How close to the boundary can I build a patio?

A patio can sit as close to a boundary as the siting rules for your lot allow, and those rules change with the state, the zone, the patio’s height and how open its sides are. Inside them, the patio is assessed like any other structure. Closer than that, the council has to agree to the position before the building approval is given, and the site plan is what shows the distance from the patio itself to each boundary.

Who sets the patio setback?

It depends on the state. In Queensland the distances for a patio come from the state’s siting rules, the council’s planning scheme can change them for a zone, and the council decides any siting variation before a certifier gives the building approval. In New South Wales a patio inside the standards for exempt or complying development keeps the distances those pathways set, and anything outside them goes to the council. In Victoria the building surveyor checks the siting rules and asks the council for its report and consent where the patio sits closer. The post on boundary setbacks covers the general rule.

Where is the distance measured from?

From the patio, not the house. The rules name the point, often the post, the outer face of the roof or the gutter, so a wide overhang can bring a patio closer than its posts suggest. A patio attached to the house is measured from its own edge, even where the house sits further back.

Can I build a patio on the boundary?

In some states a small roofed structure may sit on or near a side boundary within limits on its height and on how much of the boundary it runs along. Close to a boundary, the building rules also ask how fire is kept from passing to the neighbour, which can mean a wall built to resist it or sides left open. Roof water has to go to your own drainage, never over the fence. Where any of this is outside the rules, the council weighs the neighbour’s light, privacy and outlook before it agrees.

What else can push a patio further in?

an easement or a sewer main along the boundary
a corner block, where the second street has its own setback
a flood, bushfire or heritage overlay on the lot
an estate covenant that asks for more than the council does

Reading it for your own lot

RapidSiteplan reads the council and building rules for your lot from its address, checks the design against them as you place it, lets you edit it as often as you like, and prints the site plan. Site plans and assessments in minutes. Slide the patio toward a boundary and the distance to it updates as you move it, so you can see where it fits inside the rules.

Search your address, or see what the plan shows for a patio or carport. The Brisbane page lists what we hold for that council, and site plans by council covers the rest of Australia.

Common questions

How close to the boundary can I build a patio? As close as the siting rules for your lot allow, and those depend on the state, the zone, the patio’s height and how open its sides are. Closer than that, the council has to agree first. The site plan shows the distance from the patio itself to each boundary.

What is the patio setback from a side boundary? It is the distance the rules ask a patio to keep from the side boundary, measured to its posts, roof edge or gutter as the rules say. It varies by state and by council, and an overlay or an estate covenant can ask for more.

Can I build a patio on the boundary? Sometimes. Several states let a small roofed structure sit on or near a side boundary within set limits on height and length, with fire separation and roof water dealt with. Outside those limits the council decides, and it can ask what the neighbour thinks.