Main page › Guides › NSW rules
Transportable home rules in New South Wales
| Governing Act | Local Government Act 1993, not the EPA Act[1] |
|---|---|
| Approval needed | Section 68 approval to install[2] |
| Regulation | Manufactured Home Estates, Caravan Parks, Camping Grounds and Moveable Dwellings Regulation 2021[3] |
| Usually also required | Development consent for the use[1] |
| Private certifier pathway | Not currently available for relocatable homes[4] |
| *Legislation and regulation change. Section and clause references are as described by the cited sources and should be checked against the current instrument. | |
In New South Wales a transportable or relocatable home is installed rather than erected, so it is approved under the Local Government Act 1993: installing one needs section 68 approval from council.[1][2] Development consent is usually also needed for the use of the dwelling, and a private certifier pathway is not currently available for relocatable homes.[1][4]
New South Wales approves transportable homes through a different Act from the one that governs ordinary houses, and almost every difficulty in this area traces back to that split. A house is erected and needs development consent. A relocatable home is installed and needs a different approval entirely. Knowing which side of the line a particular product sits on determines the pathway, the documents, the timeline and who can issue the approval.
Two Acts, and which one applies §
Development consent under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 is required for the erection of a building. Moveable dwellings are governed instead by the Local Government Act 1993, and a caravan or manufactured home falls within the definition of a moveable dwelling[1].
That is the whole architecture. The planning Act deals with construction on site; the Local Government Act deals with installation of something built elsewhere.
It does not mean the planning system is avoided. Development consent may separately be required for the use of the dwelling — for example as a secondary dwelling — even where the installation itself is approved under the Local Government Act[1]. In practice most residential projects need both.
What a section 68 approval covers §
Section 68 approval is required to install a manufactured home and, usually, for water supply connection, sewerage work and stormwater drainage work[1].
The NSW Planning Portal lists the relevant activities as including the installation of a manufactured home, moveable dwelling or associated structures, and the installation, construction or alteration of a waste treatment device, a human waste storage facility such as a septic tank, or a drain connected to such a facility[2].
The prohibition is expressed the other way round in the Act: section 68 prohibits installing a manufactured home or associated structure on land without the prior approval of the council, except so far as the regulations allow, and section 626 makes failure to obtain that approval an offence[5].
Two points follow for a buyer. The approval is required before installation, not after — a home delivered to a block without one is already a problem. And the services approvals travel with it, which is why "the home is approved" is an incomplete statement unless the water, sewerage and stormwater work is included.
What counts as a relocatable home §
The definitions in the 2021 Regulation are narrower than the marketing language.
A relocatable home means a manufactured home or other moveable dwelling, other than a tent, caravan, campervan or vehicle capable of being registered, consisting of at least one major section[3].
Installation means the process of connecting and attaching to footings the major sections and any associated structures forming part of the home, including the connection of gas, electricity, telephone, water, sewerage and drainage services[3].
The exclusion of anything "capable of being registered" is the line that separates this pathway from the caravan and tiny-house-on-wheels world. A dwelling on a registrable trailer is not a relocatable home for these purposes; a dwelling attached to footings is.
The two-application sequence §
Obtaining approval to install a relocatable home in New South Wales involves two steps: a development application to the council, and a separate application under section 68 of the Local Government Act[4].
The section 68 application should address Part 3, Division 2, Subdivision 3 of the 2021 Regulation, which covers design, construction and installation — structural specifications, setbacks, room sizes, window sizes and ceiling heights[4].
The most consequential procedural point is what is not available: complying development through a private certifier, without council approval, is not currently possible for relocatable homes in New South Wales[4]. A buyer accustomed to the complying development certificate pathway used for granny flats will not find an equivalent here. The council is in the process, and its timeline governs the project.
The classification is contestable §
It is tempting to treat the moveable dwelling category as a settled shortcut. It is not.
In Ogilvie v Rovest Holdings Pty Ltd [2023] NSWLEC 17, a council approved the installation of prefabricated modular units under section 68 as moveable dwellings forming part of a motel development. The modules were 14.4 metres long by 3.4 metres wide, installed on piers, attached to a verandah and connected to utility services. The validity of the section 68 approval was challenged, and the Court found the prefabricated units were buildings[6].
The practical lesson is that the more a product resembles permanent construction — size, footings, attached structures, connected services — the weaker the argument that it is merely being installed rather than erected. Anyone whose project depends on the moveable dwelling classification for a substantial building should take advice rather than rely on a supplier's characterisation.
What is not covered here §
This guide does not reproduce the design and installation standards in the Regulation; the instrument itself is the authority and should be read with the council or a planning professional. Manufactured home estates and caravan parks have their own approval regime under the same Regulation and are dealt with in Land lease communities and manufactured home estates.
Also not covered by the sources compiled here: bushfire and flood overlay requirements as they apply to installation; exemptions for temporary and emergency accommodation; council-specific fees and timeframes; and the position for a relocatable home used as a secondary dwelling, where both the granny flat provisions and this pathway may be relevant.
Sent to info@modularlivingaustralia.com.au and handled by a person. See Privacy.
References §
- Whiteacre — Planning law practice article, November 2024. States that development consent under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 is required for the erection of a building, that moveable dwellings are instead governed by the Local Government Act 1993, and that a caravan or manufactured home falls within the definition of a moveable dwelling. States a section 68 approval is required to install a manufactured home and, usually, for water supply connection, sewerage work and stormwater drainage work, and that development consent may separately be required for the use of the dwelling, for example as a secondary dwelling. whiteacre.com.au/tiny-homes-caravans-and-manufactured-homes-in-nsw-planning-law-part-2
- NSW Planning Portal — Section 68 approvals page. Lists activities generally requiring approval under section 68, including installing a manufactured home, moveable dwelling or associated structures, and installing, constructing or altering a waste treatment device, a human waste storage facility such as a septic tank, or a drain connected to such a facility. planningportal.nsw.gov.au/development-and-assessment/additional-approvals-applications/section-68-approvals
- AustLII — Local Government (Manufactured Home Estates, Caravan Parks, Camping Grounds and Moveable Dwellings) Regulation 2021, regulation 4. Defines a relocatable home as a manufactured home or other moveable dwelling, other than a tent, caravan, campervan or vehicle capable of being registered, consisting of at least one major section. Defines installation, for a manufactured or relocatable home, as the process of connecting and attaching to footings the major sections and any associated structures forming part of the home, including the connection of gas, electricity, telephone, water, sewerage and drainage services. classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_reg/lghecpcgamdr2021946/s4.html
- Approved — Planning consultancy article. States that obtaining approval to install a relocatable home in NSW involves two steps — a development application to the council and a separate application under section 68 of the Local Government Act — that the section 68 application should address Part 3, Division 2, Subdivision 3 of the 2021 Regulation covering design, construction and installation including structural specifications, setbacks, room sizes, window sizes and ceiling heights, and that complying development through a private certifier without council approval is not currently possible for relocatable homes in NSW. approved.au/blog/how-to-get-approval-for-your-relocatable-home-in-nsw
- NSW legislation — Explanatory material to the Local Government (Manufactured Home Estates, Caravan Parks, Camping Grounds and Moveable Dwellings) Regulation. States section 68 of the Local Government Act prohibits a person from installing a manufactured home or associated structure on land without the prior approval of the council, except so far as the regulations allow, and that section 626 makes it an offence to fail to obtain such an approval. States the operation of manufactured home estates and the installation of manufactured homes within them are governed by Part 2. legislation.nsw.gov.au/export/xml/2021-04-30/sl-2005-0486
- BAL Lawyers — Case note, February 2025, on Ogilvie v Rovest Holdings Pty Ltd [2023] NSWLEC 17. Records that a council approved the installation of prefabricated modular units under section 68 of the Local Government Act as moveable dwellings forming part of a motel development, that the modules were 14.4 metres long by 3.4 metres wide, installed on piers, attached to a verandah and connected to utility services, and that the validity of the section 68 approval was challenged, with the Court finding the prefabricated units were buildings. ballawyers.com.au/case-note/what-makes-a-moveable-dwelling-court-finds-prefab-units-are-buildings/
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.