Design and Building Practitioners Regulation 2021 (NSW), Design and Building Practitioners Amendment (Miscellaneous) Regulation 2021 (NSW) and Building Legislation Amendment Act 2021 (NSW)

by Andrew Hales, William Vu

New regulation on residential building work in NSW has commenced

On 1 July 2021, the Design and Building Practitioners Act 2020 (NSW) (DBP Act) fully came into force.  The Design and Building Practitioners Regulation 2021 (NSW) (DBP Regulation) confirms that designers, builders and developers involved in the construction of a class 2 building or a building containing a class 2 part must be registered.  During construction, there are specific lodgement points for designs and forms to be used to declare class 2 building work is compliant with the BCA and government guidance documents.  Significant penalties and investigative and enforcement powers apply to builders and designers, including directors of companies.

For a full summary of the obligations under the DBP Act, see our alert here.

Further amendments from 1 July 2021

Further amendments were made to the Residential Apartment Building (Compliance and Enforcement) Act 2020 (NSW) (RAB Act) and the DBP Act.  Of particular interest to developers and builders working on residential apartment buildings, the Building Legislation Amendment Act 2021 (NSW) allowed for the imposition of a levy on developers, increased penalties under the RAB Act and clarified the lodgement point for varied designs under the DBP Act.

The Design and Building Practitioners Amendment (Miscellaneous) Regulation 2021 (NSW) also updated knowledge and registration requirements for a number of classes of practitioners, confirmed a grace period until 30 June 2022 for practitioners to obtain insurance under the DBP Act and included transitional provisions for Crown building work.

For more details on these amendments, see our alert here.