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Canada by Province: Codes, Safety and Locates
Reviewed by a working tradesman with 17+ years in the field.
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The craft is the same from Victoria to St. John's. The paperwork is not. The main rules for every province and territory, side by side.
I am a:
Tap your level and the boxes below open to the advice for you. Remembered on this device.
What it isThe main rules side by side for every province and territory, so you can see what changes when you build somewhere new.
The craftThe same from Victoria to St. John's. The paperwork is not.
Our trench ruleNobody goes in over 1.2 m (4 ft) unless it is protected. It is the strictest trigger we found, so it works everywhere.
CheckedAgainst official pages and regulator guides in October 2026. Anything unchecked says Confirm.
By the end you can
- Name the building code edition that applies in your province.
- Say the depth where trench protection starts where you work, and who sets it.
- Find the locate service and lead time for your province.
- Spot what changes when you cross a provincial border to work.
- Put together a one-page cheat sheet for your province in ten minutes.
Stop and read
Never carry a rule from one province to another. Trench depths, locate lead times and owner-builder rules all change at the border. When you start in a new province, look up the row for that province first, then check it with the local authority.
The same across Canada
- The model code. The National Building Code of Canada 2020 (NBC 2020) is the model. It has no legal force until a province or territory adopts it, with or without changes.
- How concrete and rebar work. Concrete follows CSA A23.1 and A23.2 where the code references them, and the same physics applies in every province.
- The 3 m (10 ft) fall protection threshold. Every province and territory we checked starts fall protection at 3 m. Nunavut: Confirm. Guardrail heights differ slightly.
- PPE standards. CSA hard hats (Z94.1), eye protection (Z94.3), footwear (Z195), respirators (Z94.4) and fall arrest (Z259). Check the current editions.
- WHMIS 2015. One national system for labels and safety data sheets, enforced by each province.
- Metric and imperial. Plans are metric. Many crews, lumber yards and older drawings still use feet and inches, so you need both. This site gives both, and the conversions are on the Plan Reading page.
What changes by province
- The code edition and its amendments. Some provinces adopt NBC 2020 almost as written. Others publish their own edition, and one house-foundation rule can differ from the model.
- Trench and excavation rules. The depth where sloping, shoring or an engineer is required differs, as do spoil setbacks and the distance to a way out.
- Who may build their own home. Some provinces require an authorization, some a licence, and some have no special rule. Warranty rules differ too.
- Locate services. The name, number and lead time for calling before you dig all differ.
- Inspections. The pre-pour and pre-backfill stops are set by the province or the municipality.
- Energy rules. Foundation and slab insulation depends on the province's energy tier or step code.
Building code in force
| Province or territory | Code | Note |
|---|---|---|
| BC | BC Building Code 2024, for permit applications from 8 Mar 2024 | Based on NBC 2020 with BC changes. |
| AB | National Building Code 2023 Alberta Edition, in force 1 May 2024 | Based on NBC 2020. |
| SK | NBC 2020 with few amendments, in force 1 Jan 2024 | |
| MB | Manitoba Building Code (M.R. 78/2023), in force 1 Jan 2024 | Based on NBC 2020. |
| ON | Ontario Building Code 2024 (O. Reg. 163/24), in force 1 Jan 2025 | NBC 2020 plus Ontario amendments. |
| QC | Quebec Construction Code, Chapter I Building, with NBC 2020 (amended), in force 17 Apr 2025 | The previous edition can apply to works begun before 17 Oct 2027. |
| NB | NBC 2020 (Reg 2021-2), in force 1 May 2025 | Energy Tier 2 is the minimum. |
| NS | Nova Scotia Building Code Regulations (NBC 2020), in force 1 Apr 2025 | Energy Tier 2 from 1 Apr 2026. |
| PE | NBC 2020 (Building Codes Act Regulations), in force 31 Mar 2024 | |
| NL | The provincial regulation exempts Part 9 for one and two family dwellings, so municipal rules apply to houses | The regulation names NBC 2015. Confirm the edition with your town. |
| YT | NBC 2020 since 1 Apr 2023, with Yukon changes | Whitehorse bylaws can be stricter. |
| NT | No territorial building code for general construction | Municipal bylaws apply. Yellowknife follows the NBC as issued. |
| NU | NBC 2015 as modified for Nunavut | Permits come from the Office of the Chief Building Official, 1-844-975-5493. |
Trench and excavation rules
This is where the rules differ most, and where the cost of being wrong is highest. Read the row for your province. The depth is only the start: a 1.2 m trench still needs a safe way out and the spoil kept back from the edge.
| Province or territory | Regulation | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| BC | WorkSafeBC OHS Regulation Part 20 | Protect before entering an excavation over 1.2 m (4 ft) deep (s. 20.81). |
| AB | Alberta OHS Code Part 32 | Our earlier notes say protection over 1.5 m, engineered over 3 m, spoil 1 m back. Confirm in Part 32 (ss. 450, 453, 455) before relying on it. |
| SK | OHS Regulations, 2020, Part 17 | Workers in excavations over 1.2 m must be protected from cave-ins, per the regulator's overview. Confirm the clause. |
| MB | WSH Regulation Part 26 | Manitoba's own guide says slope at 1:1 after the first metre for excavations over 1.5 m, keep spoil 1 m back, and give the Department of Labour and Immigration 48 hours notice before work deeper than 1.5 m. Ladder in anything over 1.5 m. Guard or cover over 3 m. |
| ON | O. Reg. 213/91, Construction Projects | Do not enter a trench over 1.2 m (47 in) unless it is sloped, shored, boxed or in sound rock. Spoil, equipment and materials at least 1 m back (s. 233). Ladders inside the protected area (s. 240). Edge barrier 1.1 m high over 2.4 m deep that is not sloped. |
| QC | CNESST Safety Code (S-2.1, r. 4) | Excavation means 1.2 m deep or more. Engineer-sealed plans to CNESST at 6 m or more (art. 2.4.1). |
| NB | WorkSafeNB Reg 91-191 Part XIII | Protect at 1.2 m or more, or slope no steeper than 1:1 within 1.2 m of the bottom. Spoil at least 1.2 m back. |
| NS | Workplace Health and Safety Regulations | Support where a wall is over 1.2 m high. An engineer certifies slopes steeper than 1:1. Spoil at least 1 m back. |
| PE | OHS General Regulations Part 12 | Shoring unless under 1 219 mm (4 ft) deep or sloped at the angle of repose. Confirm the spoil distance. |
| NL | OHS Regulations, 2012 (NLR 5/12) | No entry over 1.22 m deep unless sloped or protected by an approved system (s. 406(4)). |
| YT | OHS Regulations Part 10 | Slope or support over 1.2 m. Engineer over 6 m or in permafrost. Spoil 0.6 m back from a trench, 1.2 m from other excavations. |
| NT | Safety Act regulations | Notify the Chief Safety Officer before digging deeper than 5 m. Confirm the sloping depth. |
| NU | Workers' Safety and Compensation Commission | Confirm the excavation rules with the commission. |
Confirm
Several rows come from regulator guides rather than the regulation text. Alberta, Saskatchewan and the engineer-depth rules are still being checked against the clauses. Always check the current regulation for your province before you rely on a number.
Call before you dig
The same table as the Permits and Approvals lesson, so you have it in one place. Take the number from the current official page before you call.
| Province | Service | Notice | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| BC | BC 1 Call, bc1c.ca, 1-800-474-6886 (*6886 from a cell) | 3 full business days | BC Energy Safety (Technical Safety BC) calls it a free service and recommends it before any digging. Check whether your municipality or utility makes it a condition of your permit. |
| AB | Alberta One-Call, 1-800-242-3447, web requests 24/7 | 3 full business days | Utility Safety Partners says members need a minimum of 3 full business days. Private lines are not located (see below). |
| SK | Sask 1st Call, 1-306-777-9507 (office line) | 2 full working days (SaskEnergy). The City of Regina asks for 3 business days for its own lines. | Allow 3. Confirm the current request number and web portal with Sask 1st Call. |
| MB | Click Before You Dig Manitoba, clickbeforeyoudigmb.com, 1-800-940-3447 | They contact you within 3 business days with a locate date | Manitoba Hydro says homeowners need to use it before digging deeper than 15 cm (6 in). The locate is valid for 14 days; if work has not started, have the lines re-marked. |
| ON | Ontario One Call (now Ontario Dig Authority) | Confirm (5 business days was the figure on our old page) | Ontario has a law on this (Underground Infrastructure Notification System Act, 2012). Confirm the lead time and your duties with Ontario One Call before you dig. |
| QC | Info-Excavation, info-ex.com | 4 working days | The RBQ calls the request essential and lists it as a contractor responsibility. A request stays valid up to the work end date you enter, for a maximum of 180 days. |
| NS, NB, PE, NL | Confirm with your utilities | Confirm | Sources for these provinces conflict or are missing, so we are not printing a number we cannot stand behind. |
| YT, NT, NU | No territory-wide one-call that we could confirm | Confirm | Call the power, telephone and gas utilities for your town directly. |
Permits, inspections and owner-builders
| Province | What to know |
|---|---|
| BC | Local government issues permits. Owner Builder Authorization from BC Housing, with an exam. Personal liability and a disclosure notice if you sell within 10 years. |
| AB | Municipality or accredited agency. Owner Builder Authorization, $95 with warranty or $750 without. Without warranty you cannot sell for 10 years. |
| SK | Municipal permits. No provincial owner-builder authorization found, and warranty is not mandatory. Confirm with your municipality. |
| MB | Authorization under the New Home Warranty Act before an owner-builder starts. Confirm who issues permits with your municipality. |
| ON | Municipal building official issues the permit. Tarion Letter of Confirmation for owner-builders. No statutory warranty on owner-built homes. Notify before footings and before backfilling. |
| QC | Municipal permits. An RBQ licence is generally needed, even for owner-builders, with exceptions such as small renovations. Ask the RBQ. |
| NB, NS | Mandatory inspections include footings and foundation before backfill. The owner is the constructor if no one else is. |
| PE | The province issues permits outside Charlottetown, Stratford, Summerside and St. Felix. Give 3 days notice for the footings and foundation inspection. |
| NL | Municipal permits and rules. A homeowner employing people at a private residence does not have to register with WorkplaceNL. Confirm. |
| YT, NT, NU | Whitehorse requires a foundation and under-slab inspection before backfill. NT: municipal rules. NU: permits through the Chief Building Official. |
The full detail, with the locate and inspection stops, is in the Permits and Approvals lesson.
What we left out on purpose
Frost depth, insulation and anchor bolts
These are not in the tables on purpose. We could not verify them from official sources for every province, and a wrong number there costs real money. Your local building department sets the frost depth for your site. Your provincial code sets the insulation tier and the anchorage rules. Ask both before you excavate.
Check your own province in 10 minutes
- Call the building department. Ask which code edition applies, the frost depth for your site, which inspections are required, and whether you need drawings from an engineer. In some provinces the province issues permits instead.
- Find your OHS regulator. Look up the excavation, fall protection and silica rules. Write down the depth where protection starts.
- Set up your locate. Use the service in the table and note the lead time. Build it into your schedule.
- Check owner-builder and warranty rules. Only if you are building your own home. Check workers' compensation rules if you will hire anyone.
- Keep the answers with the permit. Write the name, the date and the answer. When a dispute comes up months later, that note settles it.
Pro note
A phone call to your building department costs nothing and answers more than any website. Inspectors would rather answer a question before the pour than fix a mistake after it.
Worked example: a crew moves from Alberta to BC
A three-person crew has been pouring footings in Alberta and wins a house in the BC Interior.
- Code. Alberta used the 2023 Alberta Edition. BC uses the BC Building Code 2024. Order the BC drawings and ask the local government which edition applies at the address.
- Trench. Our rule is 1.2 m everywhere, and BC legally starts protection at 1.2 m. So any trench over 1.2 m needs sloping, shoring or a box.
- Locate. Call BC 1 Call at least 3 full business days before digging. Alberta is also 3 days, so the schedule does not change, but the number and the portal do.
- Safety paperwork. The employer registers with WorkSafeBC. Ask your board about cross-border workers.
- Result. The craft is the same. A one-page cheat sheet with the BC code, trench rule, locate number and inspection stops goes in every truck.
✅ Check yourselfTap a question
You move from a BC crew to an Ontario crew. What changes about a 1.5 m trench?
Very little. Both start protection at 1.2 m, so a 1.5 m trench needs sloping, shoring or a box in both. The paperwork around it differs: different regulator, different locate service and different lead time.
Why does this site teach 1.2 m (4 ft) as the trench rule when some provinces say 1.5 m?
1.2 m is the strictest trigger in the provinces we checked, so it is safe everywhere. Where a province legally starts at 1.5 m, you still never gain anything by climbing into an unprotected hole at 1.4 m.
Which provinces have a code that is NOT based on NBC 2020?
Nunavut (NBC 2015 as modified), and in Newfoundland and Labrador the house rules are municipal. The Northwest Territories has no territorial code for general construction.
You are quoting a job in Quebec and have never worked there. What three things do you check first?
The RBQ licence rules for your work, the CNESST excavation rules, and the 4 working day Info-Excavation lead time. Also ask the municipality which code edition applies, since the previous edition can still apply to works begun before 17 Oct 2027.
A cheat sheet from an old job says 2 days for the locate. Is that safe to use in Alberta?
No. Utility Safety Partners says a minimum of 3 full business days. Build in 3 everywhere, and take the number from the current official page.
🧰 Gear for this stepMust-haveRent itNice to have
- Must-haveA card or phone note for your province:
- Must-havePhone for dated photos and for logging who you spoke to at the building department and when
- Must-haveHard hat (CSA Z94.1), safety glasses (CSA Z94.3) and green-triangle footwear (CSA Z195)
- Nice to haveA pocket notebook for each job to keep the answers with the permit
👷 Who can do thisTap your level
Home DIY
You can do all of the checking. Making these calls before you buy materials is the cheapest part of the job, and it decides whether you need a permit, an engineer or a licensed builder.
Laborer or helper
Read the row for your province and copy the locate number, the trench depth and the inspection stops onto a card for the truck. Ask your lead when something does not match. Do not rely on a rule from another province.
1st-year apprentice
Learn your province's trench depth, the locate service and the inspection stages. Your journeyperson will expect you to know them.
Apprentice, 2nd to 4th year
Build a one-page cheat sheet for your province: code edition, trench depth, locate service and inspection stops. Confirm each item with your journeyperson or the regulator. A rule you learned on one job may not apply when the crew works in another province.
Journeyperson
If you work across provinces, check the code edition and regulator on every new job. Rules change when you cross a border, and a Red Seal is not a licence to assume.
Lead hand or foreman
Brief the crew on the local trench depth, locate service and inspection stops before the first shovel goes in, and enforce them every day. If a rule is unclear, stop and check with the regulator or building department.
Contractor or business owner
Register with the workers' compensation board and carry the insurance your province requires. Confirm builder licensing and warranty rules before you quote a new home.
Starting a new business
Before you quote, ask your provincial regulator, workers' compensation board and building department what applies to your first job. Ask an insurer and a lawyer what to carry. Keep a file of the sources you used and the dates.
Sources:
- Ontario, Excavation hazards on construction projects (O. Reg. 213/91)
- Manitoba, Excavation work guide (A Safe Workplace)
- Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba, Excavations
- OHS Insider, Excavation and trenching: know the laws of your province (secondary summary, used for BC, NB, NS, NL, PE depths)
- Alberta OHS Code, Part 32 (section text still to be checked)
- Locate sources: see the Permits and Approvals lesson.
- Code adoption notices: BC Building and Safety Standards Branch; Alberta building codes page; Saskatchewan; Manitoba M.R. 78/2023; Ontario O. Reg. 163/24; RBQ notice and Quebec Construction Code Chapter I; New Brunswick Reg 2021-2; Nova Scotia (2024-198); PEI (EC2024-179); Yukon and Nunavut building code pages; Yellowknife Building By-law.
Last reviewed October 2026. General information, not engineering or legal advice.