Building work on land subject to an easement held by Council

Section 65 of the Building Act 1975 (Qld) provides that, if land is subject either to a registered easement or to a registered statutory covenant for which the registered holder is the State, a statutory body representing the State or a local government, the assessment manager for a building development application ‘must not approve’ the application unless each registered holder of an easement or relevant covenant ‘has consented to the building work’.

Generally, a private certifier will be the assessment manager for a building development application. If a private certifier is the assessment manager for a building development application over land subject to an easement for which Council is the registered holder, Council’s consent will be required before the application can be approved.

If Council is the assessment manager or responsible entity for a building development application, the consent of any easement or covenant holders is only required under section 65 of the Building Act 1975 (Qld) to the extent that the building works, under the Planning Act 2016 (Qld), must be assessed against the building assessment provisions.

Building work on land subject to a registered easement

Building work can include building, repairing, altering, underpinning (whether by vertical or lateral support), moving or demolishing a building or other structure, excavating, filling and other work regulated under the building assessment provisions.

If building work that is assessable against the building assessment provisions is proposed on land subject to a registered easement for which Council is the registered holder, Council’s consent must be sought.

Council’s consent must be sought even if works are located outside the easement area.

The assessment manager must not approve the application unless each registered holder of an easement has consented to the building work.

Building work on land subject to a registered statutory covenant

If building work that is assessable against the building assessment provisions is proposed on land subject to a statutory covenant for which Brisbane City Council is the registered holder, Council’s consent must be sought even if works are located outside the covenant area.

To seek consent, email specialistservices@brisbane.qld.gov.au.

Build over easement - application process

On lodgement of your application with Council, Council will undertake stakeholder consultation to assess the suitability and impact of the proposed works within the easement/s.

Build over easement applications undergo an assessment process and are considered on a case-by-case basis. On completion of the assessment process, Council will advise whether consent will be granted to build within the easement area.

The standard assessment timeframe is 20 working days.

If provided, consent is valid for 12 months from the issue date and the consent will automatically lapse if the building development application has not been lodged within that time.

Information required to be provided with your application

• Title document^*
• Easement dealing document^*
• Survey plan showing easement^*
• Clearly marked plans (e.g. top and side view plans), showing the exact location of the  easement and a description of any proposed infrastructure that will be placed within the easement. Plans must clearly show:
  • easement boundary
  • any pipes and infrastructure within the easement (if applicable)
  • all proposed works and materials. This would include:
    i. measurements for any height, boundary and easement offsets
    ii. list/description of proposed works, including any materials to be placed within the easement (i.e. this would include items such as: concrete, tiles, decking, fences/pool fencing, decorative rocks, retaining walls, steps/staircases, roof eaves, air-conditioning units, swimming pools, carports, sheds etc).

* Fees apply for any documents from Titles Queensland.

Current infrastructure within the proposed work area

If current infrastructure is located within the proposed building development work area, and you are proposing building development work within two metres of this infrastructure, a secondary application might be required, including:

• a Build over or near Stormwater application to be submitted to Council; and/or
• a Build over Asset application to be submitted to Urban Utilities.

Building development work over or near sewers, water mains, stormwater drains and combined sanitary drains must be assessed against the Queensland Development Code MP 1.4 – Building over or near relevant infrastructure (PDF - 515KB).

You will be notified of this requirement in Council’s decision for the build over easement application.

Application fee

The 2023-24 financial year fee for consent requests (building work on land subject to an easement held by Council) is $574.30.

The fee is required to be paid in full prior to release of the Council consent. Note, the fee is only applicable if Council supports the application.

How to apply

Submit your online application

Once your application has been submitted, a Council officer will contact you.

If you have any questions about your application, email Council's Land Use Management team.