Planning Approval
In some cases, if your new structure does not fit all the council residential codes or r-codes you may need to get planning approval prior to building approval from your local council.
A planning permit is needed if a structure and house wall exceed length of 9m and the setback is less than 1.5m to the side or rear boundary. If you have your neighbours consent, most councils will allow you to build up to 500mm to the neighbouring boundary.
Do you live in a unit or on a strata block? Then you will need your neighbours consent as you are building close to their boundary.
Patio designs up to 9m in length and that have a setback less than 1.5 may just require an R Code variation form to be submitted with the BA2.
From the submission of your application to your local shire, there is an allocated time frame of up to 60 days to grant planning approval. This can vary depending on a number of influencing factors and can be out of your control, like obtaining neighbours signatures or contacting homeowners that currently have tenants residing in the property.
Each local shire will have an independent form, these can be downloaded from their websites.
