Technical article

Permits, Inspections and Renovation Surprises

They are not sure whether replacing a kitchen, windows and a bathroom needs a permit, or just a phone call to the town.

By Neil Solomon · 4 min read

Picture a couple named Mark and Louise. Both are 61. They found an older stone house with a good view and a tired kitchen. They are not sure whether replacing a kitchen, windows and a bathroom needs a permit, or just a phone call to the town.

I looked for official answers. Croatia, Portugal and Italy have pages that describe the steps. For Bulgaria the text could not be read, so I say so below.

Croatia

The Building Act says construction begins on a final building permit ("pravomoćne građevinske dozvole"). A builder may also start on a permit that is enforceable but not yet final, "na vlastitu odgovornost i rizik", which means at their own risk.

Reconstruction means work on an existing building that affects basic requirements or the location conditions. The ministry's opinions list extensions, additions on top, changing the use and work on ruins. These generally need a building permit.

A rule for simple works says some work on an existing building may go ahead "bez građevinske dozvole, a u skladu s glavnim projektom": without a permit, but following a main project. That covers extraordinary maintenance and work that improves compliance with basic requirements, as long as location conditions stay the same. The ministry page shows the Act's gazette issues up to NN 145/24 and has no date of its own.

Portugal

Decree-Law 108/2026 of 29 May 2026 changes the national building rules. As I read the summary of the text:

• Reconstruction works stay exempt from a licence or prior communication.
• Replacing window frames with more energy-efficient ones is exempt, including in protection zones, if the original outside look is kept.
• Prior communication, a single filing that lets the owner start without a separate approval, is reviewed once by the town.
• Fees can be paid by self-assessment.
• A sale contract must state whether the building has an urban title.

Reconstruction is now defined as rebuilding from the building's "último antecedente válido", its last valid earlier state. The preamble says reconstruction that adds volume or floor area is treated as an extension. The sources show no fee amounts or date the changes take effect. Whether a given job counts as exempt is for the town to say.

Italy

The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport's guidelines on the "Salva casa" decree and the government's simplification portal describe four kinds of building regime: free works that need no filing, CILA (a certified notice of start of works), SCIA (a certified notice of activity), and the building permit. Extraordinary maintenance and restoration that do not touch the structure go under CILA. Heavy renovation can go under SCIA as an alternative to the permit, and new construction still needs the permit. A change of use without more load on the town, and changes to the outside walls needed for access or use, can now go under SCIA instead of a permit (read 11 October 2026, through a search extract of the pages). Whether your kitchen, windows and bathroom fall under CILA, SCIA or free works depends on the walls and the structure, so the town's building office decides.

What is left open

• Bulgaria: the ministry page lists the Spatial Development Act, last amendment shown October 2023, and the text is in a file that could not be read automatically. Ask the municipality's building office what a repair needs.
• Any fee, deadline or inspection schedule in any of the four countries. Fees are set by the town or by the professional who files, not by a national table.