Victorian building reform to have wide impact on industry

The reforms, set out in the 2023 Building Legislation Amendment Act, were passed by the Victorian parliament last year and came into force on 1 February. They include the establishment of a state building surveyor, new registration requirements and new building safeguards.

Certain provisions of the reforms are yet to fully commence, pending the publishing of regulations.

Establishment of a state building surveyor and binding determinations

Under new provisions added to the Act, a state building surveyor will be appointed by the Victorian Building Authority to serve as the primary source of expertise on technical standards and requirements for building and plumbing work, as well as promoting compliance and sound industry practices.

The new office will also have the power to issue binding determinations relating to the interpretation of technical standards or requirements under the Act and 2018 Building Regulations. The state building surveyor’s binding determinations may impact building permits being issued as relevant building surveyors will need to be satisfied that work will comply with applicable binding determinations prior to issuing a building permit.

The state building surveyor’s determinations will be published in the state government gazette.

Building manuals and occupancy permits

Applicants for final occupancy permits for prescribed classes of building will be required to prepare a draft “building manual” which must comply with requirements that will be set out in building regulations which are yet to be published. It is very likely that the prescribed classes of building will include class 2 multi-residential buildings as a new section of the Act expressly provides for certain offences committed by owners corporations.

Importantly, developers, builders and building surveyors should note that, under the new sections of the Act, an occupancy permit cannot be issued unless the relevant building surveyor has recorded their approval of the building manual required to accompany the permit application.

Offence to carry out building work when unregistered

A new section of the Act replaces the previous offence provisions relating to carrying out work as a building surveyor or building inspector while not being correctly registered in the relevant category.

In addition, the Act now makes it an offence to carry out “work” of a “kind prescribed” unless a person is registered under Part 11 in the relevant class of building practitioner and the registration authorises the carrying out of the prescribed kind of work. A consequential amendment to the 2018 Building Regulations prescribes work as a building surveyor or building inspector for the purposes of the new section.

The new section does not apply to builders, certain registered architects, or endorsed building engineers carrying out particular work.

The Act has expanded the definition of “building practitioner” to include “building consultant” and “site supervisor”. Existing classes of building practitioner, “draftsperson” and “person responsible for a building project” have been replaced with “building designer” and “project manager” respectively.

Other new provisions

For prescribed classes of building, a new section of the Act will require the relevant building surveyor for the work to give an information statement to the owner of the building or land within 10 working days after issuing a building permit. The statement is to be in a prescribed form containing prescribed information. The classes of building and prescribed information have yet to be prescribed by regulation.

Financial penalties will apply if the relevant building surveyor fails to provide this information statement. According to the second reading speech by the minister of planning Sonya Kilkenny, of the bill that introduced the reforms in the Victorian parliament, the purpose of this information statement is to “address the lack of consumer understanding regarding building surveyors and the building permit process”.

Transitional provisions apply in order to ensure that the new requirements under the Act will be phased in smoothly.

Co-written by Jordan Davies and Rona Goldman of Pinsent Masons.