Bore work permit

A bore work permit in the Northern Territory (NT) can allow you to do the following:

• drill and construct a new or replacement bore
• remove, replace, alter, slot or repair the casing, lining or screen of bore
• change or deepen a bore
• decommission, plug, backfill or seal off a bore.

When you need a permit

You need a permit to construct or work on a water bore:

• in water control districts or
• anywhere in the NT if it relates to mining or petroleum activity.

Read below to find out about exceptions.

If you're unsure, email water.licensing@nt.gov.au.

When you don't need a permit

You don't need a permit to construct or work on a bore when:

• it's outside of a water control district
• you will clean out a bore (air lifting)
• it's not more than 3 metres deep
• it's constructed for:
  • carrying out site investigations for the foundations of a building, road or cutting
  • constructing the foundations of a building, road or cutting
  • extracting water from the area occupied by the foundations of a building, road or cutting
  • locating materials necessary for the construction of a road or earthen structure.

How to apply

To apply, you must follow these steps:

Step 1. Fill in the application

Fill in the application for a bore work permit:

Application for a bore work permit PDF (195.1 KB)
Application for a bore work permit DOCX (74.8 KB)

New construction

If you're applying to drill and build a new bore, you must attach a scaled map to your application that shows:

• the proposed location of your bore
• key landmarks
• a north point.

You can view the location of registered bores on Natural Resource (NR) Maps.

Find out more about bore construction.

Existing bores

You must include your bore number on the application. This starts with 'RN' and should be displayed on your bore.

To find your RN number, go to Know Your Bore and search using your address.

Step 2. Submit the application

You must submit your application to the Water Resources office.

Applications will take up to 2 weeks to process.

If your application is approved

You will receive a bore work permit. You must follow the conditions of your permit.

It's an offence to do bore work without authorisation or to make changes to a bore work permit.

Look at an example of a bore work permit PDF (133.0 KB).

You will also need to get an NT licensed driller and provide them with a copy of your permit.

Commercial water use

A bore work permit doesn't grant a right to take water from a bore.

To take water from a bore for commercial purposes or for irrigating a domestic garden that's more than 0.5 hectares, you must have a water extraction licence.