time data is 29 days. Montreal sits 7 days faster than that benchmark. A wait time below it means permits here generally move faster; above it means the opposite. Either way, the spread between fast and slow categories within a single city is usually wider than the gap between cities, so the by-work-type table below matters more than any single headline number.
Permit activity by type of work in Montreal
Not all permits move at the same speed. Simple alterations clear far faster than new-building applications. Here is how the most common work types in Montreal broke down over the last 12 months:
| Type of work | Permits | Median days | Avg days |
|---|---|---|---|
| Permis neige - 1 stationnement - 1 an | 171 | 7 | 11.5 |
| Réfection de la toiture par la mise en place de l'asphalte et gravier blanc. Aucuns travaux de structure. | 119 | 3 | 5 |
| Réfection de la toiture par la mise en place d'une membrane blanche. Aucuns travaux de structure. | 116 | 3 | 5.1 |
| REMPLACER LA MEMBRANE DE LA TOITURE PAR UNE NOUVELLE MEMBRANE BLANCHE | 74 | 1 | 2 |
| Toit, plat, remplac., en total, gravier blanc | 68 | 5 | 38.8 |
| CERTIFICAT-MISE AUX NORMES D'UNE PISCINE CREUSÉE | 55 | 78 | 126.2 |
| Type2 -À l'extérieur, remplacer la porte d'issue de secours et une fenêtre dans la même ouverture, remplacement localisé de la maçonnerie et travaux de rejointement. À l'intérieur, réaménagement de la salle de rangement. Réfection de la toiture par la mise en place de l'asphalte et du gravier blanc. Le tout tel que les plans. Aucun travaux de structure. | 55 | 44 | 43.9 |
| RÉFECTION COMPLÈTE DU REVÊTEMENT DE LA TOITURE (TOIT BLANC) | 52 | 7 | 6.4 |
| Remplacer le revêtement de toiture en totalité par membrane blanche. Aucuns travaux de structure. Tel que document approuvé. | 49 | 5 | 9.2 |
| Type1-À l'extérieur, remplacer la porte d'issue de secours et une fenêtre dans la même ouverture, remplacement localisé de la maçonnerie et travaux de rejointement. À l'intérieur, réaménagement la salle électrique. Réfection de la toiture par la mise en place de l'asphalte et du gravier blanc. Le tout tel que les plans. Aucun travaux de structure. | 43 | 47 | 46.7 |
| REMPLACER LA MEMBRANE DE LA TOITURE PAR UNE NOUVELLE MEMBRANE D'ASPHALTE RECOUVERTE DE GRAVIER DE MARBRE BLANC | 30 | 1 | 1.5 |
| Réfection de la toiture par la mise en place de gravier blanc. Aucuns travaux de structure. | 28 | 4 | 4 |
Permit volume trend
Montreal issued 23,716 permits over the trailing 12 months. The busiest single month was Jul 2026 (3,480 permits). Volume drives wait times: months with a surge in applications tend to push processing times up as review staff work through the backlog.
What drives building permit wait times
Permit processing time is rarely about a single step. The biggest levers are:
- Application completeness. Missing drawings, unsigned forms, or a site plan that doesn't match the zoning trigger a resubmission cycle, each round can add weeks.
- Type of work. A like-for-like alteration is reviewed against fewer regulations than a new building, which needs zoning, building, and often servicing sign-offs.
- Project value and complexity. Higher-value projects attract more reviewers and more conditions, which is why the average always exceeds the median.
- Seasonal volume. Application spikes in spring and summer lengthen the queue.
How to read these benchmarks
These are permit-volume and application-to-issuance timing benchmarks, they measure how long permits that were issued took to get there. They are not approval rates: the underlying dataset has no approval-versus-denial field, so we never report rejection percentages. Use the median as your realistic planning number, the average as your worst-case buffer, and the by-work-type table to set expectations for your specific project.The single best way to stay on the fast end is to submit a complete, compliant application the first time.