Remortgaging With an Extension Built Without the Paperwork
4 February 2026 · Mary Molloy Solicitors
The single most common title snag in Irish remortgages is not a defect in the title at all — it is a gap in the paperwork for something built on the property. The good news: most domestic works either were lawful all along or can be certified now. The task is matching your facts to the right fix.
Exempted development: lawful, but prove it
The planning regulations exempt many domestic works from needing permission — classically rear extensions within cumulative floor-area limits, most attic conversions that do not alter the roof profile, and garage conversions within conditions. Exempt does not mean undocumented: the lender's solicitor pack expects a certificate from an architect or engineer confirming the works qualify as exempted development and substantially comply with building regulations. If you never got one, a professional can inspect and certify now.
Permission existed: certify compliance
Where permission was obtained and the works followed it, the missing piece is a certificate of compliance with the permission and building regulations. If the original supervising professional is unavailable, a new one can usually provide an opinion based on inspection and the planning file. Order it the day the gap is identified — inspection, measurement and drafting take weeks, and this is the classic critical-path item.
Permission was needed and never obtained
The hard case. Options include applying for retention permission — which is a fresh planning application with no guaranteed outcome — or, where the question is whether permission was needed at all, a section 5 declaration from the local authority. Lender appetite for properties with unresolved planning issues varies, and works older than the enforcement time limits occupy a nuanced middle ground that needs case-by-case advice. What never works is hoping nobody asks: the certificate of title requires the question to be answered.
Read more in our main guide: Title Issues That Delay Remortgages · or back to the blog.
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