AS 3786

AS 3786 is the Australian Standard for residential smoke alarms, formally titled Smoke alarms using scattered light, transmitted light or ionization. The current edition is AS 3786:2014. It sets performance, sensitivity, audibility, and labelling requirements for the two main sensor types: photoelectric (light-scatter) and ionisation. Both meet the standard; both are sold under the AS 3786 mark.

NCC 2022 Housing Provisions Part 9.5 calls up AS 3786 for Class 1 and Class 2 dwellings: mains-powered, interconnected, located on every storey containing bedrooms and on the corridor or hallway serving them. The NCC does not specify which sensor type, AS 3786 is sensor-neutral, and the deemed-to-satisfy path accepts either photoelectric or ionisation.

Queensland layers a stricter rule on top. The Fire Services Act 1990 (Qld) requires photoelectric-only alarms, one in every bedroom and every hallway serving a bedroom, interconnected across all storeys. The retrofit deadline for all Queensland dwellings is 1 January 2027. AS 3786 still applies in Queensland, but only the photoelectric variant is legal in new builds and retrofits there.

The sparky installs and tests under AS 3786 and signs the smoke alarm line on the electrical Certificate of Compliance. The builder keeps alarm model numbers in the handover pack for the certifier.

Also known as: Australian Standard for smoke alarms.

Category: Standards / fire safety / NCC compliance.

Related

• NCC fire separation in residential: a build-stage guide
• NCC fire separation (Part H3 overview)
• Practical completion handover
• Sparky (electrician)

See also

• Photoelectric smoke alarm, the sensor type Queensland mandates
• NCC (glossary), the code that calls AS 3786 up
• ABCB Housing Provisions, the document Part 9.5 lives in
• Deemed-to-satisfy, the compliance pathway that accepts AS 3786

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Last updated: 2026-05-13. Verified: 2026-05-13. Quarterly review for currency.