Building Approvals in Tasmania

About this course.

Building approvals in Tasmania are regulated by the state government under Tasmania's own building legislation — a Building Act, supporting regulations and Determinations made by the Director of Building Control — and administered principally through Consumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS), which sits within the Tasmanian Department of Justice. Councils act as the permit authority for building work in their areas, and licensed building surveyors carry out the technical assessment and certification. The technical standards themselves come from the National Construction Code, developed by the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB) and given legal effect in Tasmania through state law. Because this is a Tasmanian system, it differs from other states and territories; this module is general information and not legal advice.

Start with the legal framework. Tasmania regulates building and plumbing work through its Building Act and the regulations made under it, supplemented by Determinations issued by the Director of Building Control. Determinations are an important and somewhat distinctive part of the Tasmanian system: they are instruments the Director can make to set or clarify requirements within the framework the Act establishes — for example, matters relating to how the categories of work operate in practice. The combined effect is a body of law and regulatory instruments that sets out what approvals are needed, who may carry out and certify work, and how the process runs. This course does not reproduce any of that law or give section numbers or dates; the authoritative and current version is available through CBOS.