Dealing with Construction Permits in
Tonga
Listed below is detailed summary of the procedures, time and costs to build a warehouse —including obtaining necessary licenses and permits, completing required notifications and inspections and obtaining utility connections.
The information appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2011.
-
Building a warehouse
-
Estimated Warehouse Value:
TOP 41,000
- City: Nukualofa
| No. |
Procedure |
Time to Complete |
Associated Costs |
| 1 |
Request and obtain official copy of site plan from the Ministry of Land
Depending on the location of the land, obtaining a site plan may take as much as a year (if the project is outside Nuku’alofa).
Agency: Ministry of Land
|
4 days
|
no charge
|
| 2 |
Request and obtain building permit
A new building code has been partially introduced. Since August 2005, in practice, the builder submits all plans for approval to the Ministry of Works. The Ministry then forwards the plans for approval to the Department of health, the Ministry of Land, and the Fire Department. Once approved by the Fire Department, the plans are sent back to the Ministry of Works for final approval. The time it takes to obtain approval depends on the persistence of the builder in following up. The official time limit is 21 working days and the average actual time is 30 calendar days. Since December 2007 official fees for a warehouse are TOP 12 per square meter of the building, subject to a minimum of TOP 100 on the total area.
Agency: Ministry of Works
|
30 days
|
TOP 15,607
|
| 3 |
Receive foundation inspection from the Ministry of Works
The Ministry of Works is supposed to conduct inspections at certain stages of the project (foundations, walls, pouring of concrete, etc). In practice, there may be about three inspections or none. The inspections must be requested, but this can be done over the telephone.
Agency: Ministry of Works
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| 4 |
Receive inspection prior to pouring of concrete
Agency: Ministry of Works
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| 5 |
Receive inspection of framing material
Agency: Ministry of Works
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| 6 |
Receive inspection of plumbing and sanitary work
Agency: Ministry of Works
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| 7 |
Request and connect to water
In practice, unless water supply is already available at the site, many companies use rainwater.
|
30 days
|
TOP 900
|
| * 8 |
Request and connect to telephone line
Agency: Tonga Communications Corporation (TCC)
|
7 days
|
TOP 120
|
| 9 |
Receive final inspection and certificate of completion from the Ministry of Works
The certificate of completion must be requested by the applicant. A fee is charged for the inspection.
Agency: Ministry of Works
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.