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VBA Website and VBA Portal Terms and Conditions

Victorian Building Authority website and application Terms of Use

The Victorian Building Authority (referred to as VBA, we, our or us) owns and operates the website www.vba.vic.gov.au (Website).

This document sets out the terms and conditions for use of the VBA website and the VBA Portal . The terms and conditions comprised of Parts A to C (or whatever is applicable).  By accessing the VBA’s website and the VBA Portal, you agree to be bound by these terms and conditions.

These Terms and Conditions are set out in Three Parts:

Part A: Website Terms of Use

1. Terms of Use

(a) These Terms of Use (Terms) govern your:

(i) access and use of the Website including using the applications, services and functionality made available through the Website;

(ii) viewing and interaction with any content, information, communications, advice, text or other material provided by the VBA (VBA Content) or any User Content (defined under clause 12); and

(iii) upload of User Content to the Website and communication with the VBA.

(b) Please read these Terms carefully before accessing and using the Website.

(c) These Terms apply to all visitors, users and others who access and use the Website, and any person or body corporate that authorises another person to access and use the Website on their behalf.

2. Acceptance

(a) By accessing or using any part of the Website or authorising any person to access or use of the Website on your behalf, you are agreeing to be bound by these Terms and all other notices and policies posted by us on the Website.

(b) If you disagree with any part of the Terms, do not access or use the Website, or authorise any person to access or use the Website on your behalf.

3. Changes to the Terms

(a) We may make changes to these Terms from time to time. Your use of the Website will be governed by the most recent terms posted on the Website. By continuing to use the Website, you agree to be bound by the most recent Terms.

(b) Every time you wish to access the Website, please check these Terms to ensure you understand the terms that apply at that time. Should you object to these Terms or any subsequent amendment of these Terms, you must immediately discontinue access and use of the Website.

4. Changes to the Website

We may update and change our Website from time to time to reflect changes to our services, our users' needs, changes in law, our business priorities or for other reasons. We will try to give you reasonable notice of any major changes.

5. VBA Content

(a) The VBA Content on the Website is for general information purposes only. Any use of the VBA Content, materials or information by another person or organisation is at your own risk.

(b) The VBA Content on the Website is obtained and developed from a variety of sources including but not limited to collaborations with third parties and information provided by third parties under licence.

(c) All intellectual property rights, including copyright, in the Website and VBA Content are owned or licensed by the VBA. You must not copy, modify or transmit any part of the Website or VBA Content without our written consent or permission as stated on the Website. For more information please refer to our copyright statement accessible at the VBA website.

(d) Information and resources on the Website may be subject to specific copyright licenses or restrictions.

(e) The Website contains trade marks, logos and trade names of the VBA or third parties, which may be registered or otherwise protected by law. You are not permitted to use any trade marks, logos or trade names appearing on the Website.

6. Prohibited Uses

You agree that in accessing and using the Website, you will not engage or attempt to engage in any activity that:

(a) download (other than page caching) or modify the Website or any portion of the Website;

(b) impersonate or falsely claim to represent a person or organisation;

(c) frame the Website without the VBA's express written permission;

(d) post, link to, or otherwise communicate or distribute any misleading or deceptive, inappropriate, profane, defamatory, infringing, obscene, indecent or unlawful material or information, or otherwise use the Website in a manner which is unlawful or would infringe the rights of another person including any intellectual property rights;

(e) post, link to, or otherwise communicate, or distribute any material or information that were deemed inappropriate;

(f) bypass (or attempt to bypass) any security mechanisms imposed by the Website;

(g) provide access or links to any material (including links to peer to peer network trackers/beacons) which may infringe the intellectual property rights of another person;

(h) deletes or alters or attempts to delete or alter attributions, legal notices, trademarks or copyright marks on any material contained in the Website; or

(i) knowingly posts or transmits or permits the posting or transmission of any material, which contains a computer virus or other harmful data, code or material.

7. Links to external websites

(a) The Website may contain links to other websites. We have not reviewed all of the third party websites linked on the Website. We are not responsible for, and will not be liable in respect of the content or accuracy of the content and privacy practices of other websites, and any links to these other websites should not be interpreted as an endorsement of any company, content or products. We encourage you to examine each website's terms and conditions and privacy policy.

(b) Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube and other third party websites which are linked to the Website, are not covered by these Terms, and may have their own terms and conditions and privacy policy. If you choose to access these third party linked sites, you do so at your own risk. We are not responsible for and will not be liable in respect of the content or operation of those websites or any of the goods, services or content that they describe. We are not responsible for and will not be liable in respect of the incorrect link to an external website.

8. Use of cookies

(a) In order to improve the Website, we may use cookies to track your access and use of the Website. A cookie is a small piece of data sent from a website and stored on the user's computer by the user's web browser to identify them as a visitor to that website. The cookie is recognised by the website each time the user visits. This information does not identify the user personally. Cookies are used in a variety of ways, for example to record when a user visited a particular section of the Website, to establish what version of browsing software they are using, or to ensure online applications and transactions do not require a user to re-enter information when they move between web pages.

(b) In this way, cookies can improve a website's operation and make the experience more efficient and personalised for each user. Importantly, in depositing information on a user's computer and referring to it later, whether in the same session or on a subsequent visit, there is no need to identify the user or record any personal information.

(c) Generally, it is recommended that users set their browser to identify the presence of cookies, which also provides the option of accepting or rejecting them. Some parts of a website may not function fully if a user rejects cookies.

9. Google Analytics

(a) We use Google Analytics to gather information about visitors to our sites to help improve our digital services. Google Analytics uses first-party cookies and JavaScript code to collect this information. It anonymously tracks how our visitors interact with our sites, including where they came from and what they did on the site.

(b) Non-personal data is collected for statistical purposes and includes:

(i) server addresses, ISP and top-level domain names;

(ii) the time, date and duration of site visits;

(iii) the pages accessed;

(iv) any documents that were downloaded;

(v) the type of browser used, screen size and operating system;

(vi) the type of device you are using; and

(vii) the address of the last site you visited.

(c) You can read Google Analytics Privacy Policy. You can opt out of Google Analytics if you disable or refuse the cookie, disable JavaScript, or use the opt-out service provided by Google.

Part B: VBA Portal

10. Registration

(a) In order to access certain features and functionality of the Portal you will have to register for a VBA account by providing all of the information required at registration. You may also be required to register for a Service Victoria account through the Service Victoria platform to access certain features and functionality associated with the VBA Portal. Service Victoria accounts are governed by the terms of use.

(b) When creating your VBA Portal account you warrant that all information you have provided is true, accurate and complete. You will update or promptly inform the VBA if there is any change to this information or data, including but not limited to:

(i) changes to your name, residential address, postal address, contact details and other personal information;

(ii) changes to your registered business or company name, ABN or ACN, business address, contact details and other business information;

(iii) changes to your legal status; or

(iv) if any order, resolution or step regarding external administration, insolvency or bankruptcy administration is made in relation to you.

(c) You must provide an email address that you own or control as part of the VBA Portal account registration process. We will use this email address to communicate with you and for other purposes, in accordance with the privacy collection statement when you register for a VBA Portal account.  If you do not have an email address to create a logon to the VBA Portal, please contact our Customer Experience Team on 1300 815 127 who can assist you in the next steps.

(d) The VBA will issue you login details to access and use the VBA Portal  upon receiving and verifying all information required and requested by us as part of the registration process.

(e) You are permitted to access and use the VBA Portal once your registration has been accepted by the VBA and you have received your login details.

(f) You agree that you will not create more than one VBA Portal account and if we disable or terminate your account for any reason, you will not create another one without our permission, whether through the use of your own personal details or those related to you or created by you.

(g) We reserve the right to refuse registration of a VBA Portal account, at our sole discretion.

(h) Your registration for a VBA Portal account may be refused if your User Content uploaded via your account involves any of the prohibited uses set out in clause 6 or is otherwise deemed inappropriate in our absolute discretion.

11. VBA Portal permitted use

(a) You are permitted to access and use the VBA Portal for the following purposes only:

  1. applying for Building Permit Numbers, including updating and reviewing applications;
  2. paying Building Permit Levies (Fees);
  3. reporting information relating to building permits as required under the Building Act 1993 (Vic) and regulations made under the Building Act 1993 (Vic);
  4. applying for registration as a building practitioner;
  5. applying to renew your registration as a building practitioner
  6. providing copies of your updated insurance details
  7. payment of your annual fee
  8. contacting us;
  9. updating the details of your VBA Portal account;
  10. any other use authorised by the VBA in writing from time to time;
  11. accessing platforms and applications offered by third parties for BAMS related purposes, for example accessing the Service Victoria platform to conduct your online verification of identity; or
  12. accessing your digital licence via the Website or platforms and applications, offered by third parties for VBA Portal related purposes, including the Service Victoria platform.

(b) You are not permitted to use VBA Portal for any prohibited use set out in clause 6.

(c) You must follow all the rules and restrictions set out in these Terms or elsewhere on the VBA Portal, including any terms and conditions of third parties which are published on or linked to in the VBA Portal.

12. User Content

(a) When you use the VBA Portal, you may upload or link pictures, documents, photographs, graphics, information, comments, content, text or other material to VBA Portal (User Content).

(b) You agree to be solely responsible for any User Content you upload or link to the VBA Portal. You warrant and represent that any User Content you upload or link to the VBA Portal will not violate these Terms.

(c) You retain any intellectual property rights in the User Content you upload or link to the VBA Portal. By uploading the User Content, you grant us a perpetual, non-exclusive, royalty free, irrevocable, transferable and worldwide licence (including the right to sub-licence) to use, adapt, copy, communicate, reproduce, modify, display, exploit, publish, re-distribute, broadcast, transmit, create derivative works from and incorporate in other works, the User Content, at any time in the future in any form and for any purpose.

(d) You acknowledge that we:

(i) have no responsibility or liability for the deletion or failure to store any User Content you upload or link to you or any other user on the Website; and

(ii) are not responsible for any User Content uploaded or linked to the Website by you or any user nor under any obligation to monitor, move, remove, block, modify, edit, refuse to upload or disable access to it.

(e) You represent and warrant that:

(i) you own the User Content or have the necessary licences, rights, consents and permissions to publish the User Content you upload or link to the VBA Portal;

(ii) you have the right and power to grant the licence contained in clause 12(c) to us;

(iii) the User Content uploaded or linked by you will not infringe the intellectual property rights of any third party; and

(iv) you will not upload or link User Content that will cause you to breach these Terms, in particular clause 6.

(f) You understand that we do not guarantee any confidentiality with respect to any User Content you upload or link to the VBA Portal.

13. Payment

(a) Payment for the following Fees is made online through the VBA Portal:

  1. Building permits
  2. Building registration applications (natural person and company)
  3. Building renewal applications (natural person and company)
  4. Annual fees  (natural person and company)

(b) The VBA uses a Westpac hosted payment Gateway (PayWay)  to provide payment services for the Website. For more information on Westpac security processes, please visit their website.

(c) We accept payment via PayWay using VISA or MasterCard credit cards.  BPAY is available for building permit payments only.

(d) We only accept credit cards issued in Australia. The credit card holder must be either the VBA account holder or nominated payer as indicated on the Building Permit Number application (where applicable).

(e) If you choose to pay by credit card, you authorise us to debit the amount of Fees payable by you in respect of any application (as applicable).

(f) If you choose to pay building permit fee by BPAY, the VBA Portal will generate a unique BPAY reference number. You will then need to contact your bank or financial institution to make payment. Once the payment is made, you will need to enter your receipt number into the VBA Portal to finalise your application.

(g) When submitting your credit card or other payment information on the Website you represent:

(i) that you are properly authorised to use the credit card or other payment method for the payment;

(ii) the information you provide is true, correct and complete;

(iii) the Fees incurred by you will be honoured by your debit or credit card, your companies debit or credit card or other payment provider; and

(iv) you will pay all Fees incurred by you.

(h) We reserve the right at our discretion to cancel any payment if it appears fraudulent in any way, and we may notify the card holder and the relevant authorities.

(i) If we are unable to successfully process your credit card for your payment or process your BPAY payment, then we may cancel your application or registration renewal.

(j) We will provide you with a receipt at the time of confirmation of the payment of Fees which specifies the total Fees paid by you in respect of a payment. For BPAY payments, you will receive the receipt once the payment has been reconciled by the VBA.

(k) All currency references are references to Australian dollars.

(l) All Fees may be subject to change from time to time in accordance with relevant government regulations.

(m) Payment related enquires, including requests for refund of Fees, can be directed as follows:

  • Building permits: to our BAMS Support Team on 1300 241 104 or by email
  • Registration applications: to our Customer Experience Team on 1300 815 127 or by email

14. Account security

(a) You are responsible for your VBA Portal account and everything that happens on your account. This means you need to be careful with your password.

(b) You will be responsible for all acts and omissions of any person using your password and VBA Portal account, as if they were your own acts and omissions. You agree that you will not share, disclose, or permit disclosure of, your password, let anyone else access your account or do anything that would risk the security of your account. The VBA will not in any event be liable for any loss, damage, claims, costs or expenses arising out of the use or misuse of your password and account, and you will indemnity the VBA against all loss, damage, claims, costs or demands in this regard.

(c) You must notify us immediately if you become aware of any unauthorised access or use of your VBA Portal account.

(d) You must not allow another person to use your VBA Portal account or transfer your account to someone else.

(e) You are responsible for ensuring your browser is current with the latest patches applied to protect your information. Failing to do this may compromise the security of your information, including credit card details, and result in you being unable to make payments through our online payment system.

15. Termination of account

The VBA may immediately suspend or terminate access to your VBA Portal account where, in its sole discretion and reasonable opinion:

(a) you are in breach of these Terms;

(b) any of the circumstances in clause 10(b) arise;

(c) any of the information you have provided for the purposes of registering for an account to access and use the VBA Portal are found to be misleading or deceptive; or

(d) you or any of your employees engaged in fraud, dishonesty or any other serious misconduct.

Part C: General Terms

16. Access and communication

(a) We have policies and procedures in place to protect information that we have under our control. However, you should be aware that there are inherent risks associated with transmitting information via the internet.

(b) The VBA will not be liable if the Website or the VBA Portal is unavailable to you due to computer downtime attributable to malfunctions, upgrades, preventative or remedial maintenance activities, interruption in telecommunications supply or otherwise.

(c) The VBA does not guarantee the delivery or security of communications over the internet as such communications rely on third party service providers, and electronic communication (including electronic mail) is vulnerable to interception by third parties.

(d) Whilst the VBA takes reasonable precautions to protect information transmitted via the Website, the VBA cannot and does not guarantee the security or confidentiality of these communications or the security of the Website.

(e) The VBA does not provide, and has no control over, communications, networks or services, the internet or other technology required or used across the Website and accepts no responsibility for any direct or indirect loss in any form associated with them, whether due to congestion, technical malfunction, viruses or otherwise.

17. Privacy

(a) Any personal information submitted by you (whether personal information of you or another individual which you have the necessary consents to provide) may be collected, used and disclosed by the VBA for the purposes contemplated by these Terms and the VBA Privacy Policy which can be accessed on the VBA website. You agree that by using the Website or communicating with the VBA, you have read the Privacy Policy, understood its contents and consented to its requirements.

(b) You must not upload any personal information of another individual to the Website unless you first make them aware of the VBA's Privacy Policy and have their consent to upload such personal information.

18. Warranty disclaimer

(a) To the fullest extent permitted by law, the VBA does not warrant, guarantee or make any representations regarding the currency, accuracy, correctness, reliability, usability, or any other aspect, of the material presented on the Website, nor of material provided by others to the VBA and presented on the Website, nor of material provided by others and accessed from the Website using links or connections to their websites or distribution services.

(b) To the fullest extent permitted by law, the VBA makes no warranty that:

(i) the Website will meet your requirements;

(ii) the Website will be uninterrupted, timely, secure or error-free; or

(iii) that there will be no errors in the Website or that the VBA will fix any errors.

(c) You accept sole responsibility and all risk for using material presented on or accessed from the Website. The VBA does not accept any liability for any loss or damage which may be incurred as a result of using the Website or any material presented on or accessed from the Website, including any damage caused to your computer, hardware, software or data or for any bugs, viruses, Trojan horses or other destructive code resulting from use of the Website or any material presented on or accessed from the Website.

19. Liability

(a) You must indemnify the VBA and its officers, employees, contractors and agents (Indemnified Party) against any Losses any Indemnified Party suffers as a direct or indirect result of any of the following:

(i) a breach of these Terms by you;

(ii) any warranty given by you under these Terms being incorrect or misleading in any way; or

(iii) any negligent act or failure to act, wilful misconduct or unlawful action by you or any of your employees, except to the extent that any such Losses are caused by the negligence or other wrongful act or omission of the VBA, its officers or employees.

(b) Any indemnity payment payable by you to an Indemnified Party under clause 19(a) shall be payable immediately upon demand.

(c) In this clause 19, Losses mean any and all costs (including legal costs and expenses on a full indemnity basis), fees, expenses, losses, damages, taxes, outgoings, claims, liabilities, causes of action, proceedings, awards and judgments howsoever arising.

20. Relationship of parties

These Terms do not create a partnership, franchise, joint venture, agency, fiduciary or employment relationship between you and us. You may not assign your rights or obligations under these Terms, whether by operation of law or otherwise, without our prior written consent.

21. Entire understanding

Except as expressly stated in these Terms, these Terms constitute the entire agreement between the parties, and supersede all prior and contemporaneous agreements, proposals or representations, written or oral, concerning the subject matter of these Terms.

22. Severability

Any provision of these Terms which is invalid or unenforceable is to be read down, if possible, so as to be valid and enforceable, and, if that is not possible, the provision shall be severed to the extent of the invalidity or unenforceability, without affecting the remaining provisions of these Terms.

23. Governing law and jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by, and to be construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of Victoria, Australia. You submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of that State and the Commonwealth of Australia in respect of all matters arising out of or relating to these Terms, their performance and subject matter.

24. International use

(a) We make no representation or warranty that any services, information or content accessible through the Website is appropriate or available for use in locations outside Australia. If you choose to access the Website from other locations, you do so at your own risk and are responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. You are not authorised to access the Website from any location where doing so would be illegal.

(b) You understand that some countries have import restrictions on certain goods or materials. If you are outside Australia, you will be responsible for checking whether such restrictions apply before uploading User Content. If you are outside Australia you will become the importer and will be liable to pay local taxes or duties, and you will assume all liability under any customs or import laws and regulations.

25. Contact us

(a) If you have any general questions about the Website or these Terms, please contact us on 1300 815 127 or submit an online query using our online form which can be accessed at the website.

(b) If you have any query about the VBA's Privacy Policy, the contact details for our Privacy Officer are set out in the VBA Privacy Policy.

(c) If you have any questions about building permits, please contact us by email or the BPN Industry Support Team on 1300 241 104.

(d) If you have any questions about the registration application and renewal process, please contact us on 1300 815 127.