On 18 March 2025 the Consumer and Planning Legislation Amendment (Housing Statement Reform) Act 2025 (Amendment Act) received Royal Assent.
The provisions of the Amendment Act described in this article will come into operation by no later than 25 November 2025.

Planning scheme amendment and panel process

The Amendment Act makes eight key changes to the planning scheme amendment and panel process:

First, it introduces the concept of a 'low-impact amendment'. These amendments are within a class to be prescribed by the Minister or as declared by the Minister. A low-impact amendment can be prepared by a municipal council without it first obtaining authorisation from the Minister and can be adopted without submissions being resolved or referred to a panel. If a municipal council decides to abandon a low-impact amendment following consideration of submissions, notice must be given to the Minister and the Minister is able to progress the amendment as the planning authority. The second reading speech explains that this pathway will be available to less complex amendments and amendments that are expected to have relatively limited impacts. Specific details about the types of amendments that will qualify are yet to be published.

Second, it creates a procedure through which any person can request a Council to prepare an amendment to the planning scheme, for a fee. When a request is made, the municipal council must decide whether to seek authorisation from the Minister to prepare the amendment, or refuse the request. The decision and reasons must be given to the person who made the request to the Minister. If the decision is to apply for authorisation, the Minister may direct that it be done within a specified time not less than 6 weeks. If the decision is to refuse the request, there is no immediate right of review, however the reasons are intended to provide transparency and potentially be relevant to any subsequent request for Ministerial intervention. They could potentially also form the basis for an administrative law challenge against the decision.

Third, it empowers a Council to prepare an amendment without authorisation if the Minister does not respond to an application for authorisation within 10 business days of the application.

Fourth, planning authorities must not refer submissions to a planning panel which in their opinion are frivolous, vexatious or wholly irrelevant to the amendment.

Fifth, planning authorities can apply to the Minister for an exemption from considering a panel report if the report is not received within a specified timeframe. Where a hearing is conducted, this timeframe is the earlier of 6 months from the panel's appointment or 3 months from the hearing. Where no hearing is conducted, this timeframe is the earlier of 6 months from the date submissions were referred to the panel or 3 months from the date the panel completed its consideration of submissions.

Sixth, planning panels and planning advisory committees have a broad discretion to treat multiple submissions as one. This includes where issues raised are the same or substantially the same. A lead submitter can be nominated by those submitters or delegated by the committee, with that person's consent. The panel or committee is only required to give the lead submitter an opportunity to be heard. If there is no nomination or consent to the panel's or committee's designation, there is no requirement to give those submitters an opportunity to be heard. The Minister can appoint a directions panel to make decisions and give directions about like submissions and lead submitters.

Seventh, if an amendment does not raise a major issue of policy, planning panels have discretion to consider submissions on the basis of documents without a hearing. The Minister can issue guidelines to inform this decision. If a panel proposes to consider submissions on the basis of documents, it must give notice of its proposed decision within 10 business days of the referral of the submissions and give submitters at least 10 business days to make a written submission about the proposed decision. The panel must consider each submission and decide whether to give a person a reasonable opportunity to be heard by conducting a hearing or on the basis of documents. A panel can conduct a hearing about some matters and on the basis of documents about others.

Eighth, the ability for a planning panel to give directions about conferences of experts and joint expert reports is confirmed. This includes giving directions to hold conferences, about who is to attend conferences and about the preparation and content of joint expert reports.

Planning permit application and VCAT process

The Amendment Act makes nine key changes to the planning permit application and VCAT process:
First, it formalises a process to deal with incomplete applications. The responsible authority can give notice within 5 business days of receiving an incomplete application that a required fee has not been paid or any required information or document has not been received, and specify a time not less than 5 business days for the matter to be dealt with. Only one such notice can be given and an application is taken to have been received upon compliance with the notice. In the case of non-compliance, the application fee must be refunded. Because there is no obligation on a responsible authority to address incomplete applications using this process and there is nothing preventing a responsible authority from requiring an applicant to provide more information under section 54 within 28 days, it remains to be seen whether this new process will improve efficiency.

Second, it provides for the Minister to issue guidelines about material detriment to inform decisions about whether notice of permit applications must be given.

Third, it extends the default permit expiry provisions which apply when not specified by a permit condition to 3 years for the commencement of a development, 5 years for the completion of a development and 3 years for the commencement of a use. Interestingly, this provision will apply to permits issued before the Amendment Act comes into operation, if the permit has not expired on or before the date the Amendment Act comes into operation.

Fourth, in circumstances where a Minister 'calls in' an application from a responsible authority, it:

• removes the obligation for the Minister to refer objections or submissions to a panel; and
• removes the obligation for the Minister to consider a panel's report if it is not received within 3 months of the panel's appointment or 1 month of the date on which the panel completed its hearing.

Fifth, it empowers the Minister to exempt an application from the metropolitan planning levy in circumstances where the Minister is satisfied that the person has previously made a permit application for the development of the same land and paid the levy, and the estimated cost of the development is not more than 10% greater than the estimated cost of development specified in the levy certificate in respect of the previous permit application.

Sixth, VCAT can treat two or more objectors as a group if their statements rely on similar grounds or raise similar issues. When that occurs, VCAT can appoint one or more of those objectors as a representative of the group, with that person's consent.

Seventh, VCAT has broad powers to actively manage a proceeding if it considers it desirable in the interests of the just, timely and efficient determination of the proceeding. This includes conducting a proceeding on the basis of documents, imposing time limits and prohibiting or limited cross examination. Additionally presidential and legal members can confine a proceeding or summarily strike out or dismiss all or any part of a proceeding which they consider lacks substantive or objective merit and has no real prospect of success.

Eighth, in reviewing proceedings under a planning enactment, if VCAT affirms or varies the decision it can provide reasons in the form of a summary of the key basis for the decision.

Ninth, it is confirmed that VCAT can make rules for the just, timely and efficient determination of proceedings and for actively managing proceedings.

We look forward to the release of information about the classification of low-impact amendments and guidelines informing considerations about material detriment in relation to permit applications.

Anybody intending to lodge a new permit application in 2025 which might qualify for an exemption from the metropolitan planning levy will be particularly interested in the timing of the relevant provisions in the Amendment Act coming into operation. We are hopeful that this will occur prior to their default commencement date of 25 November 2025.