NSW has a new building law. The NSW Building Act 2026, properly called the Building (Approvals and Practitioners) Act 2026, passed Parliament on 4 August 2026 and received assent on 14 August 2026. It changes the names of the approvals your extension needs, who applies for them, and which regulator oversees them.
Here is the part most of the coverage buries. Almost none of it is in force. If you’re planning an extension in Newcastle or Lake Macquarie right now, your project still runs on construction certificates and occupation certificates, the same as last year.
What is the NSW Building Act 2026?
The NSW Building Act 2026 is the Building (Approvals and Practitioners) Act 2026, a law that pulls building approvals, certifier regulation and practitioner registration into a single Act. It repeals the Design and Building Practitioners Act 2020 and the Building and Development Certifiers Act 2018 once it commences.
Until now the rules covering a residential build have sat across several Acts. Approvals lived in the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, certifiers in one Act, practitioners in another. The new Act lifts building approvals out of the planning legislation and puts them under Building Commission NSW.
For a homeowner the practical effect is narrower than the scale of the reform suggests. The approval steps stay the same. What changes is the name on each one and the regulator behind it.
Is any of it in force yet?
Almost none of it. The Act received assent on 14 August 2026, but all but two items commence on a date set by proclamation, and no date has been announced. Building Commission NSW has said the reforms take effect once the supporting regulations are developed, with industry consultation through 2026 and 2027.
Three separate things happen to a law, and they’re easy to run together. A Bill passes Parliament. It then receives assent and becomes an Act. Its provisions then commence on a date set by proclamation. This one has done the first two. The third hasn’t happened for anything affecting your renovation.
Two items in Schedule 3 started on assent. Neither of them touches a residential extension.
Be careful with what you read elsewhere. Some articles have put a commencement year on this, and at least one AI generated summary repeats a mid-2028 estimate as though it were official. No date appears on the NSW legislation register or anywhere else official, and the estimates circulating don’t agree with each other.
What happens to construction and occupation certificates?
Construction certificates become building approvals, and occupation certificates become completion approvals. The approval to start work and the approval to move in stay as two separate steps. Only the names and the Act behind them change. Until commencement, both certificates keep their current names and their current process.
Term now | Term under the new Act | What it does | In force? |
Construction certificate (CC) | Building approval | Approves detailed plans so work can start | No. Current CC process applies |
Occupation certificate (OC) | Completion approval | Confirms the finished work can be occupied | No. Current OC process applies |
Private certifier or council | Approval authority | Assesses and issues the approval | No. Current arrangements apply |
DA and CDC | Unchanged | Planning approval, before building approval | Yes, unchanged by this Act |
Nothing in the middle column is live yet. Treat it as a glossary for paperwork you’ll see in a few years, not a change to the approvals you need this year.
Who applies for building approval now?
Under the new Act, only the owner can apply for a building approval, or someone acting with the owner’s consent. A builder can’t apply unless the builder also owns the land. Today your builder or certifier can lodge the construction certificate application for you, and that hasn’t changed yet.
This is the change most likely to show up in your paperwork. The application sits in your name, with your builder or certifier acting on your behalf rather than in their own right. A good builder will still handle it.
What shifts is where responsibility sits in the contract. Once commencement is announced, NSW building contracts will need to spell out who obtains each approval and who answers the approval authority when it asks for more. If you’re signing a contract for a build that runs past commencement, read that clause closely. Our guide to choosing the right builder covers what else to check before you sign.
What it means if you’re planning an extension in 2026 or 2027
Nothing about your renovation approvals changes right now. An extension starting in 2026 runs on a DA or a CDC, then a construction certificate, then an occupation certificate at the end. The new Act matters if your build is long or your plans are a few years off, not if you’re starting soon.
Plan for the law as it stands. Our guide to the permits you need before starting an extension is still accurate.
Two situations are worth raising with your builder:
- A long or staged build. A project running over several years could start under construction certificates and finish under completion approvals. Transitional arrangements sit in regulations nobody has written yet, so build slack into your project timeline if approvals are on the critical path.
- A project you’re deferring. If you’re two or three years from breaking ground, you may well build under the new framework. Nothing to do today beyond keeping an eye on it as you work through the planning stages.
What hasn’t changed is everything that decides how a build goes. Your builder’s licence. Their Home Building Compensation cover. Plans that comply with the Building Code of Australia. An independent certifier. None of that turns on the name printed on the certificate.
We track this on every renovation and extension we quote, and we’ll update this post each time Building Commission NSW publishes something new.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a construction certificate for an extension in NSW right now?
Yes. If your extension was approved through a development application, you need a construction certificate before work starts. That hasn’t changed. The Building (Approvals and Practitioners) Act 2026 will replace it with a building approval, but not until the Act commences, and no date has been set.
Does the new Act change whether I need a DA or a CDC?
No. Development applications and complying development certificates sit in the planning system under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, and this Act doesn’t replace them. You’ll still need planning approval first, then a building approval, in the same order as now.
What happened to the Design and Building Practitioners Act?
The new Act repeals it, along with the Building and Development Certifiers Act 2018, and replaces both with one registration scheme covering practitioners and certifiers. The repeal takes effect when the new scheme commences, so the old Act still applies in the meantime.
Will the new Act make my extension cheaper or faster?
Extra bedrooms and a second bathroom usually help, but the gain depends on your street and what buyers there expect to pay. Check the ceiling price in your suburb before you commit. We’ve looked at what an extension adds to property value separately.
This post is general information about a change to NSW building law. It isn’t legal advice and it isn’t a substitute for advice from a registered certifier or a lawyer about your own property. Approval requirements depend on your site, your council and your plans.
Thinking about extending in Newcastle or Lake Macquarie? See how our building process works, or call Paul on 0407 100 424.
