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Approval timeframes by state
| NSW development application | Deemed refused after 40 days[1] |
|---|---|
| Victoria planning permit | 60 days; VicSmart 10 business days[2] |
| Queensland | 35-day decision period under the DA Rules[3][4] |
| Western Australia | 60 days, or 90 if advertised[5] |
| South Australia | 5 to 95 business days by pathway[6] |
| Tasmania | 28 days permitted, 42 days discretionary[7] |
| ACT | 20 working days code track; 30 or 45 merit and impact[8] |
| Northern Territory | Not covered by the sources compiled here |
| *Figures are statutory periods, not average elapsed times. Requests for further information usually stop the clock. | |
Every state and territory gives the decision-maker a fixed number of days to decide a planning application, but the numbers, the units (calendar, business or working days) and the consequence of running out of time all differ. In NSW a development application is treated as refused after 40 days[1]; in South Australia the applicant can instead serve a notice that turns silence into a deemed consent.[9]
What a statutory period is — and is not §
A statutory period is the time the authority has to decide after an application is properly lodged. It does not include design, site investigations, pre-lodgement meetings or the building-approval stage that follows. Most systems also stop the clock while the authority waits for further information it has requested: Victoria allows 28 days to make a further information request,[10] Queensland adds the days used to make a request to the decision period,[3] and Tasmanian councils pause the clock until requested information arrives.[7][11]
For a factory-built home this matters because manufacturing slots are usually booked against an expected approval date. A request for information that stops the clock moves that date even though the statutory period itself has not changed.
Planning stage, state by state §
| Jurisdiction | Pathway | Statutory period | If the period runs out |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | Development application, ordinary development | 40 days | Taken to be refused; appeal right opens[1] |
| NSW | Complying development certificate | As little as 20 days (published) | Not covered by the sources compiled here[12] |
| Victoria | Planning permit, standard | 60 days | Applicant may apply to VCAT[2] |
| Victoria | VicSmart | 10 business days | Applicant may apply to VCAT[2] |
| Queensland | Development application | 35 days (decision period) | Some applications may be deemed approved[3][4] |
| Western Australia | Development application | 60 days; 90 if advertised | Deemed refused; SAT review available[5] |
| South Australia | Deemed-to-satisfy | 5 business days | Deemed consent notice may be served[6][9] |
| South Australia | Performance assessed, no notification | 20 business days | Deemed consent notice may be served[6][9] |
| South Australia | Performance assessed, notified | 70 business days | Deemed consent notice may be served[6][9] |
| Tasmania | Permitted | 28 days | Not covered by the sources compiled here[7] |
| Tasmania | Discretionary (advertised) | 42 days | Not covered by the sources compiled here[7] |
| ACT | Code track | 20 working days | Not covered by the sources compiled here[8] |
| ACT | Merit or impact track | 30 working days, or 45 with representations | Not covered by the sources compiled here[8] |
| Northern Territory | Development permit | Not covered | Not covered by the sources compiled here |
The Queensland figure is expressed as 35 days in the Development Assessment Rules[3] and described by councils as 35 business days.[4] Victoria's own planning guide describes the 60-day period in calendar days in one section and business days in another, so the regulation should be checked directly before relying on a date.[2]
NSW also publishes an average, not a statutory period: the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure states that development applications take 70 days on average to determine, against as little as 20 days for complying development.[12]
Building stage §
Building approval runs on separate clocks, and most of them are not published as clearly. Western Australia is the clearest example: a certified building permit application is to be issued within 10 working days and an uncertified one within 25 working days.[13] The difference is entirely in the applicant's hands, because a certified application arrives with a registered building surveyor's compliance certificate already attached. Building-stage decision periods for the other jurisdictions are not covered by the sources compiled here; see the state guides linked below for who issues building approval in each.
Deemed refusal and deemed approval §
When the clock runs out, the systems split into two groups.
- Deemed refusal — NSW and Western Australia treat silence as a refusal, which gives the applicant a right to go to the court or tribunal without waiting for a decision.[1][5] Victoria gives the same right through an application to VCAT for failure to decide.[2]
- Deemed consent or approval — South Australia lets the applicant serve a deemed consent notice once the period has passed; the authority then has 10 business days to issue its own consent with conditions, or one month to ask the Court to overturn the deemed consent.[9] Queensland's rules note that some applications may be deemed approved under the Planning Act.[3]
A deemed refusal is a right, not an obligation. Many applicants keep negotiating with the council rather than starting an appeal, because the appeal itself takes time. What to do after a refusal is covered in reviews and appeals after a planning decision.
Practical points §
- Ask the council or certifier which pathway the application will be assessed under before booking a factory slot — in South Australia the difference between deemed-to-satisfy and a notified performance assessment is 5 against 70 business days.[6]
- Answer further information requests completely and quickly; the statutory clock is usually stopped until you do.[10][7]
- In Western Australia, lodge a certified building permit application where possible.[13]
- Record the lodgement date and every information request. Deemed-refusal and deemed-consent rights depend on those dates.
What is not covered here §
Statutory periods for Northern Territory development permits, building-stage decision periods outside Western Australia, and the consequences of a missed period in Tasmania and the ACT are not covered by the sources compiled here. Referral and concurrence periods for state agencies (for example bushfire or heritage referrals) and State significant or panel-determined development are also outside scope.
Related guides §
- The approval process for a modular home, step by step
- Neighbour notification and objections by state
- Reviews and appeals after a planning decision
- Changing or extending an approval
- Modular home rules and approvals by state
Sent to info@modularlivingaustralia.com.au and handled by a person. See Privacy.
References §
- Land and Environment Court of NSW — Development application appeals — states that an application is taken to be refused (deemed refusal) after 40 days for ordinary development, 60 days for designated or integrated development and 90 days for State significant development; that an applicant may appeal generally within 6 months after notice of the determination or the date it is taken to have been determined. lec.nsw.gov.au/types-of-cases/class-1---environmental-planning-and-protection-appeals/development-application-appeals.html
- Victorian Department of Transport and Planning — Guide to Victoria's planning system, chapter 5 — Reviews — an applicant may apply to VCAT for review of a failure to decide within the prescribed time; the prescribed time is 10 business days for VicSmart applications and 60 days for other applications (the guide expresses the 60-day period in both business and calendar days in different sections, so regulation 32 of the Planning and Environment Regulations 2015 should be checked directly); the clock starts on receipt or when requested further information is provided. planning.vic.gov.au/guides-and-resources/guides/guide-to-victorias-planning-system/chapter-5-reviews
- Queensland Government — Development Assessment Rules — Section 22.1 requires the assessment manager to assess and decide the application within 35 days (the decision period), from the end of the last relevant earlier part; days taken to make an information request are added to the decision period, capped at 10; a footnote to section 24.1 notes that an application may be subject to deemed approval under section 64(1) of the Planning Act 2016. planning.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0028/93862/da-rules-version-2.pdf
- Somerset Regional Council (Queensland) — Development assessment process — describes the decision stage as capped at 35 business days excluding extensions, and public notification for most impact assessable applications as 15 business days (minimum 30 business days where a variation request is involved). somerset.qld.gov.au/our-services/development-assessment-process
- Shire of Dardanup (Western Australia) — WA planning system flowchart for local government development applications — the local government has no more than 60 days to decide, or 90 days if the proposal is advertised, extendable by written agreement; if the timeframe is missed the application is deemed refused; the applicant may seek State Administrative Tribunal review within 28 days of the decision or deemed refusal. dardanup.wa.gov.au/Profiles/dardanup/Assets/ClientData/Documents/Services/WA-Planning-System.pdf
- PlanSA (South Australian Government) — Planning consent assessment timetables — deemed-to-satisfy 5 business days; performance assessed without notification or referral 20 business days; performance assessed with referral 50 business days; performance assessed with public notification 70 business days (including 15 for notification and 15 for the applicant's response); restricted development 95 business days. plan.sa.gov.au/development_applications/getting_approval/how_applications_are_assessed/assessment_stages/assessment_timetables/planning_consent
- Meander Valley Council (Tasmania) — Planning classifications and the planning process — permitted applications processed within 28 days and discretionary applications within 42 days of a valid application; council may request further information (within 21 days for discretionary) and the clock pauses until it is received; discretionary applications are advertised for 14 days within the 42-day period. meander.tas.gov.au/assets/docs/Planning-Classifications-The-Planning-Process.pdf
- ACT Planning — Development applications — a quick guide. Sets out statutory assessment timeframes — code track within 20 working days of lodgement; merit and impact tracks within 30 working days if no representations are received and 45 working days where representations are received; an application is considered lodged once fees are paid. planning.act.gov.au/topics/design_build/da_assessment/development_applications_-_a_quick_guide
- PlanSA (South Australian Government) — Deemed consent notice — approved form under section 125 of the Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016 and regulation 54; may be served when the authority fails to decide within the prescribed time; the authority may grant consent with conditions within 10 business days, or apply to the Court within one month to overturn the deemed consent; not available for impact assessed development where the Minister is the authority. plan.sa.gov.au/resources/forms/deemed_consent_notice
- Victorian Department of Transport and Planning — Planning permits — Planning permits chapter — a referral authority has 28 days to respond; the prescribed time for a further information request is 28 days from receipt (5 business days for VicSmart); a decision may not be made earlier than 14 days after the last required notice is given. planning.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0029/5879/3_Planning-Permits.pdf
- Derwent Valley Council (Tasmania) — The planning process — permitted applications decided within 28 days and discretionary applications within 42 days; timeframes can be extended by written agreement made before they expire; a stop-clock applies while council waits for requested information. derwentvalley.tas.gov.au/development-and-building/planning-fact-sheets/the-planning-process
- NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure — Complying development — states that complying development approvals can be issued in as little as 20 days, that Pattern Book complying developments take 10 days, and that the average determination time for a development application is 70 days. Checked 8 October 2026. planning.nsw.gov.au/assess-and-regulate/development-assessment/planning-approval-pathways/complying-development
- Shire of Peppermint Grove (Western Australia) — Building permits — a certified (BA1) application is to be issued within 10 working days and an uncertified (BA2) application within 25 working days, counted from the day after the application is received; a building permit typically lasts two years and can be extended using form BA22. peppermintgrove.wa.gov.au/development/building/building-permits.aspx
Figures are as published by the sources above at their respective dates and are paraphrased summaries, not verbatim reproductions. Verify current pricing and rules directly with builders, lenders and planning authorities.