Development Application Process and Requirements

Under the Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016, many types of work and structures are defined as “development” and need “Development Approval” before they can begin.

What is development?

Generally, ‘development’ includes the following types of activities (not a complete list), subject to a range of criteria:

• construction of, or alterations to, structures and buildings
• demolition where it in involves a partial demolition of a structure of building, or any form of demolition to a State or Local Heritage Place
• the division of land (including realignment of a boundary)
• a change in land use for a property
• removal, lopping or pruning of a Regulated or Significant Tree
• earthworks and retaining walls (in certain locations and circumstances)
• fencing (in certain locations and circumstances)
• installation of solar panels and air conditioners (in certain circumstances)

The above is not a complete list and that are some exemptions to the above activities. Council has prepared a Fact Sheet which summarises and simplifies the criteria for development and circumstances where exemptions apply.

Note it is your obligation to ensure that you understand whether your project involves development and needs approval before you undertake any work.

If you are still unsure, please contact Council’s Duty Planner on 8338 6600 where we can clarify whether you will need to submit a development application.

What is a Development Approval?

A Development Approval is the final decision provided by Council once a Development Application has completed its assessment. Unless you are proposing a land division or work on Regulated and Significant Trees, all Development Approvals have two parts:

• Planning Consent – where your proposal is assessed against the Planning and Design Code for things like position on the land, design, building height, setbacks, parking etc.
• Building Consent – assessed against the Building Code of Australia, various Australian Standards, and the SA Housing Code, to make sure the proposal addresses structural integrity, fire safety and access requirements.

Once both Consents are granted, Council can then issue a Development Approval after which construction or commencement of a use can commence. This final approval only checks that the two Consents are consistent with each other.

Note that the assessment of both the Planning Consent and Building Consent can occur concurrently.

Development approval requires you submit a Development Application for assessment and approval. The easiest way to do this is online via the SA Planning Portal with all of the required documents and all relevant fees paid.

You can provide your plans and documents to Council, however these will need to be uploaded to the Planning Portal and this will incur additional fees and may take longer to process to lodgement.

All development applications incur fees for the assessment process to be undertaken. The fees that will be payable for your application depend on what you are proposing. Fees are set by Plan SA and outlined here.

Please ensure that you do not commence any work until you have obtained your Development Approval. Approvals include a letter and a Decision Notification Form (DNF) with the relevant approval dates and any conditions attached to the approval, as well as stamped plans and supporting documents.

All development applications require certain documentation to be submitted for the assessment to proceed. These are detailed in Schedule 8 of the Planning, Development and Infrastructure (General) Regulations 2017. The level of documentation needed depends on the proposed development itself.

Plan SA has created an easy-to-use guide detailing the information needed for different types of development.

• Planning Application Checklist
• Building Application Checklist

Having a complete set of information when you apply will save you time and help avoid requests from Council for additional documents during the assessment process. 

How to prepare a site plan, floor plan or elevation

All applications require a site plan that demonstrates the location of the proposed development and its surrounds. Similarly, new structures will also always need an accompanying floor plan or elevation. If you are unable to prepare plans to the required detail and standard outlined in the legislation, we strongly recommend seeking help from a designer or draftsperson to avoid delays in deciding your application. This is not a service provided by council.

For smaller, simpler developments, you may be able to prepare a site plan yourself. To meet the requirements of the legislation, please refer to Council's Fact Sheet as a guide to preparing a site Plan for a development application. The Fact Sheets have examples what each plan is, the things that need to be shown and how to show them.

How to Draw a Site Plan - Ancillary Buildings (such as sheds, freestanding verandahs or carports)

How to Draw a Site Plan - Dwellings and additions / alterations

How to Draw a Floor Plan

How to Draw an Elevation

The timeframe for a decision on a Development Application will depend on the assessment pathway, whether it requires a referral to a government agency or public notification. Every development application has a 5 business day verification period. During the verification period, Council checks all required information is included, confirms the assessment pathway for the application, and requests the relevant fees for the application.

Only once this process is complete and fees have been paid does the assessment timeframe for the application commence. All required fees must be paid to begin assessment of a lodged application.

The Planning, Development, and Infrastructure Act, 2016 provides the following timeframes from which Council must make a decision on a development application.

Planning Consent time frames

Building Consent timeframes

Note that the time period between any request for information from council and receiving a response to the information request is not included in the above timeframes. It is therefore in your interest to respond to any information requests as quickly as you can.

Council makes every effort to make a decision on your application well within the above timeframes; however this will be dependent on current workloads and the application complexity.

Once both Planning Consent and Building Consent are issued, Council grants the Development Approval and has 5 business days in which to do this.

You can keep track of your application through the SA Planning Portal by using the Development Application register. You must create a login to lodge the application, and you use these login details to view your application.

The portal will provide you access to:

• the stage at which the application is in the process
• any information requests from Council or government agency (where a referral is required) as well as any comments provided as part of a referral
• the representations received as part of any public notification process
• the countdown clock showing how many days are left on the assessment process.

Access your login here.

Only Council can issue Development Approvals.

However, depending on your type of development, a relevant authority for a Planning Consent can be one of the following:

• Council’s Assessment Panel
• Council’s Assessment Manager
• An accredited Professional (Planning Certifier)

The appropriate authority depends on the type and location of your proposal, which determines the assessment pathway. In most cases, Council’s Assessment Manager will make a decision on the application. However, if your application requires public consultation the Council’s Assessment Panel will act as the authority.

If your proposal qualifies to use the Deemed-to-satisfy (tick box) pathway, then an Accredited Professional can assess your Planning Consent. You can assess a list of Planning Certifiers here.

For a Building Consent, you have the option of choosing one of the following Authorities:

• Council’s Building Officers
• An accredited Professional (Building Certifier)

You can assess a list of Building Certifiers here.

For simpler applications (like verandas, carports, and small dwelling additions), it is often cheaper (council only charges legislated application fees) and quicker for the council to assess the building consent.

Council is aware that certifiers are currently under-resourced, affecting decision timeframes. We encourage you to ask a certifier about costs and timeframes to make an informed decision on the best authority for your needs and timeframes.

If there is an option for who can assess your application, you will be able to choose this as part of the online submission process.

Most applications don’t require public notification. The Planning and Design Code lists the conditions that trigger public notification for each zone. Common reasons for the notification of an application include:

• buildings or structures that are taller than what the zone allows
• boundary walls that exceed specific heights or lengths
• shops, offices, or consulting rooms that have floor areas larger than certain sizes near residential areas.

Land divisions, regardless of size, do not require public notification under the Planning and Design Code.

Council will let you know if your application needs public notification. The notification process will require additional fees and the placement of an advertisement on the land for the consultation period.

Find out more information about the process, who can make submissions, and what happens after notification on this fact sheet (for applicants) or this fact sheet (for representors).

Note that the ability to review a decision or condition is only available within the planning system to applicants, and not neighbours or people who made representations as part of the assessment process.

If your application is refused, or if a condition is placed on the approval that you do not like then as the applicant you can have these decisions reviewed.

There are 2 review options available to applicants.

1. Seek a review of the decision or condition from Council's Assessment Panel. Note this process can only occur if the decision is made by Council's Assessment Manager and is not an option for those made by the Panel. Find out more information on this at the Council Assessment Panel page.
2. Appeal the decision or the condition to the Environment Resources and Development (ERD) Court. This process will require a lodgement of the appeal with the Court directly not Council. A compulsory mediation conference occurs to understand if any agreed negotiated position can be achieved. If not, then the appeal will proceed to a hearing by the Court. Should you wish to pursue this process, you are strongly encouraged to seek legal advice and representation (although this is not mandated by the Court). More information can be found at the ERD Court website.

There are timeframe limitations for when reviews and appeals can be lodged. These are documented within the Decision Notification Form that accompanies the decision on the Development Application, so you are encouraged to read them carefully.

Land division development applications are different to other forms of development as they also have a Land Division Consent in addition to the Planning Consent (Building Consent does not apply). The Land division Consent provides for Council to assess and consider aspects specific to land divisions such as:

• new road design and construction
• new driveway location and construction
• stormwater infrastructure such as connections to the street water table, new side entry pits and, where applicable any necessary easements through properties.

An additional range of conditions are applied to the Land Division Consent. These need to be satisfied before the Certificate of Title can be created. Council will inspect to ensure that the requirements set out within the conditions have been achieved to our satisfaction.

Council will need to 'sign-off' on confirmation of our satisfaction before the application for a Certificate of Title can be lodged with the Lands Title Office by the surveyor.

If you are designing street infrastructure, such as roads, kerbs, footpaths or pram ramps, please ensure your designs and drawings are consistent with Council's requirements. You can download Council's Engineering Standards here:

City of Marion Engineering Standards (14Mb)

A number of obligations apply to builders (whether contracted or owner builders) in the construction process for dwellings.

Building indemnity insurance

Building Indemnity Insurance protects homeowners against financial loss if a builder cannot complete residential building work or meet a valid claim for faulty or unsatisfactory building work if the builder dies, disappears or becomes insolvent.

If a contractor is carrying out a construction project (or doing it for themselves), they must have building indemnity insurance for any residential building works contracts worth more that $12,000, in particular if the projects requires Development Approval.

Building indemnity insurance covers a building owner for defective building work up to an amount of $150,000 in cases where the builder dies, disappears (or is otherwise unable to complete the work or becomes insolvent.

A copy of the building indemnity insurance certificate must be supplied to council with the notification of commencement before any works begin and must be uploaded to the SA Planning Portal (using the same login as your development application).

Construction Industry Training Fund (CITF) levy

In South Australia, a Construction Industry Training Fund (CITF) levy is charged on building and construction projects to help fund training programs that develop skilled workers for the industry. The CITF levy is a legal requirement, and the project owner must pay it for any building or construction work costing more than $100,000 (excluding GST) before they can get approval to start the project.

The levy is applied at 0.25% of the estimated project value and must be paid before Building Consent can be issued.

You can complete the form and pay the levy at the CITB website.

Notifications at Key Steps of Construction

The Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act, 2016 requires mandatory notification be given to Council at certain stages before, during and after construction. These notifications enable Council to program inspections at important stages of the work.

After development approval is granted, the issued Decision Notification Form (DNF) lists the mandatory building notifications and timeframes that are required to be submitted.

Note that all notification need to be made to Council at least 1 clear business day in advance of the works. This is so inspections can be coordinated and can occur as required.

Typical notification stages for a dwelling include:

• commencement of building work
• footing Steelwork (note this is not the pour date)
• completion of Framing - Wall, floor and roof prior to lining installation
• completion of External cladding prior to lining installation
• completion of Fire wall prior to concealment
• completion of building work

To avoid delays to your build, please ensure all notifications occur within the SA Planning Portal. A guide has been prepared to guide you in this process.

• How to Submit a building notification (PDF, 1839 KB)

The same option enables applicants and builders to view building notifications that have already been submitted.

Note, Development Approvals issued under the former Development Act, 1993 (ie before 21 March 2021) require notifications to be submitted direct to Council. These can be done by completing the following forms.

Mandatory Notification Form – Class 1 to 9 buildings

Mandatory notification form – Class 10 buildings

Mandatory notification form – Swimming pools

Please be advised that expiations are now being issued where a mandatory notification is not given to Council. A person who fails to notify at the mandatory notification stages is guilty of an offence which has associated penalties (maximum $10,000) and expiations fees ($750). Council is also empowered to stop all works until the matter is rectified.

Certificate of Occupancy

Any applications submitted after October 2024, must have a completed and signed Certificate of Occupancy, with copies provided to both the building owner and council, before they can be legally occupied.

The purpose of a Certificate of Occupancy is to provide assurance that the building is suitable for occupancy.

Before a building can be occupied there are several conditions that must be met:

1. Completed Compliance Statements:

• • A Statement of Compliance must be fully completed, which includes:
    • Part A which must be signed by the building contractor or someone responsible for the building work (like a supervisor or certifier). All sections must be filled out correctly (marked ‘Yes’, ‘N/A’, or ‘To be completed by owner’ where needed).
    • Part B which must be signed by the landowner or their representative.

Note that any incomplete or incorrectly signed forms will not be accepted and returned for correction and completion.

Fixing Any Issues:

• Any problems found during council inspections that could affect the building's suitability for occupation must be fixed.

Bushfire Protection Requirements (where applicable)

• If the building is in a high-risk bushfire area, the owner must provide proof (such as a statutory declaration) confirming that all necessary bushfire protection measures (like water supply, hoses, and pumps) are installed and working as required

Smoke Alarm Installation

• If the installation of smoke alarms is listed as the owner’s responsibility, the owner must confirm (via a statutory declaration or other evidence) that the alarms are properly installed, interconnected (if needed), and working.

Site Suitability

• If the building site had contamination issues, the owner must provide a statement certifying that the site is now suitable for use, according to the guidelines set by the State Planning Commission.

You or your builder may apply for the certificate using the SA Planning Portal. A Certificate of Occupancy incurs a fee of $56.

Essential Safety Provisions (ESPs) are fire safety features in commercial or multi-unit residential buildings (such as apartments). ESPs may include fire safety features such as fire detection and alarm systems, sprinkler systems, fire doors, emergency and exit lighting, fire hydrants and hose reels and the like.

Property maintained fire safety features can provide more time to exit a building in the event of a fire and lessen the chance of a fire spreading within a building or to an adjoining property.

Maintenance Obligations

Building owners are responsible for the ongoing maintenance of their own building’s fire safety features for the like of the building. For strata corporations, this will be the Corporation itself.

In most cases, building owners are required o provide annual certification to Council that the necessary ESPs for the building are being maintained and operating satisfactorily.

This is known as a ‘Form 3’ maintenance certificate and is usually created as part of a development approval.

It is an ongoing requirement for the Form 3 to be submitted to Council within 60 business days after the end of the calendar year.

Failure to submit a Form 3 within legislated timeframes may result in fines or infringement notices against a property owners. Fines can range from $750 on the spot expiation, through to $10,000 if prosecuted. However, more importantly, failure to leaves occupants at risk of essential fire safety systems in the building not being maintained and working when they are needed.

Note that in serious cases where non-compliance places occupants at risk, Council can revoke a Certificate of Occupancy for buildings, meaning it must be vacated until the issues are resolved.