INSIGHT · LICENSING & COMPLIANCE
Is the NCC law?
Only through each state's own Act.
Is the National Construction Code law? Not by itself. The Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB) states the NCC "is given legal effect" through state and territory building and plumbing legislation, so each state's Act or regulation decides which edition applies. As read on 10 November 2026, the NCC is free to read on the ABCB website. Most Australian Standards it references are not: Budget 2026-27 funds $42.7 million over four years for free read-only access to standards referenced in legislation, and the Government said on 25 September 2026 it expects that program to start "in the coming months".
Analysed 10 November 2026 · ABCB NCC 2025 adoption table and General NCC FAQ (no page dates shown) · NCC 2025 Parts A2, A3 and A4 · Budget Paper No. 2, 12 May 2026 · ministerial media release, 25 September 2026 · Standards Australia notices of 12 May and 25 August 2026 · state Acts and regulations as listed in the table, plus the NSW Government page last updated 13 May 2026 · all read 10 November 2026.
Key takeaways
- The NCC takes effect through state law: Part A3 of NCC 2025 states: "The NCC has legal effect through references in relevant State or Territory building and plumbing legislation" and "The NCC is subject to, and may be overridden by, State or Territory legislation." Victoria's Building Regulations 2018 reg 10, for example, says the BCA "is adopted by and forms part of these Regulations".
- The edition in force differs by state: As read on 10 November 2026, Victoria, WA and the ACT list NCC 2025 from 1 May 2026; NSW, Queensland and Tasmania list 1 May 2027 (Tasmania after a temporary adoption from 1 May to 4 June 2026); South Australia lists its Building Code from 1 May 2027 and its Plumbing Code from 1 May 2026; the Northern Territory has not adopted NCC 2025. Tasmania's Act names NCC 2022 Amendment 2 until 30 April 2027.
- The NCC is free; most referenced standards are not: The ABCB states the NCC "is available to access and use for free" under a Creative Commons Attribution licence, and that it "doesn't provide access to the Australian Standards referenced" in the NCC.
- Free standards are funded, not yet live in the sources read: Budget Paper No. 2 (12 May 2026) provides $42.7 million over four years from 2026-27 for "free public read-only access to standards referenced in Commonwealth and state and territory legislation". On 25 September 2026 the Government said it had "completed the legislative process to make funding available for this program" and that the program is expected to start "in the coming months". We found no start date on 10 November 2026.
- We would record the edition, the pathway and the standard's edition: A system-design recommendation: per project and volume, the NCC edition and the state instrument that applied it, the compliance pathway for each Performance Requirement, and each referenced document's edition and the list it came from.
01
How each state gives the NCC
legal effect.
Each Australian state and territory gives the National Construction Code legal effect through its own Act or regulation, and the provision differs: some define the Building Code of Australia (BCA) in an Act, some adopt it by regulation, and Tasmania names the edition in its Act.
The BCA is NCC Volumes One and Two; the Plumbing Code of Australia (PCA) is Volume Three.
| State | Adopting provision | What the text does | Edition in force on 10 November 2026 | Instrument and version read |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 for the BCA; Plumbing and Drainage Act 2011 for the PCA, as the NSW Government states it. Section: not verified (10 Nov 2026) | The NSW Government page states that all new building and new building work in NSW must comply with the NCC, and that a certifier must be satisfied that plans comply with the relevant edition of the BCA before issuing a Complying Development or Construction Certificate | NCC 2022 Amendment 2 (in effect from 29 July 2025). NSW states it will adopt NCC 2025 on 1 May 2027 | NSW Government page, last updated 13 May 2026. The Act was not read: the NSW register returned a bot check |
| Victoria | Building Regulations 2018 reg 10, made under the Building Act 1993 (s 9 lets regulations adopt a document as in force from time to time) | Reg 10: "The BCA is adopted by and forms part of these Regulations as modified by these Regulations." The Act's s 3(1) defines the BCA as Volumes One and Two of the NCC, with Victorian variations | NCC 2025, adopted 1 May 2026 (ABCB table) | Building Regulations 2018, Authorised Version No. 032 (amendments as at 27 October 2026); Building Act 1993, Authorised Version No. 152 |
| Queensland | Building Act 1975 s 12 (what the BCA is) and s 30(f) (the BCA is one of the building assessment provisions) | Section 12 defines the BCA as NCC Volumes 1 and 2, including the Queensland Appendixes, as amended from time to time. Section 14 says work complies with the BCA only if it complies with all relevant performance requirements, each met only by the deemed-to-satisfy provisions, a performance solution, or a combination | NCC 2022; the ABCB lists NCC 2025 from 1 May 2027 | Building Act 1975, current version on Queensland Legislation |
| South Australia | Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016 s 3(1), definitions of Building Code and Building Rules | "Building Code means an edition of the Building Code of Australia published by the Australian Building Codes Board in the National Construction Code series". The Building Rules include the Building Code "as it applies under this Act" and the Ministerial building standards | BCA: NCC 2022 until 30 April 2027, with NCC 2025 from 1 May 2027; PCA: 2025 edition from 1 May 2026 (ABCB table) | PDI Act 2016, Version 30.7.2026. Regulations and Ministerial building standards not read on 10 November 2026 |
| Western Australia | Building Regulations 2012 reg 3A (what the Building Code is) and reg 31A (applicable building standards), under the Building Act 2011 | Reg 3A: the Building Code is Volumes One and Two of the NCC, as amended from time to time. Reg 31A(1) and (2), except where regs 31BA, 31C, 31D and 31HA otherwise provide: the applicable standards are in the edition in effect when the permit application is made, or the edition in effect 12 months before | BCA 2025 from 1 May 2026, with the 12 month choice in reg 31A(2)(b), which reg 31A(2A) excludes for Volume One Part G5 as modified by reg 15D(2) | Building Regulations 2012, compilation 04-af0-00 |
| Tasmania | Building Act 2016 s 4(1), definition of National Construction Code; s 3 objects | Until 30 April 2027, the NCC is "NCC 2022, and as last amended by NCC 2022 Amendment 2 on 29 July 2025"; from 1 May 2027, "the latest edition of that code" | NCC 2022 Amendment 2 until 30 April 2027. The ABCB table lists NCC 2025 as temporarily adopted from 1 May to 4 June 2026, with 1 May 2027 as the adoption date | Building Act 2016, current version; s 4(1) amended by No. 6 of 2026, applied 5 June 2026 |
| ACT | Building Act 2004 s 136(1), definition of building code; s 49 (complying with building code) | Building code means the BCA as amended from time to time by the ABCB and the ACT Appendix, and any document prescribed by regulation. Section 49 makes it an offence for a licensed builder to carry out work that does not result in a building that complies with the building code | NCC 2025 from 1 May 2026, with a 12 month transition period (ABCB table) | Building Act 2004, Republication No 57, effective 10 November 2026 |
| Northern Territory | Building Regulations 1993 reg 4(1), under the Building Act 1993 | Reg 4(1): the Building Code, the Plumbing Code and the Code of Practice for Wastewater Management apply to buildings classifiable under Part A6 of the Building Code and to building work. The Regulations define the NCC as in force from time to time | NCC 2025 "Not adopted" (ABCB table). Our page on NCC 2025 adoption reports a ministerial declaration that the Territory keeps NCC 2022 | Building Regulations 1993, as in force at 30 March 2026. The declaration itself was not read |
02
The NCC, the BCA and
what "compliance" means.
The National Construction Code is published in three volumes. NCC 2025's introduction states: "The Building Code of Australia (BCA) is Volumes One and Two of the NCC and the Plumbing Code of Australia (PCA) is Volume Three of the NCC." So the BCA is part of the NCC, not a separate code.
Informative parts of the NCC, such as its introduction, are labelled by the ABCB as information only. The clauses quoted from Parts A2 to A4 are Governing Requirements.
- Compliance is with Performance Requirements: NCC 2025 clause A2G1: compliance is achieved by complying with the Governing Requirements and the Performance Requirements, which are satisfied by a Performance Solution, a Deemed-to-Satisfy Solution, or a combination of the two.
- Deemed-to-Satisfy is one pathway: Clause A2G3(1): "A solution that complies with the Deemed-to-Satisfy Provisions is deemed to have met the Performance Requirements." Queensland's Building Act 1975 s 14(4) sets out the same three routes for the BCA in its own words.
- State law sits above the code: Clause A3G1(3) (Part A3): "The NCC is subject to, and may be overridden by, State or Territory legislation." State variations, additions and deletions must be complied with in conjunction with the NCC.
- Enforcement is state business: The ABCB's FAQ states that "enforcement and administration of the NCC is managed by the state and territory governments". The ACT's Building Act 2004 s 49, for example, makes it an offence for a licensed builder to carry out building work that does not result in a building that complies with the building code.
03
Are the Australian Standards
it references mandatory?
Whether an Australian Standard referenced in the NCC is mandatory depends on the pathway used. Under NCC 2025, a referenced document applies "only in the context in which the document is quoted" (clause A4G1(2)), and the edition is the one listed in Schedule 2 or the ABCB's register of alternative referenced documents (A4G1(1)). Where a Deemed-to-Satisfy Provision calls up a standard and a project relies on that provision, the standard's edition becomes part of the compliance case. A Performance Solution is the other pathway clause A2G1 allows.
Whether a particular standard is mandatory for a particular design is a question for the building surveyor or certifier.
| Source | What it says | Status |
|---|---|---|
| NCC 2025 A4G1(1) and (3) | A reference to a document means the edition listed in Schedule 2 or the register; a newer edition not listed "is not referenced for the purposes of the NCC" | Governing Requirement |
| NCC 2025 A4G1(5) and (6) | A document referenced inside a primary referenced document is a secondary referenced document, as it existed when the primary document was published | Governing Requirement |
| NCC 2025 A4G2 | "The NCC overrules any difference between the NCC (including the ABCB Housing Provisions) and a primary referenced document" | Governing Requirement |
| SA.GOV.AU, The Building Code of Australia | "Australian Standards referenced in the BCA are mandatory documents." | Government information page, last updated 23 November 2022 |
| Building Regulations 2012 (WA) reg 3 | "AS" followed by a designation means the Australian Standard "as referenced in the relevant edition of the Building Code" | Regulation |
| Building Act 2004 (ACT) s 139A | The Minister may declare a document approved by or under an ABCB scheme, including an Australian Standard, to be a recognised standard | Act |
04
Free access to standards:
announced, funded, no start date.
Free access to Australian Standards referenced in legislation was a Budget 2026-27 measure. As read on 10 November 2026, the Government has said it completed the legislative process to make funding available, Standards Australia describes "sponsored access to selected Australian Standards", and no source we read gives a start date or the list of standards covered.
The documents use three phrasings: standards "referenced in Commonwealth and state and territory legislation" (Budget Paper No. 2), "mandatory Australian Standards" (Standards Australia, 12 May) and "selected Australian Standards" (Standards Australia, 25 August). None of the documents read says whether every standard referenced in NCC Schedule 2, or secondary referenced documents, will be included.
| Date | Body | What it says | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 May 2026 | Australian Government, Budget Paper No. 2 | "$42.7 million over four years from 2026-27 to provide ongoing grants to Standards Australia to provide free public read-only access to standards referenced in Commonwealth and state and territory legislation" | Budget measure |
| 12 May 2026 | Budget regulatory reform fact sheet | Treasury's National Construction Code Modernisation Project will "make it easier to use through free standards" | Announced project |
| 12 May 2026 | Standards Australia | Welcomed "the Australian Government's commitment to sponsored public access to mandatory Australian Standards" | Statement |
| 25 August 2026 | Standards Australia | Working towards "sponsored access to selected Australian Standards referenced in Commonwealth, State and Territory legislation and regulations - including those relating to construction", through "a simple, online, read-only experience as soon as practicable" | In preparation |
| 25 September 2026 | Assistant Minister Andrew Leigh | "Today, the Government completed the legislative process to make funding available for this program." The Government "expects the program to start in the coming months" | Funded; start date not given |
| 10 November 2026 | Sources read on that day | No announcement that access has started, and no published list of the standards covered | Not started in the sources read |
05
What is free today,
and on what terms.
The same FAQ page still describes NCC 2022 Amendment 2 as "the current version", while the ABCB adoption table lists NCC 2025 from 1 May 2026 in Victoria, WA and the ACT and for South Australia's Plumbing Code.
- The NCC itself: The ABCB states the NCC is "available to access and use for free" on its website and is provided under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) licence, so it can be shared and adapted with credit to the ABCB. Our page on the NCC XML datasets covers the machine-readable files and their versions.
- Referenced standards, today: The ABCB's FAQ states it "doesn't provide access to the Australian Standards referenced" in the NCC, that access to full text "typically requires a purchase or subscription", and that Standards Australia's Reader Room offers select standards at no cost "for personal, non-commercial purposes", online viewing only, with downloading, printing and sharing not permitted.
- The Government's own saving estimate: The 25 September 2026 release states: "For a small construction firm, the Government estimates that free access to construction and electrical standards could save up to $1,600 a year."
- How often the code changes: The ABCB FAQ states that since 2016 the NCC "has notionally been updated on a 3-year cycle", that the 2022 and 2025 editions had delayed implementation, and that on 24 August 2025 the Minister for Housing announced she would work with states and territories to pause new residential regulation changes to the NCC until mid-2029, except for essential safety and quality changes. Our page on the residential changes pause covers the Building Ministers' agreement that followed.
What we would put in a system:
the project code record.
A project's code position under the NCC can be traced only if it records the edition, the instrument that applied it, the pathway and the referenced documents relied on.
Where agents help here is narrow. An agent can read a permit, a specification or a product certificate, extract the NCC edition and the standards and editions cited, and flag a mismatch with the project record, and a person confirms it. No agent decides which edition applies, which pathway a design uses, or whether a design complies. Those are determinations for the building surveyor or certifier and your advisers.
| Field | What it holds | Why | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| State and volume | Jurisdiction, and BCA or PCA | South Australia lists different dates for its Building Code and Plumbing Code | Our design, from the ABCB table |
| NCC edition and amendment | For example NCC 2022 Amendment 2 | Tasmania's Act names that exact edition until 30 April 2027 | Required by the state instrument (the edition); the field is our design |
| Adopting instrument and version | The Act or regulation and the version read | Each state gives the NCC effect through its own provision | Our design |
| Edition-fixing event | The date the state rule keys on, such as the WA permit application date | WA reg 31A(2) keys on when the building permit application is made | Our design, following WA reg 31A(2); other states per their own rules |
| Pathway per Performance Requirement | Deemed-to-Satisfy, Performance Solution or both | Clause A2G1(2) allows all three | Our design, from NCC A2G1 |
| Referenced document and edition | Designation, edition, and Schedule 2 or the register | Clause A4G1(1) fixes the edition by those two lists | Our design, from NCC A4G1. Our page on the two registers covers it |
| Where the standard's text was read | Purchased copy, library, Reader Room or sponsored access once live, with date | Shows the edition actually consulted | Our design |
- NCC 2025 adoption dates by state: The adoption table, state by volume, and the date that fixes a project's edition.
- Two registers, one standard edition: Schedule 2, the register of alternative referenced documents, and why the source list belongs in the record.
- NCC 2025 XML dataset versions: One edition of the code, three dataset records.
- The NCC residential changes pause: What was paused, until when, and what is excluded.
Questions worth asking
of your own project records
For a builder in Western Australia: does each job record the date the building permit application was made, and which BCA edition it relied on?
Building Regulations 2012 (WA) reg 31A(2) lets the applicable standards come from the edition in effect when the application is made or the edition in effect 12 months before. The application date is the field that answers which. General information as read on 10 November 2026, not legal advice.
For a building-product manufacturer: does your documentation cite the edition of each standard, and is that edition the one listed in NCC Schedule 2 or the register?
NCC 2025 clause A4G1(3) states that a new edition not listed in either "is not referenced for the purposes of the NCC". General information as read on 10 November 2026, not legal advice.
For a design manager: does each Performance Requirement on the project have its pathway recorded?
Clause A2G1(2) allows a Performance Solution, a Deemed-to-Satisfy Solution or a combination. The record of which was used, and on what evidence, is what a certifier is shown. General information as read on 10 November 2026, not legal advice.
For an estimator: where does the business read the standards its specifications cite, and is that copy current?
The ABCB states it does not provide access to referenced standards and that Standards Australia's Reader Room is for personal, non-commercial use. The Government-funded sponsored access had not started in the sources read on 10 November 2026.
Questions people ask
about the NCC and standards
Is the NCC law in Australia?
The National Construction Code is not law on its own. NCC 2025 Part A3 states the NCC "has legal effect through references in relevant State or Territory building and plumbing legislation", such as Victoria's Building Regulations 2018 reg 10 and the ACT's Building Act 2004 s 136. As read on 10 November 2026; general information, not legal advice.
Is the NCC free?
Yes. The Australian Building Codes Board states the NCC is "available to access and use for free" on its website under a Creative Commons Attribution licence, as read on 10 November 2026. The ABCB states it does not provide access to the Australian Standards the NCC references.
Is the NCC the same as the BCA?
The Building Code of Australia is part of the NCC. NCC 2025's introduction states the BCA is Volumes One and Two of the NCC and the Plumbing Code of Australia is Volume Three, as read on 10 November 2026.
Are Australian Standards mandatory under the NCC?
A referenced standard applies "only in the context in which the document is quoted" (NCC 2025 A4G1(2)), at the edition listed in Schedule 2 or the ABCB register. Where a project relies on a Deemed-to-Satisfy Provision that calls it up, it forms part of compliance; a Performance Solution is the other pathway under A2G1. SA.GOV.AU states that standards referenced in the BCA are mandatory documents. General information, not legal advice.
Are Australian Standards free from 2026?
Not yet, in the sources read on 10 November 2026. Budget Paper No. 2 (12 May 2026) funds $42.7 million over four years from 2026-27 for free read-only access to standards referenced in legislation. On 25 September 2026 the Government said it expects the program to start "in the coming months", and Standards Australia describes access to "selected" standards. No start date or list was published in the sources read.
What this analysis
does and does not show.
Evidence note
- What it shows
- How each Australian state and territory gives the National Construction Code legal effect, as read in its Act or regulation on 10 November 2026 (NSW from a government page), the edition in force on that date as the ABCB lists it or the state instrument names it, what NCC 2025 says about compliance pathways and referenced documents, and the status of the Government-funded free access to referenced standards.
- Key facts quoted
- NCC 2025 A2G1, A2G3, A3G1(3), A4G1, A4G2; Vic Building Regulations 2018 reg 10; Qld Building Act 1975 ss 12, 14, 30; SA PDI Act 2016 s 3(1); WA Building Regulations 2012 regs 3A, 31A; Tas Building Act 2016 s 4(1); ACT Building Act 2004 ss 49, 136, 139A; NT Building Regulations 1993 reg 4; Budget Paper No. 2, $42.7 million over four years from 2026-27; media release of 25 September 2026; Standards Australia notices of 12 May and 25 August 2026.
- The NSW Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 was not read: legislation.nsw.gov.au returned a bot check on one attempt on 10 November 2026 and was not retried. The NSW row rests on the NSW Government page last updated 13 May 2026.
- Plumbing adoption instruments were not read for most states. The Tasmanian Act's register PDF downloaded incomplete, so the Act was read from the register's HTML view; only ss 3 and 4 are quoted.
- The edition column uses the ABCB adoption table where the state instrument read does not name an edition. Queensland's newsflashes, South Australia's MBS 007, the WA bulletins, the ACT page and the NT declaration were not re-read on 10 November 2026; they are as read for our page on NCC 2025 adoption.
- The ABCB FAQ page shows no date, and it describes NCC 2022 Amendment 2 as the current version alongside an adoption table listing NCC 2025 from 1 May 2026 in three jurisdictions and for South Australia's Plumbing Code.
- We found no announcement that sponsored access to standards had started, in the Standards Australia and Treasury pages read on 10 November 2026. Absence in those pages is not proof that nothing was announced elsewhere.
- General information, not legal advice. Nothing here determines which edition applies to a project, whether a standard is mandatory for a design, or whether any work complies.
What to watch next
- "The coming months": sponsored access to standards: The 25 September 2026 release says the Government expects the program to start in the coming months; Standards Australia says "as soon as practicable". Neither gives a date.
- 30 April 2027: Tasmania's Building Act 2016 s 4(1) names NCC 2022 Amendment 2 until this date.
- 1 May 2027: The ABCB table lists NCC 2025 from 1 May 2027 for NSW, Queensland, Tasmania and South Australia's Building Code, and the end of the 12 month transition periods listed for WA and the ACT.
- Mid-2029: The end of the pause on new residential changes to the NCC, announced on 24 August 2025 as the ABCB FAQ states it and agreed by Building Ministers on 22 October 2025 as our page on the pause sets out.
Bring us one project's
code record.
Send us one building permit or approval and the specification behind it. We will show you which NCC edition each document names, which state instrument applied it, and whether your records hold each referenced standard's edition and the list it came from.
General information about the National Construction Code, state and territory building legislation and published Government announcements, as read on 10 November 2026. Not legal advice. It does not determine which edition applies to any project or whether any design or standard complies.
Sources
Suggested citation: ABCB, NCC 2025 Parts A2 to A4 and adoption table; Budget Paper No. 2 2026-27; state and territory building Acts and regulations as listed; as read 10 November 2026. Derived figures: none.
- ABCB - NCC 2025 state and territory adoption information: No page date shown · read 10 November 2026 · National code administrator - adoption table
- ABCB - General NCC (FAQ): No page date shown · read 10 November 2026 · National code administrator - FAQ
- ABCB - NCC 2025, Part A2 Compliance with the NCC: NCC 2025 online · read 10 November 2026 · National code text (Parts A3 and A4 and the introduction read on the same site)
- Australian Government - Budget Paper No. 2, Budget Measures 2026-27: 12 May 2026 · read 10 November 2026 · Budget paper (PDF)
- Assistant Minister Andrew Leigh - Tradies to get free access to mandatory standards: 25 September 2026 · read 10 November 2026 · Ministerial media release
- Standards Australia - Register your interest: Australian Government-sponsored access to selected standards: 25 August 2026 · read 10 November 2026 · Standards body notice
- NSW Government - How to comply with the National Construction Code (NCC): Last updated 13 May 2026 · read 10 November 2026 · State government guidance
- Victorian Legislation - Building Regulations 2018: Authorised Version No. 032, amendments as at 27 October 2026 · read 10 November 2026 · Legislation register
- Queensland Legislation - Building Act 1975: Current version · read 10 November 2026 · Legislation register
- South Australian Legislation - Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016: Version 30.7.2026 · read 10 November 2026 · Legislation register (PDF)
- SA.GOV.AU - The Building Code of Australia: Last updated 23 November 2022 · read 10 November 2026 · State government information page
- Western Australian Legislation - Building Regulations 2012: Compilation 04-af0-00 · read 10 November 2026 · Legislation register
- Tasmanian Legislation - Building Act 2016: Current version; s 4(1) amended with effect from 5 June 2026 · read 10 November 2026 · Legislation register
- ACT Legislation Register - Building Act 2004: Republication No 57, effective 10 November 2026 · read 10 November 2026 · Legislation register
- Northern Territory Legislation - Building Regulations 1993: As in force at 30 March 2026 · read 10 November 2026 · Legislation register
RELATED READING
Other readings on the same records.
- Residential NCC changes are paused to mid-2029: what that covers, and what it does not: Announced 24 August 2025, agreed 22 October 2025: what NCC 2025 left out, what the safety and quality exception covers, and how often the NCC is updated. (Licensing & Compliance)
- A regulator's decisions now arrive by email, and the address is your obligation: The QBCC sends notices and decisions primarily by email from 1 February 2026. Contact details must be updated within 14 days, with 10 penalty units stated. (Licensing & Compliance)
- Payment schedule requirements by state: contents, reasons and silence: What each security of payment Act requires a payment schedule to contain, why reasons left out cannot be added later, and the NT's notice of dispute. (Contracts & Payments)