Exempt development (NSW)

Exempt development is minor building work in NSW that needs no Development Application, Complying Development Certificate, or council approval at all. The work is permitted outright provided every condition in the relevant Code is met. Exempt development sits in the Codes SEPP 2008 (the State Environmental Planning Policy for Exempt and Complying Development Codes), specifically the General Exempt Development Code.

What counts as exempt. The Codes SEPP lists dozens of categories of low-risk work, each with its own size, setback, and use caps. Common examples on residential sites:

Decks under defined floor-area and height caps.
Fences below height limits (typically 1.8 m for side/rear, lower for front boundary).
Garden sheds under floor-area and height caps with required boundary setbacks.
Carports and pergolas under floor-area and footprint caps.
Internal alterations that do not change classification, fire safety, or structural elements.
Re-roofing and re-cladding with like-for-like materials.
Solar panels and hot water systems within siting controls.
Driveways below defined widths.

Every category has specific dimensional, setback, and material conditions. Missing any one condition flips the work out of exempt into requiring a CDC or a DA. There is no partial-exempt status.

Overlay exclusions. Exempt development is not available where the lot has certain overlays. The Codes SEPP excludes:

Heritage items and heritage conservation areas.
Bushfire-prone areas for work that affects the building envelope.
Flood-prone land for certain categories.
Acid sulfate soils for any sub-surface work.
Foreshore and waterway controls.
Environmentally sensitive land under the LEP.

Before relying on the exempt pathway, check the Section 10.7 planning certificate and the LEP overlay maps for the lot.

For builders. Exempt development is the fastest route to “yes” but the conditions are dimensional and unforgiving. Two builder rules:

Build to the spec, not to the spirit. A pergola one millimetre over the height cap is non-exempt and operating without consent is an offence.
Document compliance before commencement. Photographs, drawings, manufacturer specs, certificates of currency. If a complaint triggers a council inspection later, you need to prove the exempt status at the time of construction.

Other states. VIC: “exempt building work” under Schedule 3 of the Building Regulations 2018. QLD: “self-assessable work” under the Building Act 1975 and Building Regulation 2021. The NSW Codes SEPP is the most prescriptive and the most heavily relied upon of the three.

Also known as: exempt work, no-approval-needed development.

Category: Approvals / planning / NSW.

Related

See also

Related articles