On a new home, the first inspections decide whether the next trade can start. Concrete cannot be poured until the footings are approved, and walls should not be closed in until the frame is. Saanich publishes a detailed guide to its residential inspections, which makes it a good model for what happens in most Greater Victoria municipalities. This guide walks through the foundation and framing stages using that guide, and flags where your own municipality may differ.
This is general information, not code advice. Your permit package and your building department are the authority, and the Saanich guide says it is advisory only.
How inspections are booked
In Saanich you book through a MySaanich account or by phone, and you need the permit number, site address, type of inspection and requested date. Inspections must be booked before 3:00 p.m. on the business day before to be inspected the next business day. Inspection fees are included in the permit fees and cover one inspection and one re-inspection at each stage. Where non-compliant work needs more, the guide lists additional re-inspection fees starting at the third re-inspection. An inspector can also refuse an inspection if the site is unsafe or untidy, so a clean site counts.
The stages, in order
| Stage | When it is booked | What the inspector looks at |
|---|---|---|
| Excavation and footings | After excavating and setting footing forms, before concrete | Undisturbed bearing soil visible, standing water and organic material removed, footing sizes and locations matching the approved plans |
| Foundation forms | After wall forms are set, before concrete | Form size and layout matching approved drawings, earlier deficiencies cleared |
| Underslab radon | After underslab piping and granular layer, before the sealed air barrier | 100 mm of gas-permeable granular layer under the slab, pipe inlet placement, continuous layer |
| Underslab plumbing | After groundwork is complete and under test, before concrete | Fixture count and locations, piping bedded and graded, all piping under test |
| Slab and foundation insulation | After insulation and air barrier are in place, before concrete | Adequate insulation in conditioned spaces, a sealed below-ground air barrier, assemblies matching the energy report |
| Dampproofing and drainage | After pipework, dampproofing and drain rock are done, before backfill | Dampproofing, separate pipes for foundation drainage and rainwater leaders, 150 mm of drain rock on top and sides of the drain pipe |
| Framing and sheathing | Sheathing after it is complete but before the membrane; framing immediately before insulation | Structure, layout, fire and life safety items, ventilation, rough-ins complete, building at lock-up |
The guide continues with pre-cladding, insulation, fire separation, stucco wire where it applies, and the final inspection. The details above are from the Saanich Residential Inspections Guide, updated April 22, 2025.
Footings and foundation forms: what trips people up
The guide's excavation checklist includes undisturbed bearing soil that is exposed and visible, a minimum bearing capacity of 75 kPa unless the structural drawings specify otherwise, and a minimum excavation depth of 450 mm to the underside of footings. A sealed bearing letter from a geotechnical engineer is acceptable to confirm soil capacity, and up to 50 mm of granular material can be placed over the bearing soil after the excavation is approved.
The items it lists as commonly missed at this stage are practical: bearing soil that is not visible, professionals who have not provided their field reviews, and a footing location that does not match the approved drawings. If your lot is sloped or rocky, the footing stage is where the extra cost shows up, which is covered in our guide to building on a sloped lot at Bear Mountain.
Radon rough-in is now part of the foundation
The Saanich guide says that as of March 8, 2024, all conditioned buildings regulated by the BC Building Code require a rough-in for a subfloor radon depressurization system. It is inspected in two stages. The subfloor components are inspected before they are covered, and the above-ground vent piping at or before the framing inspection. The guide also notes that road base is not approved for the gas-permeable layer.
The framing and sheathing inspection
The framing and sheathing inspection confirms general code and bylaw compliance and that the building matches the approved drawings. The guide says changes that have not been approved will fail the inspection. To book it, the framing checklist expects the building to be at lock-up (roof and windows complete), all plumbing, electrical and mechanical rough-ins complete, professionals' field reviews submitted, and the BC land surveyor's height and site surveys approved. For projects with ventilation work, a ventilation checklist must be complete and on site, or submitted before the inspection.
Timing matters. The sheathing inspection is booked after exterior sheathing is complete but before the sheathing membrane goes on, unless a professional has approved the nailing. The framing inspection must happen immediately before insulation. This is why rough-in trades and framers need one shared schedule, covered in the order of trades.
The inspection checks the building against the approved drawings, so it is the same whether the walls were framed on site or built as panels in a shop. If you are weighing prefab walls, OG Prefab explains how to line up the foundation with panel delivery, which matters because the foundation has to be approved and dimensionally checked before anything is built to it.
Other municipalities
The BC Building Code sets the technical rules, but each municipality sets its own booking process, required documents and, in some cases, extra stages. We have used Saanich here because it publishes a detailed guide. Langford, Colwood, Victoria and the CRD each have their own pages and permit conditions, so confirm yours before you plan the schedule. How long the permit itself takes is covered in building permit timelines in Greater Victoria.
What a general contractor does around inspections
A contractor does not make inspections faster, but it can make sure each one is booked when the work is ready, the field reviews and surveys are in hand, and deficiencies from the last stage are closed out before the next one. That is part of ACAP LTD's general contracting service.
Planning a new build and want the inspection schedule built into the plan? Get in touch with ACAP LTD.