Byggnadsnämnden
Byggnadsnämnden is the municipal committee that handles building cases in Sweden. Each of the country's 290 municipalities must have a byggnadsnämnd, and it is the nämnd that decides on bygglov, startbesked and slutbesked for building cases in its municipality.
The requirement follows directly from plan- och bygglagen (2010:900) 12 kap. 1 §: "I varje kommun ska det finnas en byggnadsnämnd." The act defines byggnadsnämnden in 1 kap. 4 § as "den eller de nämnder som fullgör kommunens uppgifter enligt denna lag", so a municipality can choose to assign the tasks to several nämnder or to one. Beyond bygglov, startbesked and slutbesked, the nämnd is responsible for setting control plans, appointing kontrollansvariga and calling technical consultations, site visits and final consultations throughout the building process. The nämnd is also the supervisory authority under plan- och bygglagen 11 kap. 3 §, together with the government, länsstyrelsen and certain state authorities, and must use supervision to ensure that the act is followed and that errors and defects are put right. Under 12 kap. 2 §, the nämnd must also work for good building practice and an aesthetically pleasing urban and rural environment, follow general developments in the municipality and take the initiative in matters of planning, building and property formation.
The detaljplan itself is formally adopted by kommunfullmäktige, the municipality's elected assembly, but fullmäktige can delegate the right to adopt a plan that is not of fundamental importance to byggnadsnämnden (5 kap. 27 §). In practice, it is in any case byggnadsnämnden's administration that prepares the planning work, from planbesked to consultation and adoption, so the nämnd is the body that owns both bygglov cases and the planning process locally on a day-to-day basis.
Byggnadsnämnden is a politically composed committee: kommunfullmäktige appoints members and deputy members who represent the parties on the municipal council, in the same way as other municipal nämnder under kommunallagen (2017:725) 3 kap. 3-4 §§. It is the handläggarna, the nämnd's permanent case officers, who prepare the cases, investigate the facts and draft proposed decisions, while the elected members formally take the decision in a meeting. In smaller municipalities, it is common for the nämnd to delegate routine individual cases to a lead handläggare, so that only cases of principle or cases in dispute are dealt with by the nämnd itself.
A refusal or a decision from byggnadsnämnden can be appealed to länsstyrelsen. Länsstyrelsen's decision can in turn be appealed further to mark- och miljödomstolen (MMD), and finally to Mark- och miljööverdomstolen (MÖD), which normally requires leave to appeal before it hears the case. The chain of instances is therefore byggnadsnämnden, länsstyrelsen, MMD and MÖD.
Taken together, byggnadsnämnden corresponds to the Norwegian municipal planning committee and building case department under plan- og bygningsloven, but the appeal structure differs from the Norwegian one. In Norway, an appeal in a building case goes to the municipality itself and then to Statsforvalteren, an administrative body. In Sweden, the same appeal route ends in a court, mark- och miljödomstolen, not in another administrative body. It is byggnadsnämnden, not any national register, that is the source of Swedish bygglov and planning data: there is no national register that collects all Swedish building cases in the way Kartverket publishes nationwide copies of Norwegian municipalities' planning data. That is precisely why Combify collects case data directly from all 290 municipalities.
From Placepoint's dictionary: Byggnadsnämnden
More information: Boverket: Byggnadsnämndens ansvar och uppgifter, Boverket: Den politiska nämnden, Boverket: Instansordning
English: Building committee (municipal planning and building authority).
Frequently asked questions
What is byggnadsnämnden?
Byggnadsnämnden is the municipal committee that, under plan- och bygglagen 12 kap. 1 §, must exist in each of Sweden's 290 municipalities, and that handles bygglov, startbesked and slutbesked.
Is byggnadsnämnden the same as a Norwegian planning committee?
It resembles a combination of the municipal planning committee and the building case department in Norway, but the Swedish appeal route ends in a court, mark- och miljödomstolen, while the Norwegian one ends with Statsforvalteren.
Who sits on byggnadsnämnden?
Politically appointed members and deputy members who represent the parties on the municipal council, appointed by kommunfullmäktige. The cases are prepared by the handläggarna, the nämnd's permanent case officers.
Where do I appeal a decision from byggnadsnämnden?
First to länsstyrelsen. A further appeal goes to mark- och miljödomstolen (MMD) and finally to Mark- och miljööverdomstolen (MÖD).
Does byggnadsnämnden adopt detaljplaner?
Formally, detaljplaner are adopted by kommunfullmäktige, but fullmäktige can delegate the right of adoption for plans of less fundamental importance to byggnadsnämnden, and it is in any case the nämnd's administration that prepares the planning work.
Why is there no national register of Swedish bygglov?
Because responsibility for bygglov and planning data lies with the individual byggnadsnämnd in each municipality, not with a state agency. That is why data on Swedish building cases has to be collected municipality by municipality.