Application, compliance and the three Divisions
What the Code applies to, the two ways to comply, what each Division does, and when used materials can go back into a building.
Study notes, not an official interpretation. About these notes
Only the Minister’s binding interpretations (Act s.28.1) and the decisions of the chief building official on a real project are authoritative.
Quoted from the 2024 Building Code, O. Reg. 163/24 as amended by O. Reg. 5/25 (Building Code Compendium, January 16, 2025 update). Later amendments are not yet reflected. This copy is for study; check the current official Code.
Each provision is quoted word for word. Study summaries, background, examples, exam traps and recall answers are ours: shorthand for memory and made-up scenarios for study, not a substitute for the text. On a real project, the chief building official decides how the Code applies.
Confirm against the official text of the Act and the Code before relying on anything.
Take a guess first. Being wrong is fine.
A guess, even a wrong one, primes you to notice the answer when you meet it. Your guesses are saved; the answers come in step 6, right after the provisions and the diagram.
The skeleton: what lives where
Why these provisions matter
Before any detailed rule matters, you need to know whether the Code reaches the work at all and how a design can satisfy it. Article 1.1.1.1 sets the reach: four activities, and both site-built and factory-built buildings. Article 1.2.1.1 then gives two routes to compliance, which is why most of a house can follow the prescriptive Part 9 rules while one unusual element is justified another way.
The Code is split into three Divisions so that a reader can tell what kind of provision they are holding. Division A says how the Code applies and why it exists, Division B holds the acceptable solutions you build to, and Division C holds the administrative machinery. The exam often turns on finding the right Division first.
What the Code says, and where
Div. A, 1.1.1.1.(1) This Code applies to the construction, demolition, change of use and occupancy of buildings.
(2) This Code applies to both site-built and factory-constructed buildings. (See Note A-1.1.1.1.(2))
Div. A, 1.2.1.1.(1) Compliance with this Code shall be achieved by
(a) complying with the applicable acceptable solutions in Division B (See Note A-1.2.1.1.(1)(a)), or
(b) using alternative solutions that will achieve at least the minimum level of performance required by the applicable acceptable solutions in respect of the objectives and functional statements attributed to the applicable acceptable solutions in MMAH Supplementary Standard SA-1, “Objectives and Functional Statements Attributed to the Acceptable Solutions.” (See Note A-1.2.1.1.(1)(b))
(2) For the purposes of Clause (1)(b), the level of performance in respect of a functional statement refers to the performance of the functional statement as it relates to the objective with which it is associated in MMAH Supplementary Standard SA-1, “Objectives and Functional Statements Attributed to the Acceptable Solutions.”
Div. A, 1.2.2.1.(1) All materials, appliances, systems and equipment installed to meet the requirements of this Code shall possess the necessary characteristics to perform their intended functions when installed in a building.
Div. A, 1.2.2.3.(1) Unless otherwise specified, recycled materials in building products may be used, and used materials, appliances and equipment are permitted to be reused when they meet the requirements of this Code for new materials and are satisfactory for the intended use.
Div. A, 1.3.1.1.(1) Division A contains the compliance and application provisions, objectives and functional statements of this Code.
Div. A, 1.3.1.2.(1) Division B contains the acceptable solutions of this Code.
Div. A, 1.3.1.3.(1) Division C contains the administrative provisions of this Code.
Div. A, 1.3.1.4.(1) Where the Division of a referenced provision is not specified in this Code, it shall mean that the referenced provision is in the same Division as the referencing provision.
Div. A, 1.3.2.1.(1) Parts 1, 2 and 3 of Division A apply to all buildings covered in this Code. (See Article 1.1.1.1.)
What each Division holds
When a provision doesn’t name its Division, it means the Division you are already in (Div. A 1.3.1.4).
How did your guesses do?
The answers to the questions you guessed at in step 1, with the provision each one comes from. If a guess was off, reread that provision above before the check.
On the wording of Div. A 1.2.2.3.(1), yes, when they meet the Code’s requirements for new materials and are satisfactory for the intended use. On a real project, confirm with the chief building official.
Complying with the applicable acceptable solutions in Division B, or using alternative solutions that achieve at least the minimum level of performance required by the applicable acceptable solutions (Div. A 1.2.1.1.(1)).
Worked example: A factory-built garden suite with an unusual floor
A homeowner orders a small garden suite built in a factory. The manufacturer wants to use a floor panel that isn’t described anywhere in Part 9.
Where people lose marks
Reading tips for exam questions, each tied to a provision above.
- Four activities, not one. The Code applies to construction, demolition, change of use and occupancy of buildings, not just to construction.
- An alternative solution still has a benchmark. It must achieve at least the minimum level of performance of the applicable acceptable solutions, judged against the objectives and functional statements in SA-1.
- Used materials: two conditions. They must meet the Code’s requirements for new materials and be satisfactory for the intended use.
- Silent cross-references. A reference that names no Division points to the same Division as the provision you are reading.
Three questions, book closed
Close your notes and pull the answers from memory. Testing yourself strengthens a memory far more than rereading it. Each check draws 3 of this lesson’s 6 questions, favouring ones you haven’t got right yet, so a retake is a different check. Each question asks how sure you are, and your answers set your review schedule.
Answered correctly so far: of this lesson’s questions. Opening the check shows your last results and lets you take a new set.
Now find it in the real text
The exam is open book, so finding a provision fast is a skill of its own. Open 2024 Building Code (O. Reg. 163/24) on e-Laws in another tab, use its table of contents to find each provision below, and type the section number you land on. Aim for under a minute each.
In Division A of the Code: Construction, demolition, change of use and occupancy of buildings, whether site-built or factory-constructed.
In Division A of the Code: Whatever is installed to meet the Code must be able to do its job once installed.
In Division A of the Code: Recycled and used materials may be used if they meet the requirements for new materials and suit the intended use.
In Division A of the Code: A: compliance, application, objectives and functional statements. B: acceptable solutions. C: administration.
In Division A of the Code: Apply to all buildings covered by the Code.
Clues are our study summaries, not the wording of the provision. Try the check first; this step works best after it.