Permission granted by a municipality to a property owner to use or develop real property in a manner that deviates from the applicable laws, ordinances, building codes, or municipal codes that regulate zoning.

The criteria and rules for variance requests vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, however, variances are typically granted when local zoning regulations make the use of certain property impracticable or inefficient.

A variance does not change existing zoning laws. Furthermore, some jurisdictions place restrictions or conditions on the transfer of a variance.