Frequently asked questions.

It depends when they were built. If the works were completed before 1 May 2016, a Certificate of Existence may be available through the Director of Building Control on our recommendation. If they were built after 1 May 2016 without a permit, there is no retrospective pathway. The works would need to be removed under a building permit and rebuilt under a new permit.

There are three levels in the Territory. An Occupancy Permit is the highest, where the works fully comply with the permit, the Act and Regulations, and the technical standards. A Certificate of Substantial Compliance applies under a valid permit where the technical standards are met but there is a minor departure, such as a missed inspection or a missing certificate. It cannot be issued where there is any non-compliance with the technical standards. A Certificate of Existence is for works completed before 1 May 2016, issued by the Director of Building Control on our recommendation.

It is a lengthy process, generally 6 to 12 months. We lodge the recommendation, but the Director of Building Control issues the certificate, so we cannot guarantee the outcome or the timeframe, and a recommendation can be rejected.

Under the NT scheme, residential building cover is not available for work that is covered only by a Certificate of Existence. Cover applies to work with an Occupancy Permit or Certificate of Substantial Compliance. Confirm the position on your specific policy with your insurer before you proceed.

Not where the nature of the item requires physical verification. In those cases a physical re-inspection is required. For structural elements that required inspection, we can accept a construction Section 40 certificate from your structural engineer covering the outstanding items. A Section 40 is not available for waterproofing, fire separation or a final inspection, and those items require re-inspection.

No. An amendment only covers changes within the scope of the approved work. Adding a separate building, expanding the scope, or changing the classification all require a new building permit.

No. Once a permit has received occupancy it cannot be amended. Any further works require a new building permit.

Allow 1 to 2 weeks from the date we receive all of the required documentation. The main variable is how quickly the documentation is provided. An NT building permit is valid for 2 years. South Australia works differently: there, building consent forms part of the development approval process and different timeframes apply.

No. It is unlawful to carry out building work without a valid building permit in place, and doing so may mean the works cannot be certified.

The obligation to have a registered builder nominated at all times rests with you as the owner, and you must notify us of the new builder within 14 days of engaging them. We strongly recommend appointing the replacement before the current builder is terminated. Works must stop and must not recommence until the new builder is appointed, the permit amendment is issued, and we have re-inspected the site.

A certifier cannot be removed or replaced without the consent of the Director of Building Control (section 45(1) of the Building Act). If you want a new permit for different works, the existing certifier would instead cancel the existing permit.

Fixing in the pan compromises the waterproofing. The options are to reroof the affected portion, or to lodge an amendment together with a performance solution prepared by a suitably qualified person addressing the weatherproofing of the method, the effect on the roof's hydraulic capacity, and water immersion and thermal factors.

Yes, for every solar job. The building file confirms the panels are being installed on an approved building, and lets us check the roof purlin sizing and spacing so the installation method will work in accordance with our engineering.

No. Standard shed engineering only covers the shed as a non-habitable Class 10a structure. Adding facilities such as a kitchen, bathroom or laundry makes it a habitable dwelling (Class 1a), which requires new or updated engineering and the full dwelling process: drafted plans, energy assessment, plumbing design, wastewater, a registered builder or owner-builder, a building permit, insurance, and possibly planning approval.

A change of use still requires more than a certificate. We need current, measurable plans of the space so compliance matters such as travel distances to exits and exit widths can be calculated, and planning approval may also be required. Depending on the existing access provisions, a performance solution for access may be needed as well. PBC does not prepare plans, so you would engage a draftsperson for that.

A QLD Form 15 has no statutory standing in South Australia. We need the actual calculations, design reports and supporting evidence behind the forms to demonstrate compliance for an SA building rules consent.

No. Council lodgement fees are determined by the council based on how they assess the planning consent, and the CITB levy is a statutory obligation payable by the applicant. We do not quote or administer these, but we can lodge the development application into PlanSA on your behalf.

The mandatory notification inspections during construction are a council process. Separately, many owners and builders engage us for independent staged inspections. That is a service you choose, not a statutory step. The occupancy certificate should be completed by whoever issued the building consent; if they are unavailable, it reverts to council. Engaging a new private certifier purely at the occupancy stage is very costly, so we generally recommend against it.

No. You must build in accordance with what is on the consent. We can undertake a compliance review of the building rules consent and staged inspections, but we still recommend returning to council for the occupancy certificate.

No. A builder cannot be the relevant authority for building consent on the same project. It is a conflict of interest and is not permitted in South Australia.

No. A site classification report is the intellectual property of the authoring engineering firm. The council holding a copy does not give it the right to release it. The report must be obtained from the authoring firm, and in any event it is building-specific and currency-dependent, so a report prepared for a former proposal is not transferable to a new one.

iCertify is our client portal. Every PBC project is managed through it, and it gives you one place to see where each of your projects is up to, upload documentation, and access the documents we issue, at any hour rather than waiting on an email.

Your dashboard shows your projects, recent activity, and a list of anything we need from you. You can upload project documents (we are notified as soon as you do), download the documents PBC has issued, accept or decline fee offers online, view the status of invoices, and choose which email notifications you receive.

Access comes with your project. New enquiries start through the Start a Project form, which does not need an account. If you are an existing client without a login, contact us and we will set you up.

No. You can always call or email us as you do now. The portal simply keeps everything about your project in one place, with every version retained, so nothing is lost in an inbox.

No. Your projects are only visible to you and the PBC team working on them.

Accepting online takes one click and records the acceptance against the project instantly. There is no printing, signing or scanning, and the project can move to the next step without waiting on paperwork.

The fee depends on the scope of services (certification only, or also engineering and energy), the location (which affects inspection attendance), and the complexity of the build. We need to see the plans before we can provide an accurate fee. Send them through and we will come back with a fixed-fee proposal within two business days.

It depends on the jurisdiction. In the Northern Territory, yes, we can deliver both on the same project. In South Australia we cannot act as both the certifier and the engineer on the same project; it is a conflict of interest. Where we certify an SA project you engage a separate engineer, and where we do the engineering another certifier issues the consent.

Yes. We undertake structural condition reports and structural adequacy assessments of existing buildings. In South Australia, if we are also the certifier on the project, the engineering must be carried out by others. See the conflict of interest rule above.