Australian Capital Territory · Planning guide
Do I need a DA in the ACT?
In the ACT you need a development application unless your work is exempt development under the Planning (Exempt Development) Regulation 2023. The Planning Act 2023 sorts development into three types: exempt, which needs no approval, assessable, which needs development approval from the Territory Planning Authority, and prohibited, which the Territory Plan does not allow. The check runs in order: lease, zone and land use table, exemption criteria, then the Territory Plan's outcomes and requirements.
Sources read on 9 September 2026. Provisions are quoted word for word from the instrument.
Three categories in the Planning Act
Section 143 of the Planning Act 2023 sets out the main types of development. Assessable development needs development approval. Prohibited development is unlawful unless division 7.3.1 allows an application. Exempt development does not need development approval. Every proposal falls into one of the three, and the whole question of whether you need a DA is the question of which one.
Section 166 is the DA itself: the proponent of a development proposal may apply to the Territory Planning Authority for approval to undertake it. The authority is the single decision maker for ordinary applications across the Territory. There are no councils, no private certifiers issuing planning approvals and no complying development certificates.
Section 154 defines prohibited development as development the Territory Plan prohibits, with a saving: if something is both exempt and prohibited, it is taken not to be prohibited. The Territory Plan's land use tables are where prohibitions are found, because in every zone the uses not listed are prohibited.
The main types of development are as follows: (a) assessable development needs development approval and includes significant development under chapter 6; (b) prohibited development is unlawful unless development approval is allowed under division 7.3.1; (c) exempt development does not need development approval.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
The proponent of a development proposal may apply to the territory planning authority for approval to undertake the proposed development (a development application).
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
For this Act, a development is a prohibited development if either of the following applies to the development or a part of the development: (a) the development is prohibited under the territory plan; (2) However, if a development is an exempt development and a prohibited development, the development is taken not to be a prohibited development.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
Step one: the lease and the zone
ACT land is leasehold, so the first document is the Crown lease. It states the permitted use and often the number of dwellings. A proposal the lease does not authorise needs a lease variation, which is itself a listed use in the residential zones and part of the DA process. No exemption can apply to work the lease does not permit, because criterion 4 of the exempt development regulation requires compliance with the lease.
The second document is the Territory Plan. Part A says it applies to the land shown on the Part B maps and not to Designated Land under the National Capital Plan or to National Land. Read the zone from the map, then the E01 Residential Zones Policy land use table. Listed uses require development approval unless exempt, and uses not listed are prohibited. District policies in Part D can add or remove uses at specific locations.
For a residential block this step usually confirms that single dwelling housing, secondary residence, multi-unit housing, subdivision and a lease variation are all permissible in RZ1 to RZ5. The question then becomes whether the particular work is exempt. Where a use is not listed at all, for example a shop in a residential zone, the proposal is prohibited development and the only opening is the narrow set of circumstances in division 7.3.1 of the Act, which are outside the scope of this guide.
The Plan applies to land within the ACT as shown on the maps in Part B of the Plan. The Plan does not apply to land identified as Designated Land under the National Capital Plan, or to land declared to be National Land. An area may be declared to be National Land if it is, or is intended to be, used by or on behalf of the Commonwealth.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
The following table identifies permissible land uses and development types (marked ‘Y’) in residential zones. The uses listed require development approval unless they meet the ‘exempt development’ definition of the Planning Act 2023. Development and land use types listed are defined in the Territory Plan Dictionary. Uses not listed in the table are prohibited.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
District policies specify additional types of development and land uses that are permissible or prohibited in specific locations.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
Step two: is the work exempt
Section 145 of the Act defines exempt development by reference to section 147 and the regulation, and section 150 says an exempt development may be undertaken without a development application, a development approval or an exemption assessment. The note adds that building approval under the Building Act 2004 may still be needed.
Section 7 of the Planning (Exempt Development) Regulation 2023 exempts development that complies with Schedule 1. The Schedule's general criteria have to be met alongside the specific exemption. Criterion 5, development must not increase the number of dwellings on a block to 2 or more, is the one that decides most housing questions: a single dwelling, a shed, a deck or a pool can be exempt, a granny flat or a dual occupancy cannot.
The ACT Government's self-check page puts it simply: some projects may not need a DA if they meet the regulation's conditions, you can self-check, and a building certifier can provide a formal exemption notice. A compliant single dwelling under section 1.130 is the largest thing on the list, and section 1.131 lets the authority declare a minor setback or envelope encroachment acceptable so the house stays exempt.
exempt development means— (a) development that is exempt from requiring development approval under— (i) section 147 (Exempt development—authorised use); or (ii) a regulation; and (b) a land management practice undertaken in accordance with Aboriginal tradition and prescribed by regulation.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
An exempt development may be undertaken without any of the following: (a) a development application; (b) a development approval; (c) an exemption assessment. Note The proposal for the exempt development may still need a building approval under the Building Act 2004.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
The following development is exempt from requiring development approval: (a) development that complies with schedule 1 (Exemptions from requirement for development approval); (b) development that would comply with schedule 1 apart from a permitted construction tolerance;
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
Development must not increase the number of dwellings on a block to 2 or more dwellings.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
Some projects may not need to get a development application (DA) approved if they meet relevant Planning (Exempt Development) Regulation 2023 conditions.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
Step three: the development application
If the work is not exempt, it is assessable and needs a DA under section 166. The Territory Plan is primarily used to decide development applications, and Part A describes its outcome-based approach as a distinctive feature. The application is assessed against the assessment outcomes and mandatory assessment requirements of the zone policy, the district policy and any other policy such as F01 for subdivision.
E01 explains how the layers interact. Assessment requirements are the mandatory controls, and district requirements prevail over zone requirements. For assessment outcomes, design guides are considered and technical specifications may be used as a benchmark, and where a proposal complies with the specification and comprehensively addresses the outcome, no further assessment of that outcome is needed.
This is why a DA that meets every technical specification number is a straightforward application, and one that departs from a number is still possible but has to make its case. A departure from a mandatory requirement such as storeys or site coverage is a different matter, because those are not benchmarks.
The Territory Plan is primarily used to decide development applications and to make other planning related decisions, such as decisions about the zoning and the use of land. An outcome-based approach to the assessment of development proposals is a distinctive feature of this Territory Plan.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
Assessment requirements set the mandatory development controls within specific zones or for specific development types. District policies also contain assessment requirements. Assessment requirements in district policies will prevail where inconsistencies occur.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
In demonstrating compliance with the assessment outcomes, consideration is to be given to the relevant design guides and may be given to planning technical specifications which may serve as a benchmark. While all assessment outcomes are to be met, not all outcomes are covered by design guidance and/or planning technical specifications. Where a proposed development complies with relevant provisions in the design guide and/or planning technical specification and the development comprehensively addresses the assessment outcome, further assessment regarding that assessment outcome will not be required.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
Putting it together for common projects
A new detached house that will be the only dwelling on the block, meets the declared single dwelling housing development control and the general criteria: exempt under section 1.130, building approval only. The same house a little inside a setback: exemption declaration under section 1.131. The same house well outside the control, or in a heritage or other constrained context that fails a criterion: DA.
A granny flat: always a DA, because criterion 5 blocks any exemption for a second dwelling, and the F01 policy prevents it ever being separately titled. A dual occupancy: always a DA as multi-unit housing, with unit titling afterwards under the Unit Titles Act if the block qualifies. A subdivision: always a DA under the F01 Subdivision Policy.
A shed, carport, deck, pool or fence: usually exempt if it fits its own section of Schedule 1 and the general criteria, otherwise a DA. In every case the lease comes first, and a block on Designated Land is outside the Territory Plan and this framework entirely.
Building a single dwelling (the dwelling) or altering a single dwelling (the alteration) on a block in a residential zone if— (a) the dwelling will be the only dwelling on the block; and (b) if the block is a preliminary block—the dwelling is built by the lessee of the holding lease; and (c) the dwelling or alteration, as built, complies with a relevant residential zones—single dwelling housing development control; and (d) section 1.18 (Information about certain development proposals) has been complied with in relation to building or altering the dwelling.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
Building a single dwelling (the dwelling) or altering a single dwelling (the alteration) on a block if— (a) the building of the dwelling or alteration would be exempt under section 1.130 (Compliant single dwellings), apart from the encroachment of the dwelling or alteration in 1 or more of the following ways: (i) beyond the front, side or rear setback required under a defined provision; (ii) beyond the building envelope that applies, under a defined provision, to the block where the dwelling or alteration is being built;
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
Subdivision is not permitted to provide separate title, including subdivision under the Unit Titles Act 2001, to: a) A secondary residence in all zones. b) An individual boarding room in all zones. c) Community housing in RZ1 and CFZ.
Read the source · retrieved 9 September 2026
What changes council by council in Australian Capital Territory
The state instruments set the frame. These points are set by each council's own instrument or mapping, so the answer for an address depends on which council it sits in.
- The ACT has no local councils. The Territory Planning Authority assesses every application, and the local layer is the district policy in Part D of the Territory Plan, the district technical specification and the Crown lease for the block.
- What the Crown lease authorises, including the number of dwellings and the permitted use, which criterion 4 of the exempt development regulation requires every exemption to comply with (the lease for the block).
- Whether the district policy in Part D adds or removes uses, or imposes requirements that prevail over the zone policy, at the block's location (the district policy).
- Whether the block is Designated Land under the National Capital Plan, where the Territory Plan does not apply (Part A of the Territory Plan and the National Capital Plan maps).
- Whether the block is heritage registered, bushfire prone or tree constrained, which engages the exemption criteria and adds referral entities to a DA (ACT registers and maps).
Council pages in Australian Capital Territory
For your address
How the $150 report settles this for one site
A Casa preliminary planning report reads the Territory Plan zone, the district policy and any overlay at the block, then applies the residential zone policy, the technical specifications and the exempt development criteria to the proposal and states which pathway the rule set allows, citing the clause behind each answer. Where a control turns on the Crown lease, a district specification or an ACT map the report says so and names the instrument, rather than filling the gap with a guess.
Common questions
What are the approval pathways in the ACT?
Three, under section 143 of the Planning Act 2023: exempt development, which needs no development approval, assessable development, which needs a development application to the Territory Planning Authority, and prohibited development, which the Territory Plan does not allow. There is no complying development certificate system.
Who assesses a DA in Canberra?
The Territory Planning Authority. Section 166 of the Planning Act says the proponent applies to the authority for approval, and the ACT has no local councils.
Can a new house be built without a DA in the ACT?
Yes, if it is a single dwelling that will be the only dwelling on the block and complies with the declared development control and the general criteria, under section 1.130 of the Planning (Exempt Development) Regulation 2023. Building approval is still required.
Does a granny flat need a DA in the ACT?
Yes. Criterion 5 says exempt development must not increase the number of dwellings on a block to 2 or more, so a secondary residence is always assessable development.
What if my house is slightly over a setback?
Section 1.131 of the regulation lets the Territory Planning Authority issue an exemption declaration where a single dwelling's encroachment beyond a setback or building envelope is minor, so the house can remain exempt from a DA.
Sources read for this guide
- Planning Act 2023 (A2023-18), republication R11 effective 22 May 2026, ACT Legislation Registerread 9 September 2026
- Planning (Exempt Development) Regulation 2023 (SL2023-21), republication R3 effective 22 May 2026, ACT Legislation Registerread 9 September 2026
- Territory Plan 2023 (NI2023-540), republication R46 effective 7 August 2026, ACT Legislation Registerread 9 September 2026
- Territory Plan 2023, Part A, Administration and Governance (effective 1 July 2026), ACT Legislation Register PDFread 9 September 2026
- Territory Plan 2023, Part E, E01 Residential Zones Policy (effective 1 July 2026), ACT Legislation Register PDFread 9 September 2026
- Territory Plan 2023, Part F, F01 Subdivision Policy (effective 1 July 2026), ACT Legislation Register PDFread 9 September 2026
- Check if you need a DA, ACT Government planning websiteread 9 September 2026
Not covered here
- Section 147 of the Planning Act (exempt development for authorised uses) and division 7.3.1 (applications for prohibited development) were read by heading only and are not quoted.
- Criterion 4 of the exempt development regulation (compliance with the lease) is referred to but was not quoted, so its exact wording is not reproduced.
- The DA notification, referral and decision provisions of Chapter 7 of the Planning Act were not fetched.
More ACT guides
- Granny flat rules in the ACT
- Dual occupancy rules in the ACT
- Subdivision rules in the ACT
- Exempt development in the ACT
- Height, setback and site coverage rules in the ACT
Do I need a development application? in other states
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