City of Brampton Logo

Additional Residential Units

Additional Residential Units
​​

Second and third units are permitted in detached, semi-detached and townhouse dwellings, subject to zoning requirements and restrictions. A second/third unit is a self-contained residential unit located within a principal dwelling. The unit may be in any part of the dwelling, including the basement. Additional residential units provide an affordable housing option.

A Garden Suite is ancillary to a single detached, semi-detached, or townhouse, that is located in a building detached from the principal dwelling and located in the rear or interior side yard, and which may be freestanding or attached to a detached private garage. The process to obtain a Garden Suite starts through the Planning Division rather than Building Division. After approval at Planning, a building permit application will be required.

To be legal, second units, third units and Gar​den Su​ites must be registered with the City of Brampton. These policies are intended to make units safe, legal and livable.

Map of registered Additional Residential Units

As of May 2023, the by-law allows for a maximum of 3 units (including the principal dwelling) on a property as a combination of the following:

  1. Principal Dwelling plus one attached second unit and one separate garden suite OR
  2. Principal Dwelling and one attached second unit and one attached third unit

If a second unit is already previously registered with the City of Brampton, customers can apply for the third unit. Or, customers can apply for a second and third unit together with one set of drawings.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Property Surveys: When submitting a building permit application, the legal survey must be legible and include the signature and information of the surveyor who prepared the document. During permit submission, the document will be reviewed and determined if acceptable. If not acceptable, you will need to find an alternative method of locating a survey.   Please note: the City of Brampton does not maintain a record of surveys for all properties. 

Is the property on Conservation Authority Lands?As of April 1st, 2024, the Conservation Authority Act was amended requiring approval by the Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) or the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) when constructing an additional residential unit within the lands regulated by the conservation authorities. Your permit will not be allowed to proceed if approval is not granted by the associated conservation authority. To contact the conservation authorities, click the links above. ​ ​


Registration Process by Unit Type

 Contacts

Phone: 3-1-1 (within Brampton) or 905.874.2401 (outside Brampton)

In Person:

City of Brampton Building Division
8850 McLaughlin Road, Unit 1 (Flower City Community Campus)
Monday to Friday, 8:30 am – 4:30 pm

Email: twounit.zoning@brampton.ca

Other Contacts

Association of Architectural Technologists of Ontario
www.aato.ca

Brampton Fire Services
fire.prevention@brampton.ca
905.874.2740

Electrical Safety Authority
www.esasafe.com
1.877.ESA.SAFE (372.7233)

Insurance Bureau of Canada
www.ibc.ca
1.800.387.2880

Land Registry Office
1 Gateway Boulevard, Brampton
905.874.4008

Ontario Association of Architects
www.oaa.on.ca

Ontario One Call (Call Before You Dig)
www.on1call.com

Professional Engineers Ontario
www.peo.on.ca

Region of Peel Servi​ce (Water) Connection
siteplanservicing@peelregion.ca
905.791.7800 x7973​​​

Contact Planning, Building and Growth Management

Flower City Community Campus
8850 McLaughlin Road, Unit 1,
Brampton, Ontario L6Y 5T1