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ACT Territory Plan structure: Planning Act 2023, four tracks, no LGAs

How the ACT planning regime works: Planning Act 2023, Territory Plan, residential zones RZ1-RZ5, four assessment tracks. No LGAs, no local instrument.

By Dan Waring. Last updated 23 May 2026. Verified 23 May 2026.

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TL;DR

The ACT is unlike every other Australian jurisdiction: no LGAs, no separate local instrument. The Territory Plan is both the territory-level and local-level statutory document, sitting under the Planning Act 2023 (A2023-18), which replaced the Planning and Development Act 2007 (commenced 20 June 2023; full Territory Plan effective 27 September 2024). DAs run through one of four tracks: Exempt, Code (20 working days), Merit (30 or 45 working days), or Impact. The Missing Middle Housing Reforms (MPA 04, 2025) materially expanded development rights in RZ1 Suburban and RZ2 Suburban Core. Confirm zone and track before you draw anything.

What this article is for

Builders and designers who work across jurisdictions often bring NSW or VIC assumptions into ACT projects and get the hierarchy wrong from day one. There are no councils, no LEPs, no DCPs. One statutory plan, four tracks, non-statutory strategies and design guides alongside it. This article maps the full ACT hierarchy. See also the Australian planning scheme structure comparison.

The hierarchy in reading order

Read the ACT planning system in this order.

  1. Planning Act 2023 (ACT), A2023-18. Commenced 20 June 2023. Repealed the Planning and Development Act 2007. Sets the framework for the Territory Plan, the four assessment tracks, and the planning authority’s functions.

  2. Territory Plan. The sole statutory instrument. Effective 27 September 2024 (an interim version applied from November 2023). Zone policies (Parts D, E, F), technical specifications, and the rules DAs are assessed against. The ACT Legislative Assembly performs both territory-level and local-level functions, so the Territory Plan serves as both. No separate local instrument exists.

  3. District Strategies. Nine non-statutory strategies, one per district, guiding growth to 2038. Guidance only: inform Territory Plan amendments but cannot override the Territory Plan.

  4. Design Guides. Four guides support the Territory Plan. Mandatory when triggered, not optional reference material.

  5. Assessment track. The Planning Act routes the development into one of four tracks once zone and permissibility are confirmed.

The Territory Plan

The Territory Plan is the ACT’s single statutory planning instrument. It covers the whole territory and applies to all ACT-managed land (National Land under Commonwealth control is separate: see below).

It is structured around zone policies (Parts D, E, F), prescriptive technical specifications (the Planning (Residential Zones) Technical Specifications 2025, NI2025-493, is the current instrument for residential work), and site-specific overlays for heritage and environmental constraints. Residential zones sit in Part E01.

There is no DCP equivalent. Design and character guidance comes through the mandatory Design Guides and non-statutory district strategies.

District Strategies and Design Guides

District Strategies: Nine non-statutory strategies, one per district, guide growth to 2038 and beyond. They inform future Territory Plan amendments but are not enforceable against individual DAs.

Design Guides: Four guides are mandatory when triggered, not optional:

GuideRelevant to residential work
Housing Design GuideMandatory for all residential development excluding single dwellings and secondary residences (dual occupancy, multi-unit, apartments)
Urban Design GuideLarger or precinct-scale developments
City Centre Urban Design GuideCity centre supplement to the Urban Design Guide
Biodiversity Sensitive Urban Design GuideFuture urban areas, non-urban zones, larger sites

For most residential work, the Housing Design Guide is the guide to check. Verify whether your project type triggers it before assuming single-dwelling exemptions apply.

Residential zones RZ1-RZ5

The Territory Plan establishes five residential zones under Part E01 (Residential Zones Policy):

ZoneNameCharacter
RZ1SuburbanLow-density suburban. Makes up the bulk of Canberra’s residential land (approximately 79.7%). Single dwellings predominant.
RZ2Suburban CoreCloser to local centres and services. Greater mix of housing types permitted. Approximately 12.9% of residential land.
RZ3Urban ResidentialMedium density. Mix of dwellings including townhouses and low-rise apartments.
RZ4Medium DensityHigher density multi-unit and apartment development.
RZ5High DensityHigh-density apartments, typically in major centres and along transport corridors.

Confirm which zone applies to your site via the ACT Planning’s interactive map before starting design. Zone classification directly determines which development types are permissible and which assessment track applies.

The Missing Middle Housing Reforms (MPA 04, 2025)

Major Plan Amendment 04 materially changed RZ1 and RZ2 development rights.

RZ1 (Suburban): Townhouses, terraces, multi-occupancy housing, and low-rise apartments (up to two storeys plus attic) now permitted. Minimum block size requirements for additional dwellings removed.

RZ2 (Suburban Core): Multi-unit housing up to three storeys plus attic now permitted in this zone, which typically sits near local centres and transport nodes.

Any advice on RZ1 or RZ2 development rights given before 2025 is likely out of date. Re-verify against the current Territory Plan.

The four assessment tracks

The Planning Act 2023 routes all development into one of four tracks, plus a fifth category (prohibited) which is not a track:

TrackDA requiredPublic notificationStatutory timeframeWhen it applies
ExemptNoNoImmediateLow-risk, minor works meeting all exempt standards under Planning (Exempt Development) Regulation 2023
CodeYesNo20 working daysDevelopment meeting the prescriptive code standards in the Territory Plan
MeritYesYes30 working days (no representations); 45 working days (representations received)Development not eligible for code track; assessed on merits against Territory Plan policies
ImpactYesYesSet by Environmental Impact Statement processDevelopment with potentially significant environmental impact; EIS required

Code track is the ACT equivalent of NSW complying development: all prescriptive standards met, 20-working-day clock, no public notification. Merit track requires mandatory notification; the clock extends to 45 working days if representations come in. Impact track requires an EIS and applies to a small subset of large or environmentally significant development. Exempt development is governed by the Planning (Exempt Development) Regulation 2023 (SL2023-21): no DA at all.

NCA and National Land

Not all land in the ACT is under ACT Planning’s jurisdiction. The National Capital Authority (NCA) holds separate Commonwealth planning powers over National Land under the Australian Capital Territory (Planning and Land Management) Act 1988 (Cth). National Land includes the parliamentary triangle, Lake Burley Griffin foreshores, major approach roads, and other areas of national significance. Development there is assessed under the National Capital Plan, not the ACT Territory Plan. The two systems are parallel and distinct. Check land tenure before assuming ACT Planning controls apply near Designated Areas.

What can go wrong

Applying NSW or VIC instrument logic. No LEPs, no DCPs, no local councils. There is one statutory instrument (the Territory Plan) and four tracks. Pull the Territory Plan zone policy and the relevant Design Guide instead of reaching for council documents.

Using pre-reform zone rights in RZ1 or RZ2. MPA 04 changed what is permitted. Any feasibility or advice from before 2025 needs re-checking against the current Territory Plan.

Confusing National Land with ACT land. Near the parliamentary triangle, lake foreshore, or major approach roads, verify land tenure before engaging ACT Planning. The NCA system is entirely separate.

Assuming the Housing Design Guide is optional. It is mandatory for multi-unit residential work once triggered, including the dual occupancy and low-rise apartment types now permitted in RZ1 under MPA 04. Non-compliance is an assessment failure.

Ignoring the merit track notification extension. A 30-working-day merit track clock becomes 45 working days if representations are received. Client timelines built on the shorter assumption will slip.

How to use this with the per-state articles

This article is the ACT chapter of the Australian planning scheme structure comparison. Read that first if you work across borders. The NSW planning scheme structure is the sharpest contrast: SEPPs, LEPs, and DCPs all exist there and do not exist here. The Territory Plan collapses those layers into one.

References

See also

Last updated: 2026-05-23. Verified: 2026-05-23. Quarterly review for currency. All facts verified against ACT Planning primary sources and legislation.act.gov.au on 2026-05-23.

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