Building is guided by several laws, regulations and local guidelines. Their purpose is to ensure safe, healthy and environmentally sustainable living environments.
This page provides an overview of the main regulations affecting building, as well as the municipality’s own rules and guidelines.
Regulations
Building Act
The Building Act is the principal regulation concerning land use, construction and renovation. The act defines the general conditions for construction, essential technical requirements, as well as building permit procedures and official supervision of construction.
Building Act (Finlex) – 751/2023
Land use and building decree
In addition to the Act, construction is regulated in more detail by the land use and building decree.
Land Use and Building Decree (Finlex) – 132/1999
Government Decree on amendment of the Land Use and Building Decree (Finlex) – 215/2015
Construction and land use – Ministry of the Environment
Building regulations
More detailed rules and guidance on construction are compiled in the Finnish building code collection.
Building regulations – Ministry of the Environment
Ministry of the Environment decree on a building’s climate report and on the building product register
Common practices in construction
Vaasa follows common TopTen practices in the construction sector, which aim to harmonize construction and permit procedures across Finland.
See the municipalities’ common construction practices (toptenrava.fi)
Ministry of the Environment decree on demolition material and construction waste reports
The local building ordinance contains provisions based on local conditions to guide planned and environmentally sustainable building. Its purpose is to safeguard cultural and natural values and to promote and maintain a high-quality living environment.
Provisions must not be unreasonable for the landowner or other right holder.
The building ordinance may include provisions on, for example:
- the building plot
- the size and siting of a building
- the building’s adaptation to its surroundings
- building methods
- planting, fences and other structures
- maintenance of the built environment
- arrangement of water services
- planning requirement areas and other local aspects related to building
Provisions of the local building ordinance do not apply if the matter is regulated otherwise in a legally binding master plan, local detailed plan or in the Finnish building regulations.
The City Council decision of 23 March 2026 § 13 on the approval of the City of Vaasa’s local building ordinance entered into force on 8 May 2026.
Local building code (pdf) (Finnish and Swedish only)
Guidance
The Building Act came into force on 1 January 2025 and at the same time the threshold for requiring a building permit changed.
A dwelling and a holiday home always require a building permit. A building permit is required for construction of a building of 30 m2 or larger and for construction of a shelter/roofed structure larger than 50 m2.
By following these instructions you can ensure your construction project does not violate regulations. Violations may lead to follow-up supervision and in the worst case to demolition of the building.
Construction of a sauna building or an outbuilding under 30 m2 does not require a building permit
Sauna building is a building in which at least half of the area serves sauna functions. The building may include a lounge area with, for example, a stove for heating. A sauna building must not include equipment for cooking food, such as electric, wood or gas stoves.
Outbuilding is a building that cannot be used for habitation and that serves the main building on the property. Examples of outbuildings include garages, storage buildings, saunas, workshops and hobby spaces. An outbuilding may have heating, but not cooking equipment such as electric, wood or gas stoves.
Building within a local detailed plan area
When a sauna or outbuilding is constructed within an area covered by a local detailed plan (or shoreline detailed plan), the following must be taken into account:
- The building must comply with the plan provisions.
- The plot must have building rights (building right specified in the plan).
- The building must be placed on the building area so that distances to neighbouring boundaries and buildings as well as to the property’s own buildings comply with plan provisions, fire regulations and decrees (including required clear space in front of the main window).
- Cutting down trees under buildings may require a landscape permit, and construction of a wastewater system may require a building permit.
Building outside a local detailed plan area
Construction of sauna and outbuildings under 30 m2 on an existing building plot outside local detailed plan areas is exempt from permit requirement. An existing building plot always has a main building, either a dwelling or a holiday home. In such construction the following must be observed:
- The plot must have building rights for construction of the building. Building rights are specified in the municipality’s local building code.
- The building must be sited so that distances to neighbouring boundaries and buildings and to the property’s own buildings meet fire regulations and decrees (e.g. distance in front of the main window). Distances to private roads and public roads must meet the prescribed requirements.
- Construction of a wastewater system may require a building permit even if the building itself is not subject to a permit.
Additionally
- Use a professional to plan the siting of the building.
- A structural designer is required for the structural design of buildings and shelters.
- Outside plan areas, building on shoreline areas may require a positive deviation permit for the shoreline planning requirement if the building or shelter is placed outside the courtyard of the existing building plot.
- It is advisable to inform neighbours about the forthcoming building project.
- Remember to notify the Tax Administration about the building for property tax purposes Tax Administration.
Building supervision provides advice and guidance on permit-related matters but does not, for example, design the siting of the building on the plot. If the construction project deviates from the given provisions, a deviation permit must be applied for and obtained.
Building of a shelter under 50 m2 does not require a building permit
Shelter is a structure where at least 30 percent of the wall surface is open. Examples include carports, grill shelters or glazed terraces.
Building within a local detailed plan area
When building a shelter under 50 m2 exempt from permit within a local detailed plan area (or shoreline detailed plan) the following should be observed:
- The shelter must comply with plan provisions.
- The shelter must be sited so that distances to neighbouring boundaries and buildings as well as the property’s own buildings comply with plan provisions, fire regulations and decrees (including required clear space in front of the main window).
- Cutting down trees under shelters may require a landscape permit.
Building outside a local detailed plan area
Building a shelter under 50 m2 on an existing building plot outside local detailed plan areas is exempt from permit requirement. An existing building plot always has a main building, either a dwelling or a holiday home. In such building the following must be noted:
- The shelter must be sited so that distances to neighbouring boundaries and buildings as well as the property’s own buildings comply with fire regulations and decrees (e.g. distance in front of the main window).
- Distances to private roads and public roads must meet the prescribed distance requirements.
Additionally
- Use a professional to plan the siting of the structure.
- A structural designer is required for the structural design of buildings and shelters.
- Outside plan areas, construction on shoreline areas may require a positive deviation permit for the shoreline planning requirement if the building or shelter is placed outside the courtyard of the existing building plot.
- It is advisable to inform neighbours about the forthcoming construction project.
- Remember to notify the Tax Administration about the building for property tax purposes Tax Administration.
Building supervision provides advice and guidance on permit-related matters but does not, for example, design the siting of the structure on the plot. If the building project deviates from the given provisions, a deviation permit must be applied for and obtained.
Glass balustrades indoors and outdoors
Concerns have been raised about the load-bearing capacity of glazed balcony balustrades and the safety of balconies. In an accident in Vantaa in March 2023 a person fell from a balcony and died when the balcony’s glass balustrade shattered. According to a Tukes investigation, that glass balustrade structure did not meet the requirements set for balustrades. Vaasa’s building supervision will henceforth require documentation on the load-bearing capacity of glass balustrades. It must be ensured in particular that the point load on the balustrade has been taken into account.
New building permits
In new building permits, conditions regarding glass balustrade structures will be specified in the permit decision. Glass balustrades are dimensioned according to the calculation principles of the Finnish Flat Glass Association: BALUSTRADE GLASS DIMENSIONING – Finnish Flat Glass Association. Structural plans and calculations for glass balustrades must be submitted to building supervision before commencing construction work.
Buildings under construction
Vaasa’s building supervision requires documentation on the load-bearing capacity of glass balustrades and their fixings for projects under construction. Balconies, terraces or other similar structures equipped with glass balustrades must not be put into use until they comply with the regulations and are declared safe.
The client, the responsible site manager and the structural designer must ensure that the glass and other balustrade requirements are met in the project. Building supervision requires an expert statement on glass balustrades from an expert with sufficient experience. The expert may be the project’s principal structural designer if they have adequate experience in designing glass structures. In addition to the expert statement, an installation protocol documenting the inspection of installations is required.
If necessary, building supervision may require an expert inspection of balcony structures (Building Act section 114) or an external inspection (Building Act section 115).
Existing buildings
If residents or the housing company suspect the safety of balcony balustrades or interior balustrades, the housing company / building owner should commission an external expert to investigate. In addition to glass balustrades, it may also be appropriate to check the safety of balustrades made of other materials.
Housing companies must take into account the owner’s responsibility for the safety of the building. According to the Building Act section 140, the owner must keep the building and its surroundings in a condition that continuously meets requirements of healthiness, safety and usability and does not cause environmental harm or spoil the environment. The responsibility for maintenance rests with the building owner. This also applies to balconies and their balustrades.
Installation of a solar thermal collector for liquid heating or a photovoltaic panel for electricity on a pitched roof of a single-family house, aligned with the roof slope, does not require a permit. Protected sites and buildings other than single-family houses require a building permit.
The application should include the following attachments:
- a site plan showing the location of the panels or collectors,
- proof of property control (certificate of title, lease agreement, deed of sale, easement agreement),
- possible consultation of neighbours,
- property owners/tenants as applicants and a power of attorney for the owner/tenant who makes and submits the application.
The Rescue Department has issued a new guideline on the fire safety of photovoltaic systems;
A building permit is required for drilling a ground-source heat borehole. The permit application can be submitted via the electronic service or as a paper application.
Recommended minimum distances for energy wells:
- from the neighbour’s property boundary 7.5 m if the borehole is vertical
- from the edge of a street or other public area 2 m
- from a neighbour’s energy well 15 m if the borehole is vertical
- from a drilled well 40 m
- from a ring well 20 m
- from a building 3 m
- from water and sewer pipes: 3 m from own pipes, 5 m from other pipes
- from an on-site wastewater system 30 m.
Attachments to the permit application:
- site plan/map extract showing buildings and boundaries, with the ground-source heat borehole location marked,
- proof of property control (certificate of title, lease agreement, deed of sale, easement agreement),
- consultation of neighbours,
- property owners/tenants as applicants and a power of attorney for the owner/tenant who makes and submits the application.
Ground-source heat inspection document (link)
If oil heating is removed and replaced with an air- or water-source heat pump, no permit from building supervision is required provided the device is not installed on a street-facing façade. After the operation has been carried out, you may send information to rakennusvalvonta.luvat@vaasa.fi so we update the register with the heating method of the construction project. (The condensate/waste water of an air-to-water heat pump must be led by pipe to a sufficiently large stone pit that is not close to the building foundations. Possible anti-freeze for the pipe. It must not cause slipperiness on walkways in winter.)
Notification of decommissioning of an oil tank must be given to the rescue authority, palotarkastaja@ovph.fi (040 661 0307).
Related questions can be sent to the chemical inspector
Henrik Backman, henrik.backman@ovph.fi (040 662 6336).
According to the city’s environmental protection regulations (section 12), a decommissioned oil tank and fill pipes must be removed. The tank must be cleaned and inspected by a competent company before removal. A certificate of this must be presented if required.
A deviation from the regulations can be applied for by submitting a free-form application to environmental protection; ymparistonsuojelu@vaasa.fi. The application must state the reasons why the tank is not to be removed, e.g. difficult excavation location. In addition to the application, a certificate of tank emptying and removal of fill pipes must be submitted.
The building and environmental board makes the final decision on leaving the tank in the ground. A fee according to the environmental protection authority’s tariff will be charged for the decision:
Environmental Department fees | Vaasa
Owners of single-family houses used year-round may be eligible for state aid for removal of oil heating systems and replacement with other heating methods. Aid can be granted for projects whose costs have been incurred no earlier than 1 June 2020. Aid is available as long as allocated funds last.
The Building Act requires the client of a construction project to manage moisture control during the construction process.
Due to the significant negative social and economic impacts caused by moisture and mold damage in buildings, it is advisable already at the building permit application stage to ensure that the client has sufficient means to fulfil their duty of care regarding the building’s health requirements. Successful moisture risk management in a construction project is based on a chain in which risks are controlled at every phase of the construction process from ordering to building use.
Moisture management coordinator
- The moisture management coordinator is a special expert appointed by the client of a construction project to guide successful implementation of moisture control in the different phases of the project from ordering to use. In projects where the client and the contractor are the same entity, the moisture management coordinator should preferably be hired outside the contractor organization.
- In all building works requiring a building permit that include operations requiring moisture control, a moisture management coordinator responsible for moisture control is needed. Depending on the competency of the site manager and the complexity of the site, the responsible site manager (vastaava työnjohtaja) can serve as the coordinator.
Moisture management statement
- With the moisture management statement prepared and submitted with the building permit application, the client commits to taking care of moisture control during the construction process and to meeting the building’s health requirements.
- Information on the moisture management statement and its contents: TOPTEN building supervision interpretation card 117 C 01 ”Moisture management statement” (pdf)
- The moisture management statement is an attachment to the building permit application and is submitted to building supervision with the permit application.
- For detached houses, the TOPTEN building supervision form ”RAK04 Weather protection during construction, detached houses” (pdf) can be used as a basis for the moisture management statement.
Moisture management plan
When using the Kuivaketju10 model, that is sufficient and no separate plan is required.
Measures related to moisture management will be recorded in the building permit decision. A separate moisture management plan is required as a special plan for new buildings with three or more dwellings and similar-sized projects. In renovation projects the need for a moisture management plan is considered based on the moisture-technical complexity of the case.
Rapu – demolition material and construction waste report
Rapu is a system maintained by the Finnish Environment Institute for preparing and updating the demolition material and construction waste report required by Building Act section 16. You need online bank credentials, a mobile certificate or a smart ID card to log in.
Top Ten instruction card: fire-stopping instruction 3.7.2024 (pdf).
Guides
Facade colour palettes from different eras (Helsinki colours)
(Colour charts, traditional colours & facade colourings from different eras)
According to the City of Helsinki guide, the same practices are followed in the Vaasa area.