Planning Application & Lodgement
To complete a planning permit application, follow these steps. Alternatively, visit eServices to complete this process online:
Step 1 - Find out if a permit is required
Find out whether a permit is required, what information must be provided with the application, and what relevant policies and provisions Council will use to assess it. Different information will need to be provided for different types of permit applications and will generally include site plans, floor plans, elevation drawings and a written report.
Pre-lodgment certification:
You may consider using the pre-lodgment certification process to achieve a faster processing and decision timeline. Essentially the process involves employing a Council agreed certifier to ensure that your application contains all the required information and is of an adequate standard to be lodged with Council. This avoids delays often associated with incomplete applications. The process may also include conducting meetings with Council Planners and immediate neighbours to the site. For further information download the Pre-Certification Contractors - Brochure (PDF - 819KB).
Step 2 - Complete the application form
If a permit is required, fill out the Form - Planning Permit Application Form (PDF - 773KB), provide the required information and pay the required fee. For further information download the Form - How To Complete A Planning Permit Application Form (PDF - 190KB).
Step 3 - Describe what the permit is for
Clearly describe what you want a permit for. Make sure you describe all the things that need a planning permit so a further permit wont be required. Check this with the Council planner when lodging the application.
Step 4 - State the cost of development
You must provide an accurate estimate of the cost of the development. This will determine the planning application fee. The fee must be paid when you lodge the application. It is paid to Council to consider and assess the application. It is not a fee for approval, so there is no refund if the application is refused. The scale of fees is set down by government regulation.
Step 5 - Include the owners consent
If you are the permit applicant but not the owner of the land, you must provide the owners details on the application for planning permit form, This section is used when an agent for the owner makes the application. The applicant must tell the owner that the application has been made.
Step 6 - Attach title information
A current Certificate of Title must be provided. You must also provide a copy of any registered restrictive covenant or agreements that affects the land. If a registered restrictive covenant does apply, talk to the Council planner about what to do next.
Step 7 - Attach the plans and any necessary extra information
If the appropriate information is not provided, the application wont be processed. Council must have sufficient information to assess your application.
Plans or other information may also need to be prepared to accompany the application. The Planning Scheme may state that particular information is required for certain types of permit applications.
Step 8 - Lodge the Application with Council
Assessment of the application
Council's planner prepares a report describing the proposal, the relevant policies and planning scheme requirements, the assessment process, any objections and referral comments, and the response to them. They then make a recommendation about whether or not a planning permit should be granted. The Council planner has to judge how well a proposal meets policy objectives in the planning scheme, and they may have to strike a balance between competing objectives. An officer of the Council may make the decision under delegation. This means a senior officer or committee of officers of the council makes the decision, rather than it being decided by the full council. A decision made under delegation is usually quicker because the application does not have to wait for a council meeting.
Most council have a policy that identifies applications that may be decided under delegations. If the application is for a major project, or there are a certain number of objections, the application will usually be decided at a committee of council or a full council meeting.
If your application is listed on a council meeting agenda, you might want to make a short presentation to council in support of your application. With the council planner, discuss if this is possible and appropriate, and find out what notice is necessary for you to speak at the council meeting. Objectors can also make a short presentation at the council meeting.
Refusal
Council or its delegate may refuse to grant the permit and will issue a Refusal to Grant a Permit notice. The grounds for the refusal will be listed on the notice. Council will give a copy of this notice to you and all other parties involved in the application process. Information about applications for review to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) is printed on the back of the refusal notice.
In some instances, the council planner may recommend that the permit is granted but council may refuse the application. Council is not obliged to accept the council planners recommendation and there are many reasons why it may be overturned.
If your application is refused, you have 60 days from the date that notice of the refusal is given to apply to VCAT for a review of the decision. Lodge an application for review as soon as possible so you get in the VCAT system.
Granting the permit
A permit is nearly always subject to specified conditions that must be met. If there are no objections, council can issue the permit immediately. If there are objections, council can only issue a Notice of Decision to Grant a Permit. All concerned parties will receive a copy of the notice. The Notice of Decision to Grant a Permit does not have the same legal status as a permit. However. It signals councils decision to grant the permit and identifies the conditions to be included on it.
An objector has 21 days to lodge an application for review. If VCAT confirms that no application had been lodged within the 21 days, council will issue the permit. If an objector lodges an application for review within 21 days of the notice being given, council cannot issue the permit. The application will be decided by VCAT.
If council issues a permit, you will receive a copy of the permit and the endorsed plans. These are important documents and should be kept in a safe place. Dont use the endorsed plans as your working plans.
Note: the above information has been extracted from the Department of Planning and Community Development Website.