If development is ‘exempt development’, development consent is not required. Exempt development is usually development of a minor nature and includes things like building a small carport, rear patios and decks, minor demolitions and some changes of use.

However, to be exempt development, the development you are proposing needs to meet all the requirements in the Codes SEPP for that type of development. For example, if you are proposing to build a carport it can’t be bigger than a certain size, it can’t be in a heritage area, it has to be lower than 3metres and so on.

Now as long as the development meets all relevant and applicable standards under the Codes SEPP, the development does not require consent from your local Council. A word of warning here though, it’s not easy to figure out if your development is exempt development and the Codes SEPP is not easy to navigate. Carrying out development on the assumption it is exempt can result in hefty fines and demolition orders if you get it wrong.

Complying development is relatively straightforward development that still requires development consent (it’s not exempt) but has been identified as being suitable for a fast-track approval process (usually through a private certifier). So, the idea behind complying development is that development of a relatively simple nature that still requires development consent can be approved by a private certifier to fast-track the approval.

Similar to exempt development, com plying development must meet all relevant and applicable standards under the Codes SEPP for complying development and will need to meet the ‘deemed to satisfy’ provisions of the National Construction Code (formerly Building Code of Australia). There are also limitations on complying development for example it cannot be carried out on land within a heritage conservation area or within flood or bushfire prone land.

So that’s a very quick overview and introduction to exempt and complying development. As always, it’s important to obtain planning or legal advice before proceeding on the assumption that the work you’re about to carry out is exempt or complying development.

Here's a short video explaining what exempt and complying development mean in NSW: