Deemed Approvals

The commencing of the Sustainable Planning Act 2009 (SPA) on 18 December 2009, brought with it a significant change to the approval (or refusal) of certain types of development applications. This change was to introduce the concept of a deemed approval of certain development applications. It was a position that had been lobbied for by the property industry for some time, but until the SPA, had been resisted. This article gives a brief overview of the deemed approval provisions and highlights some key points for those in the development industry to be aware of.

The provisions in the SPA for deemed approvals take up only a few pages, but carry some significant weight. Section 331 allows a development applicant to issue a deemed approval notice to a Council that has not made a decision on the development application within the normal decision making period (including any lawful extension of that period). This right for an applicant applies only to certain types of code