Compliance pathway (NCC)
Every NCC Performance Requirement can be met by DTS, a Performance Solution, or a blend. Pick the pathway before design starts to avoid late-build reopening.
Ask Chalkline about this →A compliance pathway under the National Construction Code is the route by which a building demonstrates that it satisfies a given Performance Requirement in the Code. NCC 2022 (Governing Requirements) recognises three pathways, and the choice is made by the designer up-front (verified 2026-05-16 against ABCB Governing Requirements):
- Deemed-to-Satisfy (DTS) Solution. Follow the prescriptive DTS provisions in the relevant Section or Part. The DTS provisions are written as a clear set of design rules (dimensions, materials, performance values). If the design follows them, the Performance Requirement is taken to be met. This is the default route for residential Class 1a and most Class 10 work.
- Performance Solution. Demonstrate compliance with the Performance Requirement by an alternative engineering or design analysis: testing, comparison with the DTS provision, expert judgement, or one of the other Assessment Methods listed in NCC Governing Requirements A2.2. This pathway requires a qualified practitioner (commonly a fire engineer, structural engineer, or building physicist) and a written report. Used where DTS cannot be met, is uneconomic, or is not appropriate to the design intent.
- Combination of DTS and Performance Solution within the same project. The most common real-world case: most of the building goes DTS, a single difficult element (BAL-FZ window, heritage-listed wall fire-rating, alternative structural detail) sits under a Performance Solution. The Performance Solution must demonstrate that the combined design still meets the Performance Requirement.
The decision must be made at design. Switching pathways late in the build is expensive: a DTS design that fails inspection cannot be turned into a Performance Solution overnight, because the Performance Solution requires its own engineering analysis, report, and certifier acceptance. On regulated NSW work under the DBP Act 2020, the compliance pathway is also referenced in the design-stage compliance declaration, so changing it requires a fresh declaration.
Three pathways, one Performance Requirement. A common confusion: the pathway sits between the design and the Performance Requirement in the Code. Whichever pathway is used, the Performance Requirement is the thing being satisfied. The “deemed-to-satisfy” provisions are not the Code itself; they are one mapped solution to the Performance Requirements.
Also known as: Assessment Method (under NCC A2.2 terminology); compliance route.
Category: Compliance.
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Last updated: 2026-05-16. Verified: 2026-05-16. Quarterly review for currency.