Outdoor saunas and building permits in Denmark

Most outdoor saunas can be set up without a building permit. A free-standing garden sauna counts as a small secondary building, and as long as the plot's small buildings stay under the area limit in the Danish building regulations (BR18) and the sauna stands at least 2.5 metres from the boundary, it normally needs no permit. But a sauna is heated and built for occupancy, and the rules are administered by your municipality – so the safe move is to ask them first.

Small secondary buildings such as sheds, greenhouses and free-standing saunas are subject to lighter rules than a house. If the plot's small buildings stay under the area limit and you build at least 2.5 metres from the boundary, you can generally build without an application. Build closer to the boundary and there are limits on how long and tall the building may be facing it.

The rules are in the Danish building regulations (BR18), under secondary buildings. But municipalities interpret them differently, and a local plan (lokalplan) may set its own requirements for placement, height and appearance.

You may need to apply if the sauna is large, has to stand close to the boundary, or if a local plan or preservation rules apply to your area. Here too, your municipality's technical department is the one to ask – a quick call before you order saves you trouble later.

Regardless of any permit, the electric heater must be connected to three-phase power (400 V) by an authorised electrician. Remember to register the sauna with your insurer too – most home-contents policies cover outdoor buildings once the value is registered.

Call your municipality's technical department and tell them how large the sauna is and where it will stand. When you order with us, we send a concrete recommendation for placement and base along with the confirmation, so you have it in writing.