Planning applications rise for third consecutive quarter
Date published:
New accredited official statistics published today by NISRA statisticians in the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) present information on the volume of planning applications received and decisions issued in Northern Ireland during the third quarter of 2025/26.
Key findings
- There were 2,489 planning applications received in Northern Ireland during Q3 2025/26, an increase of six per cent from the previous quarter and nearly six per cent on the same period a year earlier. This comprised 2,426 local, 61 major and two regionally significant applications.
- In Q3 2025/26, 2,309 planning decisions were issued, an increase of 18 per cent from the previous quarter and similar to the number decided in the same period a year earlier. Decisions were issued on 2,282 local and 27 major applications.
- The overall approval rate for planning applications in Northern Ireland was 93.2% in Q3 2025/26, a slight decrease compared with the previous quarter (95.5%) and the same quarter a year earlier (94.7%).
- The average processing time for local applications during the first nine months of 2025/26 was 19.6 weeks across all councils, exceeding the statutory 15-week target. Three of the 11 councils - Mid and East Antrim, Fermanagh and Omagh, and Antrim and Newtownabbey, met the target during this period.
- The average processing time for major applications during the first nine months of 2025/26 was 38.6 weeks, exceeding the 30-week statutory target but improving by one week compared with the same period in 2024/25 (39.6 weeks).
- Across councils, 75.2% of enforcement cases were concluded within 39 weeks during the first nine months of 2025/26, meeting the 70% target and up from 70.1% recorded in the same period a year earlier.
About this publication
This bulletin provides summary statistical information on the volume of planning applications received and decisions issued in Northern Ireland in Q3 2025/26 (October to December 2025). It covers activity and performance by councils and the Department for Infrastructure following the transfer of planning powers to councils in April 2015. Quarterly figures for 2025/26 are provisional and will be subject to revision ahead of finalised annual figures, planned for release in July 2026.
Further information
View the full report, data tables and background information: Northern Ireland planning statistics October - December 2025 | Department for Infrastructure