Building permits

From 1 July 2019, the requirement to apply for a building permit number will vary depending on when the relevant building surveyor ‘accepts’ a building permit application. An application can be considered ‘accepted’ if the relevant building surveyor has been appointed by the applicant and the application contains all information required for the relevant building surveyor to

• apply to the VBA for a building permit number; and
• estimate the costs of work and calculate the levy due.

Building permit applications accepted after 1 July 2019

For building permit applications accepted after 1 July 2019, the relevant building surveyor must apply to the VBA for a building permit number for the proposed building permit. To obtain a building permit number from the VBA:

• the relevant building surveyor must provide the VBA with all required information relating to the proposed building permit, and
• the levy must be paid.

Applications for a building permit number must be made through the VBA’s Building Activity Management System (BAMS).

Building permit applications accepted before 1 July 2019

For building permit applications accepted before 1 July 2019, building permit numbers should continue to be produced in accordance with requirements in place before 1 July 2019.

The building permit number comprises four parts:

1. The registration number of the building surveyor who issued the building permit, followed by a forward slash (/)
2. The year the building permit was issued, using four digits (for example, YYYY)
3. A four-digit sequential number used to identify the building permit issued, followed by a forward slash (/); and
4. stage number that identifies the stage of a building project to which the building permit relates.

Note: For single-stage projects, the stage number is zero. For multi-stage projects, all stages should have the same sequential number (refer to the point above), with the first stage being identified with a stage number of 1, the second stage with 2, etc. For example, 20140011/1, 20140011/2, 20140011/3, etc.

Example 1: If building surveyor BS-U 6789 issued their first building permit for a single stage project in 2014, the permit number should be: 6789/20140001/0.

Example 2: If building surveyor BS-U 6789 issued their one hundredth building permit for stage 1 of a multi-stage project in 2014, the permit number should be: 6789/20140100/1.

The application date is the date the relevant building surveyor receives the completed Application for a Building Permit Form.

Building surveyors are requested to note or date-stamp on receipt of the application form from the applicant.

Including the correct BCA class of building under the National Construction Code (NCC) helps us process building permit information efficiently and reduces the need for us to further clarify information. It also provides a consistent building project description.

For example, the BCA classification of Class 1a buildings should include (i) or (ii) to indicate whether the dwellings are attached or not (class 1a(i) for a detached house or class 1a(ii) for one or more attached dwellings, etc.).

From 1 January 2020, the BCA class of a building will be one of the factors determining whether cladding levy is payable.

More information

View Building Classification Codes under the National Construction Code.

The Standard Parcel Identifier (SPI) is a unique numbering and identification system used by Land Victoria to identify parcels of land.

The unique number assigned to land parcels will be based on a 'lot on plan' format. This format will also be applied to Crown descriptors using the existing parish number as the plan number.

The SPI number can be obtained from Land Victoria by entering the property address.