The Department of  Municipal and Provincial Affairs provides administrative services for processing and arranging appeals filed by person(s) aggrieved of certain decisions by a municipal council or Service NL related to development or enforcement matters. Appeals are made under authority of Part VI of the Urban and Rural Planning Act, 2000.

Learn how municipalities can prepare for an appeal in this 18-minute video prepared by the Department: click here (200 MB)

An Appeal Adjudicator can hear appeals of municipal council decisions regarding:

• An application to undertake a development;
• Revocation of an approval or a permit to undertake development;
• The issuance of an Order made under:
  • section 102 of the Urban and Rural Planning Act, 2000;
  • section 42 of the Occupancy and Maintenance Regulations;
  • section 404 of the Municipalities Act, 1999;
  • section 240 of the City of Corner Brook Act; or
  • section 240 of the City of Mount Pearl Act.

An Appeal Adjudicator can an also hear appeals of Service NL decisions made under authority of the following regulations:

• Benton Development Control Regulations;
• Butterpot-Witless Bay Line Environs Development Control Regulations;
• Conne River Local Planning Area Regulations;
• Gander River Protected Area Regulations;
• Highway Sign Regulations, 1999;
• Interim Development Regulations, 2003;
• Marble Mountain Protected Area Land Use Zoning Regulations; and
• Protected Road Zoning Regulations.

Not all decisions of a municipal council or Service NL involve matters that can be appealed to an Adjudicator. Therefore, it is recommended that you speak with the Appeal Officer before filing your appeal.  The Appeal Officer can be reached at (709) 729-3088 or (709) 729-3090 or via email at URPA.Appeals@gov.nl.ca.

Persons interested in filing an appeal against decisions of the City of St. John’s must file that appeal with the St. John’s Local Board of Appeal. Information about the St. John’s Local Board of Appeal is available at the City of St. John’s website.

How to File an Appeal

To file an appeal with an Adjudicator, the following is required:

• A completed appeal form (available below)
• An appeal filing fee of $200 plus HST ($230 total)

Download the Appeal Form

Appeal-Form It is recommended that you complete the form electronically; however, a hand-written form will be accepted.  It is best practices to send via email in PDF.  You may file an appeal by sending it to URPA.Appeals@gov.nl.ca.

You will receive notification by registered mail of the time, date, and place of the appeal hearing. You will be provided with any documents submitted to the Appeals Officer by the Council or Service NL prior to the hearing.

Decisions of the Appeal Adjudicators are posted online once the parties to the appeals have received a copy of the decision.

Appeal Dockets and Decisions 2024 to 2025

Appeal Dockets and Decisions 2020 to 2023

Appeal Dockets and Decisions 2015 to 2019

Frequently Asked Questions

For further information about appeals, please contact:

Appeal Officer 
c/o Department of Municipal and Provincial Affairs
P.O Box 8700
St. John’s, NL A1B 4J6
Office: (709) 729-3088

Email: URPA.Appeals@gov.nl.ca

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