Land survey plan or site plan: which do you need?

A land survey plan fixes where the boundaries of a lot legally are and is drawn by a licensed surveyor, while a site plan shows your project on the lot for the council or the certifier. Most backyard projects need only the site plan, and a survey earns its cost when the true position of the boundary carries real risk.

Builders sometimes call the site plan a plot plan, while a block plan or a lot plan usually means something else in Australia.

To check a particular block, type its address into RapidSiteplan: it reads the lot and the rules that apply there and checks the structure you place against them, in minutes.

What is a site plan?

A scaled drawing of the lot with the existing buildings and the proposed structure, dimensioned, with setbacks to each boundary. It is a design and assessment document: council and certifiers use it to check setbacks and coverage. The boundaries come from the state cadastre, which is accurate enough for assessment and marked “indicative” by convention.

What is a land survey plan?

For an identification survey, a licensed surveyor physically finds your boundary pegs and fixes where they are. It is a legal document, and you need one when the boundary position carries real risk: building right on the line, a dispute with the neighbour, or a certifier who has asked for certainty. The registered survey plan that created your lot is different again: it holds the boundary lengths a site plan starts from, but no buildings. The post on finding your property boundaries covers the pegs and when to call a surveyor.

What is the survey plan called in your state?

Every state keeps the plan that created your lot in its land titles office, under its own name, and the lot and plan number on the rates notice points to it. In Queensland it is a survey plan or, for older lots, a registered plan. New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia and the ACT mostly call it a deposited plan, Victoria uses a plan of subdivision or, for older lots, a lodged plan, and Tasmania a sealed plan, while the Northern Territory keeps its plans with its own land titles office. The post on finding your lot and plan number covers where the number is printed.

What does a building survey cost?

There is no set price, because a survey is quoted against the job. A boundary identification, a set out for a new building and a levels survey take different time on site and in the office, and the size of the lot, the access, the travel and how soon the plan is needed move the bill. Ask the surveyor what the quote includes, and whether the pegs stay in the ground.

Is a floor plan survey the same thing?

No. A floor plan survey measures an existing building from the inside and draws its rooms, walls and openings to scale, usually for a renovation, a sale or a lease. It shows the inside of the building, while a land survey plan and a site plan both show the lot from above.

Which one does my project need?

Well clear of the boundary, with an ordinary backyard structure? A good site plan is usually what the application asks for. Building on or within centimetres of the boundary? Budget for the surveyor. Not sure? Ask your certifier before spending either way, and whatever you do, confirm the key measurements with a tape on site.

What only your address can answer

• where the boundaries run, and whether the fence sits on them
• any easement across the lot
• how close the structure needs to come to a boundary, under the setbacks the rules set for your lot
• whether the block has been subdivided or had its boundaries adjusted

RapidSiteplan reads your block from its address: the boundaries, the buildings already on it, the rules that apply there and any overlay or easement, and checks what you plan to build against them on a scaled site plan.

Search your address to start. Site plans and assessments in minutes.

Sources: the siting rules a site plan is read against, by state, all read in September 2026: Queensland Housing Code (Qld); State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008 (NSW); Building Regulations 2018 (Vic); Planning and Design Code (SA); Residential Design Codes Volume 1 (WA); Tasmanian Planning Scheme, State Planning Provisions (Tas); Planning (Exempt Development) Regulation 2023 (ACT); NT Planning Scheme 2020 (NT).

Common questions

What is a land survey plan? A plan drawn by a licensed surveyor that fixes where the boundaries of a lot legally are. The registered plan that created your lot is one kind, held by the land titles office; an identification survey, where the surveyor finds the pegs on site, is another.

Is a survey plan the same as a site plan? No. A survey plan fixes the legal position of the boundaries and is prepared by a licensed surveyor. A site plan is a design document showing what is on the lot and what you want to build, with its distance to each boundary. Most backyard projects need the site plan, and some also need a survey.

What does a building survey cost? It depends on what is surveyed and why. A boundary identification, a set out for a new building and a levels survey take different time on site and in the office, and the size of the lot, the access, the travel and how soon the plan is needed decide the bill, so ask for a quote against the job.

What is a floor plan survey? A measured drawing of an existing building from the inside, with its rooms, walls and openings to scale, usually for a renovation, a sale or a lease. It shows the inside of the building, while a land survey plan and a site plan both show the lot from above.

Do I need a surveyor to build on the boundary? Often, yes. When a structure sits on or very close to a boundary the line matters, and many certifiers ask for an identification survey before they issue the approval. A mapped boundary is indicative, so a survey is how you know where the line really is. Check with your certifier before you design to the line.

General information only, not building or legal advice, requirements vary by council and change over time; always confirm with your council or certifier.