Do I need a planning permit and a building permit?

In Victoria you often need both. The building permit covers how the work is built and comes from a registered building surveyor, while the planning permit covers whether the work fits the zone and the overlays and comes from the council, so an overlay on the lot can add a planning permit to a building permit. Queensland splits the same way under other names: a building approval from a certifier, and a development approval from the council where the planning scheme asks for one.

What is the difference between a planning permit and a building permit?

A planning permit answers whether the work belongs on that land: the use, the siting against the zone, the heritage, flooding or bushfire questions an overlay brings, and the neighbours’ amenity. A building permit answers whether the structure is built properly: its footings, its frame, its fire separation and its distances to the boundaries under the building rules. Where both are needed, the planning permit usually comes first, because the building surveyor cannot issue a permit that conflicts with it.

Who issues planning permits in Cranbourne, Dandenong and Pakenham?

The council for the area. Cranbourne and Narre Warren sit in the City of Casey, Dandenong and Springvale in the City of Greater Dandenong, and Pakenham and Officer in Cardinia Shire, and each council assesses the planning permits for its own streets. The Casey, Greater Dandenong and Cardinia pages show what we hold for each council.

Where do I get building permits in Townsville or Ballarat?

In Ballarat, as anywhere in Victoria, a registered building surveyor issues the building permit, and the City of Ballarat decides any planning permit. The Mornington Peninsula works the same way, with the shire deciding planning permits. Townsville is in Queensland, so the building approval usually comes from a private certifier, and the council comes in only where the planning scheme asks for a development approval or a siting question needs its decision. The Townsville, Ballarat and Mornington Peninsula pages cover each one.

Do I need planning permission for a shed, carport or pergola?

Planning permission is the everyday name for the planning permit. A shed, carport or pergola needs it where the zone calls for one or the work touches what an overlay protects. A heritage overlay can bring one for a front fence, a carport or a deck seen from the street, a flood overlay for work that changes how water crosses the lot, and a bushfire overlay for new building in the mapped area. The post on heritage overlays covers the most common case.

Reading it for your own lot

RapidSiteplan reads the lot from its address in a minute: the boundaries from the land records, the zone and the overlays mapped over the block where the state or the council publishes them, and the services. The site plan it prints goes in with the building permit and the planning permit alike. The patio and deck page shows the sheet, and the council pages for every state show what each council maps. Start with the address.

Common questions

Do I need a planning permit and a building permit? In Victoria, often both: the building permit covers how the work is built, and the planning permit covers whether it fits the zone and the overlays. Queensland splits the same way, with a building approval from a certifier and a development approval from the council where the planning scheme asks for one.

Do I need planning permission for a shed and a building permit? Planning permission means the planning permit, and a shed, carport or pergola needs one where the zone or an overlay calls for it. The building permit is a separate question, and your certifier or building surveyor can tell you which apply.

Who issues planning permits in Cranbourne? The City of Casey, the council for Cranbourne, issues planning permits there, while a registered building surveyor issues the building permit.

Where do I get building permits in Townsville? From a building certifier, usually a private one, who gives the building approval for the work. Townsville City Council comes in where the planning scheme asks for a development approval or a siting question needs its decision.