Building and renovating: permits and processes

Livable housing design includes key structural and spatial elements that are critical to ensure future flexibility and adaptability of the home.

Increasing the number of livable homes in Australia provides people with:

• greater choice in where they can live
• an ability to comfortably visit family and friends
• freedom to remain in their own homes after injury or changes in mobility.

To find out more, go the National Construction Code (NCC) website and read:

• Volume One (Part G7)
• Volume Two (Part H8) 
• Standard for Livable Housing Design
• Livable Housing Design Handbook.

For information on application to dwelling extensions/alterations and exemptions for step-free path requirements, read the NT Guidelines for Livable Housing Design PDF (383.3 KB).

Read more about the history on the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Logistics website.

Benefits

The livable housing design requirements meets the needs of the community by making homes easier to access and navigate.

It will help all members of the community including those with:

• limited mobility
• young families
• short-term impairment or injuries.

During construction

Including livable housing design features during construction:

• helps avoid future costly modifications
• plans for future needs of occupants as they change.

Costs to homeowners

The inclusion of livable housing design features was estimated to cost around 1% of the build cost for a standalone house.

However many design features don't need substantial change to current NT building practices.

• Concrete block construction used across the Top End does not require reinforcing in bathrooms.
• Design for open plan living already supports easy navigation throughout a home.
• Popular design choices for walk-in showers already provide for step-free and hob-less entry.

You can minimise additional costs with effective design.

If you're currently building

If you have a building permit approved before 1 October 2023, then you don't need to change your plans to include livable housing design.

Applications for building permits from 1 October 2023 must meet livable housing design requirements.

If you have substantially progressed your design before 1 October 2023, but have not applied for a building permit before 1 October, speak to your building certifier about requirements. You may not need to adjust your design.

What the requirements apply to

Livable housing design requirements apply to the construction of residential buildings:

• houses and the like (Class 1a buildings)
• apartments (Class 2 sole-occupancy units).

Existing homes

Existing homes don't need to be upgraded.

Building permit applications from 1 October 2023 for residential building work must comply with the new requirements.

What's included

One step-free entrance door to a home, which can be from one of the following:

• attached garage or carport
• car parking space - such as driveway or detached garage
• pedestrian entry at the allotment boundary - via a footpath / ramp or similar.

One toilet with a minimum of 1200 mm by 900 mm clear space around which is to be located on the ground or entry level of a home.

One shower that is hob-less and step-free.

The toilet and shower described above (and a bath if provided) are to have reinforced walls to support future installation of grab rails. Walls constructed of masonry, blockwork or concrete don't require additional reinforcement.

Entrance door and internal doors to have 820 mm clear opening (870mm or wider door) on the ground or entry level that connect to habitable rooms, laundry and rooms containing the toilet and shower described above.

Corridors and hallways to be 1000 mm wide between wall surfaces on the ground or entry level that connect to habitable rooms, laundry and rooms containing the toilet and shower described above.

Read below for more detailed information.

Exemptions

Sensible exemptions for step-free path requirements are included in the provisions.

Building certifiers will determine if an exemption can be applied. You must still meet other livable housing design requirements.

To get an exemption, use the form for exemption from step-free access path DOCX (62.6 KB).

Your application for a building permit must include:

• drawings showing the plan and proposed usage at each floor level, elevations, sections and dimensions of the building, the sizes and locations of structural members
• the levels of the site and of the floors of building in relation to an adjoining street channel.

This information will assist building certifiers to determine whether an exemption to the step-free path requirements can be applied.

Step-free path

An exemption is provided for houses where:

• height of lowest floor containing habitable rooms is too high to be reached by a ramp within the required lengths, such as for elevated homes
• physical size of the site is limiting
• land is too steep.

Elevated homes

Elevated homes can continue to be built.

Highset elevated homes that don't have habitable rooms underneath the house are considered too high to be reached by a ramp.

For example, an elevated house that has a carport, outdoor living space and a laundry or bathroom underneath the house.

These homes don't need ramping from the ground to elevated habitable part of building.

While exempt from requiring a step-free path, you must still meet other livable housing design requirements.

Homes raised above the ground

Repairs and maintenance

Repairs and maintenance refers to work that is returning an item to an acceptable conditions by the renewal, replacement or mending of work, damaged or degraded parts.

Repairs and maintenance are not required to comply with the Livable Housing Design Standard where the part of the building being repaired or maintained didn't comply with the Livable Housing Design Standard before the repair or maintenance.

Renovations

The Livable Housing Design Standard applies when the renovation:

• includes modifications to a shower
• involves demolition of the existing doorway
• increases the size of the room
• exposes the wall frame.

It doesn't apply if the renovation is:

• already a complying sanitary compartment or bathroom in the home
• a renovation to a non-complying sanitary compartment or bathroom.

Extensions and alterations

Building work to extend or alter existing buildings must comply with current National Construction Code requirements, including Livable Housing Design.

The following exceptions apply:

• approved Class 1a buildings as defined under Part 9A of the Building Regulations 1993
• alterations to existing buildings where inclusion of the Livable Housing Design Standard can't be reasonably achieved.

It is expected that Livable Housing Design Standard requirements will be applied where they can reasonably be included as part of the planned building work.

Additional building work to other parts of the existing building outside the planned building work is not required.

Considerations

The Livable Housing Design Standard only requires the following meet requirements:

• one toilet
• one shower
• one entrance door.

Any building work to extend or alter a home must also consider whether the requirements are already met in the existing home.

The existing home may restrict ability to meet Livable Housing Design Standard requirements.

Alterations to bathrooms that don't include changes to walls may not result in the minimum clear space in front of the toilet being achieved.

Independent living units

New Class 1a independent dwellings are required to meet the Livable Housing Design Standard.

Extensions and alterations to existing independent living units are required to meet National Construction Code requirements as outlined in the section above.

Contact

To find out more, call Building Advisory Services on 08 8999 8985 or email bas@nt.gov.au.