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All six stops on the lot

Stop F · NSW, Victoria and Queensland

The building rules a granny flat still has to meet

A granny flat that needs no planning permit still needs building approval: Victoria says a building permit is always required, Queensland requires building approval for every new one, and in NSW complying development is itself a combined planning and construction approval. It then needs a final certificate or permit when it is finished, and smoke alarms; in NSW and Queensland a certifier checks the work as it goes up.

General information, not building advice. A certifier, building surveyor or council decides how the rules apply to a design. The bodies linked in each step are the places to check.

STREETNABCDEF
Stop F on the lot: inside the second home.

From approval to keys, in order

The steps follow a similar order in each state, though the documents have different names.

  1. Approval to build

    NSWComplying development is approved by a council or an accredited certifier as one planning and construction approval. On the development application route, a construction certificate must be obtained before any building work starts; complying development does not need one.

    VictoriaA building permit is always required, and it states whether an occupancy permit or a certificate of final inspection is needed at the end.

    QueenslandAny new secondary dwelling needs building approval, and the council says whether development approval is needed too.

  2. Someone who checks the work

    NSWOnce a complying development certificate is approved, and before construction starts, a principal certifier must be appointed to inspect the work and certify that it matches the approval, according to the department’s guide to complying development (revised August 2023).

    QueenslandThe building certifier inspects at mandatory stages, such as before concrete is poured for the footings or slab, and after the frame goes up but before the internal walls. The Queensland stop sets out the certifier’s role in full.

  3. The code it is built to

    VictoriaThe Building and Plumbing Commission says the small second dwelling reforms changed only the siting rules; the building still has to meet the technical requirements of the building regulations, including the National Construction Code.

    QueenslandThe commission says tiny homes, granny flats included, face the same planning, building and plumbing laws as other homes, including the National Construction Code. If an existing granny flat is rented out, the planning department says additional fire and sound transmission requirements of the building code apply.

    VictoriaA small second dwelling cannot be connected to reticulated natural gas.

  4. Bushfire-prone land in NSW

    NSWOn a lot that contains bushfire-prone land, section 57 of the Housing SEPP sets conditions a complying granny flat must meet. They include building to Planning for Bush Fire Protection, keeping the building within 200 metres of a public or council road with direct access to it, and an access way that is not on grassland or in the two highest bushfire attack categories (BAL-40 and the flame zone).

    The lot needs a reticulated water supply or one suitable for firefighting, which for a lot up to 10,000 square metres means, among other details, 10,000 litres with a 65 millimetre metal Storz outlet. Gas has its own rules, including installation to AS/NZS 1596:2014 and fixed cylinders at least 10 metres from flammable materials. The section itself has the full list.

  5. The final certificate

    NSWAn occupation certificate must be obtained to occupy and use a new building. For one to be issued, the building must meet the consent and regulatory standards and be suitable for occupation under its building code classification. Rebuilding after a disaster has its own sequence for living in a granny flat while the house is built, set out on the department’s disaster-recovery page.

    VictoriaThe building permit names which document is needed at completion: an occupancy permit or a certificate of final inspection.

    QueenslandFor a detached house or smaller structure the certifier issues a final inspection certificate (Form 21), typically given to the owner and lodged with the council.

  6. Smoke alarms

    NSWSmoke alarms are compulsory in every home where people sleep. Owners must have at least one working alarm that complies with Australian Standard 3786 on each level, and new buildings follow the minimum requirements in the National Construction Code.

    VictoriaSmoke alarms are compulsory in all residential properties, and buildings constructed after 1 August 1997 must have hard-wired alarms with a battery back-up, meeting Australian Standard 3786.

    QueenslandEvery existing private home, townhouse and unit needs interconnected photoelectric smoke alarms by 1 January 2027, and since 1 January 2017 all alarms have had to comply with Australian Standard 3786-2014. With that deadline due 1 January 2027, check the Queensland Government’s page for the current position.

The other stops

Five more places on the same lot: