Building permits, March 2026

Released: 2026-05-19

In March, the total value of building permits issued in Canada increased $1.3 billion (+10.3%) to $13.5 billion. The increase in construction intentions was led by the non-residential sector (+$1.5 billion) and tempered by the residential sector (-$270.6 million).

On a constant dollar basis (2023=100), the total value of building permits issued in March rose 10.1% from the previous month and was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Chart 1 
Total value of building permits, seasonally adjusted

Infographic 1 
Building permits, March 2026

Institutional construction intentions lead growth in non-residential sector

The value of non-residential building permits grew $1.5 billion to $5.5 billion in March. The increase was led by the institutional component (+$817.1 million to $1.8 billion), while the industrial (+$473.2 million to $1.5 billion) and the commercial (+$238.0 million to $2.2 billion) components contributed to a lesser extent.

In March, the gains in the institutional component were bolstered by growth in British Columbia (+$665.5 million) and concentrated in the Vancouver census metropolitan area, with newly approved building permits for medical institutions.

The rise in the industrial component in March was primarily attributable to Ontario (+$510.8 million) and supported by Quebec (+$113.6 million).

Meanwhile, seven provinces and two territories contributed to the increase in the commercial component (+$238.0 million).

Chart 2 
Number of units authorized for the residential sector and for the single-family and multi-family components

Chart 3 
Value of building permits for the residential and non-residential sectors

Chart 4 
Value of building permits for the single-family and multi-family components

Chart 5 
Value of building permits for the industrial, commercial and institutional components

Multi-family construction intentions weigh down residential sector

In March, residential construction intentions in Canada decreased $270.6 million (-3.3%) to $8.0 billion. The national decline was driven by the multi-family component, which fell $270.9 million to $5.3 billion. The single-family component saw virtually no change month over month and remained at $2.7 billion.

The decline in the multi-family component in March was driven by Ontario (-$393.1 million) and Quebec (-$163.5 million). Meanwhile, gains in British Columbia (+$90.7 million), Nova Scotia (+$83.8 million) and four other provinces and one territory tempered the decline.

In the single-family component, a large decline in Alberta (-$65.9 million) in March was offset by increases in Ontario (+$33.2 million), Saskatchewan (+$22.9 million) and British Columbia (+$19.4 million), leading to stagnant construction intentions in March.

Quarterly review: Residential sector leads increase in first quarter

In the first quarter of 2026, the total value of building permits increased $445.7 million to $39.0 billion, up 1.1% from the previous quarter. On a constant dollar basis (2023=100), the total value of building permits was up 0.5% to $35.6 billion.

The remainder of this release will use constant dollars (2023=100).

The residential sector grew $514.5 million (+2.4%) to $22.2 billion in the first quarter. The single-family component increased $349.8 million to $7.4 billion after four consecutive quarterly declines. Gains in single-family construction intentions were driven by Ontario (+$142.8 million) and Quebec (+$110.6 million).

Multi-family construction intentions were up $164.7 million to $14.6 billion in the first quarter, with Ontario (+$392.3 million) and Quebec (+$186.1 million) leading the increase. Alberta (-$548.0 million) moderated the gains.

Nationwide, a total of 68,500 single-family and multi-family units (not seasonally adjusted) were authorized for construction in the first quarter, down from the 71,000 units authorized during the same period one year earlier.

Non-residential construction intentions decreased $347.4 million to $13.4 billion in the first quarter. The commercial component fell $813.7 million to $5.8 billion, marking the largest quarterly decline since the fourth quarter of 2020. The decline recorded in the first quarter of 2026 was supported by the institutional component (-$403.9 million). Meanwhile, the industrial component (+$870.2 million) tempered declines.

To explore data using an interactive user interface, visit the Building permits: Interactive Dashboard.

For more information on construction, please visit the Construction statistics portal.

For more information on housing, please visit the Housing statistics portal.

Contact information

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).