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Standard Instrument LEP (NSW)

The Standard Instrument is the NSW order councils must use as the template for their LEPs. Standard zones, standard clauses, and the clause 4.6 variation path.

By Chalkline. Last updated 28 May 2026. Verified 28 May 2026.

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The Standard Instrument LEP is the NSW order that every council must use as the template for its Local Environmental Plan. Made under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, the Standard Instrument (Local Environmental Plans) Order 2006 sets the zone codes, the standard clauses, and the dictionary used across every NSW LEP, which is why most LEPs read identically apart from the council-specific schedules and maps.

What the Standard Instrument fixes

  • Standard zone codes. R1 to R5 for residential, B1 to B7 for business, IN1 to IN4 for industrial, RU1 to RU6 for rural, plus environmental, recreation and special-purpose zones. A council cannot invent its own zone names.
  • Standard clauses. Including the height of buildings clause (4.3), floor space ratio (4.4), the variation clause 4.6, and the natural-hazard clauses covering flooding, acid sulfate soils, and the like.
  • A shared dictionary. Defined terms (“dwelling house”, “boarding house”, “secondary dwelling”) are fixed across NSW so a use means the same thing whichever council assesses it.

Clause 4.6, the variation path

Clause 4.6 is the mechanism for getting a development consent that does not meet a numerical development standard (e.g. exceeds the height limit). The applicant lodges a written clause 4.6 variation request showing that strict compliance is unreasonable or unnecessary AND that there are sufficient environmental planning grounds for the departure (verified 2026-05-28, NSW Planning Portal: variations review).

The clause was simplified on 1 November 2023: the two existing tests stayed, the consent authority now considers the same matters as the applicant addresses, and some specific references were removed for clearer drafting (verified 2026-05-28). The variation path is for DAs only; CDC pathways do not use clause 4.6.

Category: Planning / NSW.

See also

Last updated: 2026-05-28. Verified: 2026-05-28. Quarterly review for currency.

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