Planning Permission Ireland

Planning register

Galway city and suburbs

Planning applications inside the Galway city and suburbs, Co. Galway settlement, as recorded on the statutory register. The area is the CSO’s Census 2022 urban boundary.

Applications
4,041
County
Galway

What the data shows

The planning register for Galway city and suburbs contains 4041 total applications, with 3706 applications granted, refused, or part-granted since 2016. Within this group, the grant rate stands at 86%, representing 3200 granted, 506 refused, and 0 part-granted applications. The most common development types are extensions at 25%, retentions at 19%, new dwellings at 13%, and alterations at 12%. Recent application volumes show 347 lodged in 2023, 348 in 2024, and 365 in 2025.

An automated reading of the figures on this page. Every statement reflects the register data shown above; it is not advice or a prediction.

Planning intelligence

Grant rate

86%

of 3,706 applications granted, refused or part-granted since 2016.

Granted
3,200
Refused
506
No decision recorded
335

Historical outcomes from the statutory register. Not a prediction for any individual application.

What’s being built

Extension
25%
Retention
19%
New dwelling
13%
Alterations
12%
Change of use
9%
Commercial
8%

Grant rate by category

How each kind of application has been decided in Galway city and suburbs, 2016–2026.

CategoryGrantedDecidedNationally
Extension93%90795%
Retention82%65290%
New dwelling80%45582%
Alterations90%44392%
Change of use82%32988%
Commercial87%30088%
Apartments76%13671%
Infrastructure88%11591%
Housing estate78%8778%
Demolition89%3686%
Industrial100%3393%

“Decided” counts applications granted, refused or part-granted — withdrawn and invalid applications are excluded. Categories with fewer than 30 decided applications are not listed, because a rate over a handful of applications would not mean anything.

Appeals to An Bord Pleanála

24%

of 321 decided appeals changed the council’s decision, 2016–2026.

Refusals granted on appeal
38% of 126
Permissions refused on appeal
15% of 195
Decision upheld
232
Upheld, conditions varied
12

77 of 321 decided appeals reversed the council either way. Withdrawn and invalid appeals are excluded, because nothing was decided. Appeals are self-selected — only decisions someone chose to challenge appear here — so this is a record of appealed cases, not a measure of the council’s decisions overall.

Activity over time

Applications lodged, by year

Grant rate, by year of decision

Recently lodged in Galway city and suburbs

ListMap

Contains Irish Public Sector Data licensed under CC BY 4.0. Settlement boundary: CSO Census 2022 urban areas (Tailte Éireann). Always confirm against the relevant authority’s official register.