Is a minor variance the same thing across Canada?

No. Minor variance is the Ontario term, and Saskatchewan uses it for a distance change of at most 10 percent. Québec says dérogation mineure. British Columbia uses a development variance permit and a separate board of variance order. Calgary says relaxation. Edmonton says variance. Each row above has its own test.

What does Ontario require for a minor variance?

Planning Act s. 45(1) lets a committee of adjustment authorize a minor variance that is desirable for the appropriate development or use of the land, if the general intent and purpose of the by-law and the official plan are maintained. Toronto states those findings as four items. They are Ontario findings.

Does a minor variance change the zoning by-law?

No. The permission applies to the property in the application. A zoning by-law amendment is the application that changes the by-law.

When does an Ontario setback need no variance?

On urban residential land outside the Greenbelt, a minimum setback is deemed to be 90 percent of the by-law figure. A shortfall inside that deemed distance needs no variance. Height, coverage, and parking are outside that rule.

Minor variance

A minor variance is Ontario’s name for permission to depart from a zoning by-law on one property. The by-law stays in force for every other property. Québec, British Columbia, Alberta, and other provinces use different names and different tests for that permission.

The same kind of permission, under local names

Each row is a permission for one parcel. It is not a by-law amendment. The test in the Ontario row applies in Ontario. It does not travel to the other rows.

What Canadian statutes and by-laws call this permission

Place	Official name	Who decides	What the decision turns on	Source
Ontario	Minor variance	Committee of adjustment	Planning Act s. 45(1): the variance is minor, it is desirable for the appropriate development or use, and the general intent and purpose of the by-law and the official plan are maintained. The Act does not number these as four tests.	Planning Act, s. 45
Québec	Dérogation mineure	Municipal council	A minor departure from zoning or subdivision rules other than use and density. Applying the by-law must cause a préjudice sérieux to the applicant.	Loi sur l’aménagement et l’urbanisme, ss. 145.1–145.4
British Columbia	Development variance permit, and a board of variance minor variance	Council or regional board, or the board of variance	A development variance permit cannot vary use or density. A board of variance may order a minor variance where compliance would cause undue hardship, and the order cannot vary permitted uses or densities.	Local Government Act, ss. 498 and 540–542
Vancouver	Board of Variance appeal	Board of Variance	The City says the board hears zoning and development appeals under Vancouver Charter s. 572. Vancouver is not under the Local Government Act.	City of Vancouver, Board of Variance
Calgary	Relaxation	Development Authority	Land Use Bylaw 1P2007, s. 31, allows a permitted use that misses the rules if it would not unduly interfere with neighbourhood amenities or neighbouring use, enjoyment, or value, and the use still conforms.	Calgary Land Use Bylaw 1P2007, s. 31
Edmonton	Variance	Development Planner	Zoning Bylaw s. 7.100 uses the same provincial amenities test, and the use must still conform. The planner must not vary maximum height, floor area ratio, or density, except where the bylaw states an exception.	Edmonton Zoning Bylaw, s. 7.100
Alberta statute	The Act does not name one instrument	Development authority, if the land use bylaw allows it	Section 640(6) is the power Calgary calls a relaxation and Edmonton calls a variance. Section 643(5)(c) uses “minor variance powers” only for enlarging a non-conforming building.	Municipal Government Act, ss. 640(6) and 643(5)
Saskatchewan	Minor variance	Council or development officer	Limited to the distance of a building from a lot line or from another building on the lot, at no more than 10 percent. The use must still conform.	Saskatchewan Zoning Bylaw Handbook (2024), s. 60
Manitoba	Variance order, and a smaller minor variance	Board, council, or a designated officer for a minor variance	The 2005 Act caps an officer’s minor variance at 10 percent of height, distance, area, size, intensity, or parking. Confirm the current consolidated Act before relying on that cap.	The Planning Act, S.M. 2005, c. 30
Halifax	Variance	Development officer	The Charter lists the standards an officer may vary, including yards. A variance may not violate the intent of the land-use by-law.	Halifax Regional Municipality Charter, s. 250
New Brunswick	Variance	Planning advisory committee or regional service commission	The Province describes an exception to a zoning or subdivision standard, often a setback, height, or lot size. This page does not quote the statute section.	Government of New Brunswick, community planning

Ontario, including a setback that needs no application

On a parcel of urban residential land outside the Greenbelt, Planning Act s. 34(1.4) deems a minimum setback to be 90 percent of the by-law distance. A shortfall inside that deemed distance needs no minor variance. The deeming rule does not apply in the Greenbelt, on land that is not a parcel of urban residential land, or on land in an area prescribed for s. 41(1.2). It does not reduce height, coverage, or parking.

Toronto publishes the same four findings in its own words and hears the application at the Committee of Adjustment. Fees, notice, and the appeal path are on the Toronto page.

Permissions that are not this one

A rezoning changes the by-law. A consent severs land. A conditional use, or a usage conditionnel in Québec, allows a use the by-law already names. A legal nonconforming use is a right to continue something that was lawful when it was built.

Free toolWhat is my property zoned for?Zone code, permitted and conditional uses, and the overlays that modify them — cited to the bylaw section.Try it →

Common questions

Is a minor variance the same thing across Canada?: No. Minor variance is the Ontario term, and Saskatchewan uses it for a distance change of at most 10 percent. Québec says dérogation mineure. British Columbia uses a development variance permit and a separate board of variance order. Calgary says relaxation. Edmonton says variance. Each row above has its own test.
What does Ontario require for a minor variance?: Planning Act s. 45(1) lets a committee of adjustment authorize a minor variance that is desirable for the appropriate development or use of the land, if the general intent and purpose of the by-law and the official plan are maintained. Toronto states those findings as four items. They are Ontario findings.
Does a minor variance change the zoning by-law?: No. The permission applies to the property in the application. A zoning by-law amendment is the application that changes the by-law.
When does an Ontario setback need no variance?: On urban residential land outside the Greenbelt, a minimum setback is deemed to be 90 percent of the by-law figure. A shortfall inside that deemed distance needs no variance. Height, coverage, and parking are outside that rule.

Sources

Related terms

Zoning variance