What approvals are needed?

To subdivide land in Australia, you must obtain a combination of planning approvals and technical consents to ensure your project meets council and servicing authority standards. Each step must be completed before you can legally register and sell the new lots.

Approvals and Consents Needed

• Planning/Development Approval:
  You must lodge a Development Application (DA) with your local council (or in some cases, use a Complying Development Certificate or CDC). Your application includes subdivision plans, site analysis, and often environmental or traffic reports. The council will assess your proposal against zoning, lot size, and overlay controls and may request further information or public notification.

• Servicing Authority Consents:
  Every new lot needs confirmed access to water, sewerage, electricity, stormwater, and sometimes gas or NBN. Each service provider reviews your plans, may require detailed engineering drawings, and will issue conditions or “consents to connect." Fees are usually charged, and design upgrades may be required.

• Engineering Drawings/Approvals:
  For most subdivisions, you must submit detailed civil drawings for new roads, drainage, driveways, or upgrades to existing infrastructure. Some councils require a Subdivision Works Certificate or Construction Certificate as evidence that all engineering design has been approved.

• Infrastructure or Open Space Contributions:
  Councils often levy monetary contributions for parkland, roads, or community infrastructure as a condition of development approval. The payment amount is defined in your approval letter and must be paid before final plans are sealed.

• Plan Sealing and Registration:
  After all the works have been completed and conditions met, submit a final survey plan (prepared by a licensed surveyor) to council for “sealing” or certification. The sealed plan is then lodged with the state land registry (e.g., NSW Land Registry Services) to create and register new land titles, making the new lots legally saleable.

How My Build Hub Makes This Process Easier

• MBH tracks all approval steps and consents needed for your specific site and subdivision type, breaking each stage into clear, manageable tasks.

• The platform sends automatic notifications for critical milestones like consent expiry, required payments, and document submissions.

• You can store all your DA, engineering, and servicing correspondence and certificates in one place, making it simple to share with surveyors, builders, or conveyancers.

• MBH’s financial management tools help you track infrastructure contributions and council payments, avoiding missed deadlines and unexpected costs.

• Step-by-step guidance ensures you always know exactly what approvals are needed, when, and how to progress to the next stage, giving new developers confidence and control over the process