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Spatial Viewer (NSW Planning Portal)

The NSW Spatial Viewer is the Planning Portal's mapping tool: zoning, FSR, height, heritage, BAL, flood, coastal overlays. The first lookup on any NSW residential lot.

By Chalkline. Last updated 29 May 2026. Verified 29 May 2026.

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The Spatial Viewer is the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure’s online mapping tool at planningportal.nsw.gov.au/spatialviewer. It is the first lookup any NSW builder should do on a new project lot: it overlays every state and council planning control on a single map of the property.

What it shows

The Spatial Viewer aggregates planning layers across multiple sources into one interface. The layers a builder routinely checks:

  • Zoning (R1, R2, R3, R4, RU5, etc.) from the council’s LEP.
  • Permitted uses in the zone (see permitted uses and zoning).
  • Height of buildings (HOB) control in metres.
  • Floor space ratio (FSR) control.
  • Heritage overlays (state and local heritage items, conservation areas).
  • Bushfire prone land mapping (which triggers BAL assessment).
  • Flood planning area and floodway controls.
  • Coastal management overlays (coastal vulnerability, foreshore protection).
  • Biodiversity and koala habitat overlays.
  • Contaminated land (where notified).
  • Aircraft noise (ANEF) contours where applicable.
  • Property attributes: lot and DP, area, frontage, services.

Each layer pulls from the authoritative state or council dataset, so the Viewer is the same source the council planner and the certifier are looking at.

When to use it

The Spatial Viewer answers the first questions on a new lot before any design or DA work:

  • What zone is the lot in, and what is permitted?
  • What height and FSR can be built?
  • Are there overlays (heritage, bushfire, flood, biodiversity) that will constrain or rule out the project?
  • Is the lot inside a CDC-excluded zone for one of the planning instruments?

A 15-minute Spatial Viewer check at lot due-diligence stage can save a designed-but-non-compliant project at DA lodgement.

Why it matters

The Spatial Viewer is the single source of truth for what planning controls apply to a lot in NSW. The alternative (chasing the LEP, the DCP, multiple SEPPs, and council overlay maps separately) is slower and more error-prone. For a builder or client buying a lot, an undisclosed overlay (a flood planning area, a heritage listing, a biodiversity buffer) is the most expensive thing to discover after settlement.

Also known as: NSW Spatial Viewer, Planning Portal Spatial Viewer, ePlanning Spatial Viewer.

Category: Planning / state portals (NSW)

See also

Last updated: 2026-05-29. Verified: 2026-05-29. Quarterly review for currency.

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