Planning FAQs

Almost all the information you need to understand the full scope of what can be done or built on your land is available through the LIST maps, and the Scheme.

Tasmanian Planning Scheme

The primary controls for the use or development of land are set out in the Tasmanian Planning Scheme. The scheme establishes zones, codes or specific area plans that apply to a specific site and contain information about all the different types of uses and development that is possible.

LISTMaps

The planning scheme mapped overlays may be found at LISTMAP – Land and Information System Tasmania.

If you’re unsure if your next project requires planning approval, you can make a planning enquiry with PlanBuild Tasmania, or speak to a planner Request for preliminary planning advice or call us on 03 6217 9500.

Currently advertised plans

It is legislated that all discretionary planning applications must be advertised for a period of fourteen days, these are publicly available on the Advertised Plans webpage. These are also available at council chambers (38 Bligh Street Rosny Park) and advertised in the classified section of local newspaper, Hobart Mercury.

If the application you’re looking for does not appear on the website, it may not yet be advertised, it may not require advertising, or the advertising period may have expired.

Past advertised plans

If a planning application went to a council meeting for decision you can find the outcome on the Agenda and Minutes webpage – simply search by year or date.

Not all planning applications are determined at council meetings. Proposals which receive two or more representations during the advertising period, proposals recommended for refusal or those of a significant scale are determined by Council. If the application was not determined at a council meeting, the plans will not be made publicly available after the advertising period. These planning applications are not publicly available without owner consent – this is to protect the privacy of all involved parties (builder, architect, owner etc).

Make a submission on a current advertised plan

If you want to make a representation about a currently advertised application, you can express your thoughts by writing to the Chief Executive Officer, PO Box 96, Rosny Park, 7018, or by email to cityplanning@ccc.tas.gov.au.

Please note, representations must be received during the 14-day advertising period. To enable us to contact you, please include a daytime contact number and address in any correspondence you may provide. Any personal information submitted is covered by our privacy policy.

A complete list of council fees can be found on the Council Fees and Charges webpage.

Fortunately, Tasmania currently has the fastest processing time for planning applications in the country and detailed information can be found about this on the Planning and Permit Process webpage.

The table below provides a guide to the statutory timeframes:

Subdivision typically means dividing a larger block of land into smaller lots which can then be sold as vacant lots, further developed or used by different owners. Every zone has its own requirements for minimum lots sizes and design standards.

For example, the minimum lot size in the General Residential Zone is 450m2, and the minimum lot size for most of the Rural Living zoned land in Clarence is 2ha.

To find out if you can subdivide your land you will first need to know what the zone, codes and specific area plans are for your land – this can be found Tasmanian Planning Scheme, or on LISTMaps.

Council is involved with the planning approval, engineering design assessment, requisite on-site inspections, and sealing of the final plan of subdivision.

Information about the Council-based fees associated with subdivision can be found in our Fee Schedule. Enquiries about all other costs to be expected for a particular subdivision should be directed to your land surveyor.

AirBnbs and other similar forms of short-term accommodation are classified as Visitor Accommodation within the Planning Scheme. This refers to apartments, houses and other types of dwellings that are let out to paying guests for short-term accommodation, through platforms such as AirBnb, or similar.

A planning permit is not required if you meet the ‘home-sharing’ exemption, which applies if the dwelling is used by the host (as owner or occupier) as their main place of residence and:

• the dwelling is only let to visitors while they are on vacation or are temporarily absent, or
• visitors are accommodated in not more than four bedrooms while the host is living there.

For all other instances, a planning application is required details of which can be found on the Planning Process and Permits webpage.

In addition to the minimum application requirements, you must also include a floor plan, and a site plan with the boundary, dwelling location, and an on-site parking space indicated. These drawings do not need to be professionally drawn; however, it is required to be to scale, and sufficiently legible.

To find out if you need a planning permit to convert your property to short stay accommodation, you can apply for preliminary planning advice.

Resources

• Short Stay Accommodation Act 2019
• Short Stay Accommodation Act 2019 – Overview FACTSHEET (PDF, 181.1 KB)

A secondary residence is an additional dwelling to the primary residence (single dwelling) on a site and may be in the form of a tiny home, granny flat or ancillary dwelling.

The secondary residence must meet the following definition under the Planning Scheme: 

A secondary residence is an additional residence which is self-contained and: 

• Has a gross floor area not more than 60m².
• Is appurtenant to a single dwelling.
• Shares with the single dwelling access and parking, and water, sewerage, gas, electricity and telecommunications connections and meters.
• May include laundry facilities.

If your proposal does not meet the above definition, it may need to instead be assessed as multiple dwellings. In some zones, multiple dwellings are prohibited, so it is advisable to speak with a planner before commencing.

If find out if you can build a shed/carport/garage on your land, you can make a planning enquiry with PlanBuild Tasmania, or speak to a planner Request for preliminary planning advice or call us on 03 6217 9500.

A shed/carport/garage for residential purposes may either fall under the ‘No Permit Required’ or Discretionary Planning Permit.

After receiving preliminary advice about what type of planning permit is required, you can submit your application.

Home-occupation means the use of a part of a dwelling by a resident for non-residential purposes. Home occupation is exempt from requiring a permit under the Tasmanian Planning Scheme – Clarence, Clause 4.1.4, if the following requirements are met:

• not more than 40m2 of gross floor area of the dwelling is used for non-residential purposes;
• the person conducting the home occupation normally uses the dwelling as their principal place of residence;
• it does not involve employment of persons other than a resident;
• any load on a utility is no more than for a domestic use;
• there is no activity that causes electrical interference to other land;
•  it does not involve display of goods for sale that are visible from any road or public open space adjoining the site;
• it involves no more than 1 advertising sign (that must be non-illuminated) and not more than 0.2m2 in area;
• it does not involve refuelling, servicing, detailing or repair of vehicles not owned by the resident on the site;
• no more than 1 commercial vehicle is on the site at any one time and no commercial vehicle on the site exceeds 2 tonnes; and
• any vehicle used solely for non-residential purposes must be parked on the site.

If any of these requirements are not met, the business may be considered as a ‘home-based business, for which approval may be required. The scheme defines a home-based business as follows:

Home-based business means use of part of a dwelling by a resident for non-residential purposes if:

1. the person conducting the business normally uses the dwelling as their principal place of residence;
2. it does not involve employment of more than 2 workers on-site who do not reside at the dwelling;
3. any load on a utility is no more than for a domestic use;
4. there is no activity that causes electrical interference to use on other land;
5. there is no storage of hazardous material on site;
6. the display of goods for sale are not visible from any road or public open space adjoining the site;
7. there is, on the site, no advertising of the business other than 1 sign (non-illuminated) not exceeding 0.2m2 in area;
8. there is, on the site, no refuelling, servicing, detailing or repair of vehicles not owned by a resident;
9. no more than 2 commercial vehicles are on the site at any one time and no commercial vehicle on the site exceeds 2 tonnes; and
10. all vehicles used by the business are parked on the site.

It is critical that a home occupation or home-based business MUST be ancillary to the residential use of the property, and the person(s) conducting the home occupation or home-based business must use the dwelling as their principal place of residence.

Applicants should be aware that additional requirements from The City of Clarence’s Environmental Health and Building teams may apply to certain home occupations and home-based businesses.

It is recommended that you speak to a planner to confirm what type of application and supporting material will be needed, prior to commencing business.

Requirements for fencing your property vary, depending on the zoning of the property and the type of fence you are wanting to erect. Fences over a specified height or constructed from particular materials may require a planning permit.

The setback requirements under the Tasmanian Planning Scheme-Clarence relate to the applicable zones and codes.

To find out which zones and codes apply to your property, you may wish to submit an enquiry via PlanBuild Tasmania or speak to a planner Request for preliminary planning advice or call 03 6217 9500.

In addition to planning requirements, there may also be applicable boundary setbacks in relation to the National Construction Code (NCC), utilities infrastructure, easements, and covenants.

Find out more on the Building and Plumbing Webpages.

Please note that compliance with easements and covenants is the landowner’s legal responsibility and may prevent or alter the ability to act upon a permit issued.

You may need a planning permit to operate a mobile food truck on private and public land in Clarence. Any type of food business – mobile or otherwise – is categorised and assessed under the ‘Food Services’ use. Depending on the zoning of the land in question, a mobile food business will usually require either a ‘permitted’ or a ‘discretionary’ planning application.

To understand if you need a planning permit speak to a planner Request for preliminary planning advice or call us on 03 6217 9500.

Visit the Food Business webpage for information on all other related permits.

The Resource Management and Planning System of Tasmania does not permit temporary planning permits for the use of caravans while a house is being built. 

To understand if you need a planning permit speak to a planner Request for preliminary planning advice or call us on 03 6217 9500.

You can purchase a copy of your title documentation from Service Tasmania’s’ Land Tittle Register.

If you are not satisfied with our decision on a planning permit application you may appeal to the Tasmanian Civil & Administrative Tribunal (TASCAT), which is an independent body.

You will need to lodge the appeal and this should be done within 14 days of receiving notice of the decision. 

All information about planning appeals and where to lodge your appeal can be found at TASCAT – Tasmanian Civil & Administrative Tribunal