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• How long does planning permission take in Ireland? A 53-day median, and the tailThe median Dublin application took 53 days from receipt to decision in the year to September 2026; one in ten took over 161 days. The eight-week clock, what stops it, and what "final grant" means.
• Planning permission vs exempted development — 29% of section 5 requests came back "not exempt"Of 251 section 5 declarations decided by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown and South Dublin in the 12 months to September 2026, 29% found the works needed permission. How exemption works, where it is lost, and how to get a €80 declaration.
• Protected structures and architectural conservation areas — what needs permission, the free section 57 declaration, and what the register shows368 applications naming a protected structure were decided across the Greater Dublin councils in 12 months and 88% were granted. What being on the Record of Protected Structures means, what an ACA takes away from the ordinary exemptions, how to get a section 57 declaration, and what buyers should check.
• Flood maps when buying a house — what floodinfo.ie shows, flood zones A, B and C, and why we only flagWe hold 27,460 CFRAM flood-extent features for the four Dublin councils, and 36 applications decided in 12 months mentioned flood risk in their description. What the OPW's floodinfo.ie maps mean, how flood zones A, B and C govern planning, what insurers use, and what a buyer should check.