Free tools
Five free tools to help you navigate the Queensland development assessment system. No sign-up required.
Check whether your project needs building approval, development approval, or both — and the difference between them under the Building Act 1975 and Planning Act 2016.
Understand the cost structure of a Queensland development application — council fees, consultant costs, infrastructure charges, and your options.
The four DA categories under the Planning Act 2016 — what tips a project from accepted into code or impact assessable, and when public notification applies.
What a QLD development application needs — DA Form 1, plans, a planning report, and the extra documents triggered by site constraints.
The DA process stages under the Planning Act 2016 — confirmation, information request, public notification for impact assessable, and decision.
Queensland's development assessment system has two separate approval pathways — building approval from a private certifier under the Building Act 1975, and development approval from council as assessment manager under the Planning Act 2016. Many projects need one but not the other. These five tools help you work out which applies, what it will cost, and what documents you need.
Start with “Do I need a DA?” if you are not sure whether your project needs approval. Then use the cost guide to understand the financial picture, the DA categories tool if council has told you your assessment level, and the document checklist and timeline when you are ready to lodge.
All five tools are free and provide indicative guidance based on the general QLD planning framework. They cannot give you a definitive answer for your specific property — only your council can confirm the assessment category, and only a private certifier can issue building approval.
The cost guide does not quote a specific council application fee because Queensland has no state-wide statutory fee schedule — each of the 78 councils sets its own fees annually. We show you the cost structure and tell you where to find your council's current figures.
The DA checker cannot check your specific property against your council's mapping. Always confirm overlays through your council's online planning scheme or Queensland Globe before you design.
If your project needs a DA — whether code or impact assessable — the core document is a planning report that addresses each applicable assessment benchmark. instantDA generates this report from current QLD planning scheme data for 169 dollars — the same kind of report a town planner charges 800 to 1,500 dollars for, delivered as a PDF and editable Word file.
A Queensland development application follows a defined path under the Planning Act 2016. These five tools map to the stages every applicant goes through: first, work out whether your project needs approval at all (Do I need a DA?). Second, understand the cost structure — council application fees, the planner versus instantDA comparison, and any infrastructure charges (DA cost guide). Third, if council tells you to lodge, confirm the assessment level — code or impact (Accepted or assessable?). Fourth, assemble the right documents so the application is properly made (Document checklist). Fifth, understand the process stages and what happens after lodgement (DA timeline).
The tools are deliberately designed to give you the framework, not a black-box answer. They explain the rules and let you apply them to your situation — because the definitive answer for your specific property always comes from your council as the assessment manager.
Once you have worked through the tools — you know your assessment level, you understand the costs, you have your document checklist — the next step is the planning report itself. This is the document that addresses each assessment benchmark your council will apply. instantDA generates it from current Queensland planning scheme data for $169, structured code-by-code, as a PDF and editable Word file.
If your circumstances change or council issues an information request, re-run the report for the same address at no extra cost. Every report is yours to review before you lodge.