Alberta Building Safety Regulations

Home Building Safety Regulations Alberta Building Safety Regulations

Alberta Building Safety Regulations at a Glance

Requirement

Applies To

Cycle

Next Deadline

Penalty / Risk

Building Maintenance Bylaw 33M2016 (BEVA) — Calgary

Buildings with 5 or more stories and more than 10 years old

Every 5 years; initial BEVA by the 10th anniversary of occupancy

5 years from the last assessment

Starting between $1,000 to $5,000, with a maximum up to $10,000

BEVA Form Production

Exterior walls and roofs of in-scope buildings

Every 5 years

Date listed on the City’s mailed notice or on request

Produce to the City within 14 days of a request

Alberta’s Condominium Property Act — Reserve Fund Study

All Alberta condominium corporations (Calgary, Edmonton, and province-wide)

At least one every 5 years by a qualified provider

Existing corporations: 5 years from your last study;
New corporations: within 2 years of registration

Breach of provincial law; director liability exposure; special assessment risk

Owner Duty to Maintain the Building Envelope

All in-scope building owners

Continuous good-repair standard

Immediately upon becoming aware of a hazard

Correct the hazard; notify the Chief Building Official

Alberta Safety Codes Act

Buildings and construction across Alberta

Ongoing

Ongoing

Fines on conviction up to $100,000

Alberta Building Safety Regulations Overview

Alberta building owners and condominium boards face two layers of mandatory building safety compliance, plus a climate reality that makes both matter more.

In Calgary, the Building Maintenance Bylaw 33M2016 requires owners of buildings that are five stories or greater and more than 10 years old to complete a Building Exterior Visual Assessment (BEVA). Across the province, Alberta’s Condominium Property Act requires every condominium corporation to maintain a capital replacement reserve fund and to obtain a reserve fund study from a qualified provider at least every five years. Newly registered corporations need to complete their first study on a shorter schedule, within two years.

Both duties are legal obligations, not just best practices. Bylaw fines can start between $1,000 to $5,000, reaching upwards of $10,000, and charges under the Alberta Safety Codes Act can bring fines up to $100,000 on conviction. An out-of-date reserve fund study is a breach of provincial law that exposes boards to liability and owners to surprise special assessments. In a province where hailstorms and freeze-thaw cycles can cause billions of dollars in building envelope and structural damage, maintaining a compliant assessment schedule can help Alberta owners protect their buildings’ value.

Rimkus can help condominium boards, property managers, and commercial building owners across Calgary and Edmonton meet these requirements. In a single site visit, our Built Environment Solutions team of qualified experts can often provide a combination of services:

  • Building Exterior Visual Assessments
  • Reserve Fund Studies
  • Building Envelope Condition Assessments
  • Parkade Evaluations

Calgary BEVA: What Building Owners Need to Know

What is a Building Exterior Visual Assessment (BEVA)?

A BEVA is a visual review of a building’s exterior walls and roofs to identify safety concerns before they become hazards. It must be completed by a qualified person — someone with sufficient education, training, skill, and experience to assess roofs and walls reliably. The goal is to find deterioration and the risk of falling material, not to verify general code compliance. Intrusive or invasive testing is required only when the visual review reveals issues needing further investigation.

Who Must Comply?

  • All buildings that are five stories or greater and more than 10 years old
  • Exterior walls and roofs must be visually assessed every five years
  • The initial BEVA is due by the 10th anniversary of the date the City granted occupancy
  • The City should mail owners a notice the year before a BEVA is due, but the assessment is required even if no notice is received
  • Owners must retain every assessment for the life of the building and provide it to the City within 14 days of a request

The BEVA Process

  1. Scope
    • The exterior wall systems including cladding, curtain walls, flashings, masonry, balconies and guardrails, and signage, together with the roof and its components
    • An owner may use one qualified person for the walls and another for the roof
  2. Ratings and follow-up
    • Each component is rated Acceptable, Needs Attention, or Not Acceptable on the two-page BEVA form
    • Items rated Not Acceptable are hazards that must be corrected, and the owner must notify the Chief Building Official, after which the City follows up to confirm corrective action
    • Repairs may require permits and inspections
  3. Qualified person and documentation
    • The assessor may be a registered professional, technologist, or trained contractor with experience in the relevant components (credentials are recorded on each page of the form)
    • The Alberta Building Code, in force when the building was constructed, provides the assessment criteria, and recognized standards, such as the NRC Protocol for Building Condition Assessment, may be referenced
    • Owners keep all assessments for the life of the building and pass them to any new owner on sale

Alberta Reserve Fund Studies: The Province-Wide Requirement

Separate from Calgary’s bylaw — and applying to every condominium corporation in Alberta, including Edmonton — the Condominium Property Act requires corporations to maintain a capital replacement reserve fund and to obtain a reserve fund study, report, and plan prepared by a qualified provider at least every five years. Newly registered corporations must complete their first study within two years of registration.

What the Study Involves

  • A physical assessment of the common property — roofs, building envelope, parkades, mechanical systems, balconies, and other major components — and their remaining service life
  • A financial analysis projecting repair and replacement costs and the contributions needed to fund them without resorting to special assessments
  • A board-approved funding plan, with the study and plan disclosed to owners

Why Boards Act on it Now

Rolling Deadlines

  • A portion of Alberta’s condo market passes its five-year mark every year
  • Missing the deadline is a violation of provincial law and a director-liability exposure

Irrelevant Studies Post-2024 Hail Damage

  • Corporations that completed reserve fund studies before the August 2024 Calgary hailstorm may find that their component conditions and cost assumptions no longer reflect the building’s current state
  • After a major damage event occurs, a new reserve fund study should be completed

Freeze-thaw Economics

  • Envelope components that last 30 years in milder climates can need replacement in 20–25 in Alberta — studies calibrated to Alberta conditions protect against underfunding.

Efficiency Tip

For buildings subject to both requirements, Rimkus can combine the BEVA and the reserve fund study site work — one qualified team, one site visit, two compliance obligations addressed.

Beyond Compliance: Hail Recovery and Parkade Health

After the Storm

The August 2024 hailstorm damaged tens of thousands of Calgary buildings, and repair contractors were stretched for months. Two years on, many owners still need an independent engineering review: envelope condition assessments of repaired buildings, quality reviews of completed repair work, roof lifecycle evaluations, and hail-resilience planning for buildings in repeat-hit corridors. Rimkus works for the building owner — providing the independent technical picture your board, manager, or asset plan needs.

Parkades Under Pressure

Alberta’s freeze-thaw cycles and de-icing chlorides drive concrete corrosion and spalling in underground and above-grade parkades. Rimkus performs parkade condition assessments, non-destructive testing, and repair prioritization — a natural add-on to a reserve fund study or BEVA.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

  • Calgary bylaw fines: $2,500 to $5,000, reaching a maximum of $10,000 under the Building Maintenance Bylaw
  • Safety Codes Act charges: fines on conviction can reach $100,000
  • Document production: owners who cannot produce a current BEVA within 14 days of the City’s request are in breach of the bylaw
  • Uncorrected hazards: items rated Not Acceptable must be corrected and reported to the Chief Building Official; failure to act invites enforcement
  • Reserve fund studies: an out-of-date study breaches the Condominium Property Act, exposes directors to liability, and is a red flag on estoppel/status disclosure at unit sales
  • Insurance and liability: unresolved deficiencies can affect coverage and expose owners to liability if falling material causes injury or damage

Don’t Risk Non-Compliance — Get Both Obligations Off Your Desk

BEVA deadlines are tied to your building’s age and occupancy date; reserve fund study deadlines run on your corporation’s own five-year clock. Rimkus qualified professionals perform both — completing the City’s BEVA form, delivering the study, report, and plan your board must file, and flagging envelope and parkade issues before they become special assessments.

Schedule Your Assessment Today

Frequently Asked Questions

A Building Exterior Visual Assessment (BEVA) is a visual review of a building’s exterior walls and roofs required under the City of Calgary’s Building Maintenance Bylaw 33M2016. A qualified person inspects the cladding, masonry, flashings, balconies, roof, and other components to identify deterioration and the risk of falling material. Buildings five stories or more and more than 10 years old must have a BEVA completed every five years.

If your building is in Calgary, five stories or greater, and more than 10 years old — yes, regardless of use. The initial assessment is due by the 10th anniversary of occupancy, and a new assessment is required within five years of the last one. The City mails a reminder the year before your BEVA is due, but the assessment is required even if no notice arrives.

A qualified person — someone with sufficient education, training, skill, and experience relating to roofs and walls that their assessment can reasonably be relied upon. This can include registered professionals, technologists, and trained contractors. An owner may use one expert for the walls and another for the roof; credentials are recorded on each page of the BEVA form.

An item rated Not Acceptable is a hazard that must be corrected. The owner must report it to the Chief Building Official, and the City follows up to confirm corrective action. Repairs may require permits and inspections. More broadly, an owner who becomes aware of a hazardous condition must immediately take steps to correct it and advise the Chief Building Official in writing.

At least every five years, prepared by a qualified provider, under the Condominium Property Act and its regulations. Newly registered corporations must complete their first study within two years of registration. The board must then approve and disclose a funding plan based on the study.

Possibly. If your building sustained significant damage (for example, in the 2024 hailstorm) or completed major repairs since the last study, its component conditions and cost assumptions may no longer be reliable. Many boards commission an updated study after major events so contributions reflect the building’s true condition.

Yes. For Calgary buildings subject to both requirements, Rimkus can coordinate the BEVA and the reserve fund study site assessment in a combined engagement — one qualified team and one site visit addressing both obligations, with parkade and envelope evaluations added where needed.

Yes. Rimkus provides owner-side engineering: independent condition assessments of repaired envelopes and roofs, quality reviews of completed repair work, and lifecycle planning for buildings in hail-exposed areas. Contact us to discuss your building’s situation.

Need Help? Contact Rimkus

BEVA obligations under the Building Maintenance Bylaw and reserve fund study obligations under the Condominium Property Act are in effect now. Don’t wait until a deadline, an enforcement request, or a special assessment puts you at risk.

Talk to Our Calgary Expert

Ryan Doull
District Manager

Schedule a Consultation

Office Address

6227 2nd Street SE, Suite 108
Calgary, Alberta T2H 1J5, Canada

Meet Our Calgary Team

Additional Insights on Alberta Regulations

External Resources