INSIGHT · LICENSING & COMPLIANCE

Queensland moved the site-incident notice to WHSQ.
Other notices still go to the QBCC.

19 October 2026

Since 1 February 2026, a Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC) licensee who must give notice of a notifiable incident on a building site under section 54A of the QBCC Act 1991 gives it to the regulator under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, Workplace Health and Safety Queensland (WHSQ), not to the QBCC. The maximum penalty rose from 80 to 100 penalty units. A licensee that is a person conducting a business or undertaking under the WHS Act is outside section 54A for incidents within that Act's definition. Contraventions of safety notices still go to the QBCC.

A yellow hard hat and gloves seen through a plastic safety barrier

Analysed 19 October 2026 · Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991, current version from 1 February 2026 and the version in force to 31 January 2026 · Queensland Building and Construction Commission and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2025 (No. 28, assented 24 November 2025; parts 2 to 4 commenced 1 February 2026 by 2026 SL No. 8) · Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld), current version · QBCC pages last published 30 August 2021, 23 November 2025 and 24 November 2025 · WorkSafe Queensland page last updated 11 September 2020 · all read 19 October 2026, the QBCC and WorkSafe pages through a rendering proxy.

Key takeaways

The recipient changed on 1 February 2026: Before, s 54A(2) required a licensee to "give the commission notice of the safety matter". Now s 54A(3)(a) sends a notifiable incident to "the regulator established under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011". Section 26 of Act No. 28 of 2025 made the change; the register records parts 2 to 4 of that Act commencing on 1 February 2026.
Licensees that are PCBUs sit outside s 54A for these incidents: Section 54A no longer applies to a notifiable incident within the meaning of s 35 of the WHS Act where the licensee is a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) under that Act; a matching carve-out covers electrical incidents. The QBCC describes the result as replacing "the requirement to report safety incidents to the QBCC and WHSQ separately".
Other notices still go to the QBCC: A contravention of a notice or injunction under Part 10 of the WHS Act or Part 11A of the Electrical Safety Act 2002 is still notified to the commission (s 54A(3)(b)). Separately, a person in a building product's chain of responsibility who becomes aware of, or reasonably suspects, that the product is non-conforming for an intended use must notify the commission within 2 days (s 74AL); and where a notifiable incident was or may have been caused by using such a product for that intended use, s 74AM requires notice of the incident within 2 days, in each case unless the person has a reasonable excuse.
The penalty rose and the method stayed: The maximum penalty in s 54A rose from 80 to 100 penalty units. Notice is still given in the fastest way possible, by telephone or in writing, with a written notice within 48 hours if the recipient requires one.
We would store the recipient with each report: A system-design recommendation: each site safety event carries its category, the provision that required the notice, the agency notified, the time and means of notice, and any reference or acknowledgement received.

Section 54A, before and after

The safety matters the section covers did not change. Who receives the notice, who is excluded and the penalty did.

The amending Act's transitional part (QBCC Act Schedule 1, Part 20, ss 100 to 104) deals with pending licence applications, recovery from licensed contractors under particular contracts, persons taken to carry out particular building work, and defences to rectification directions. None of its sections mentions s 54A.

Element	Version to 31 January 2026	Version from 1 February 2026
Safety matters covered	A notifiable incident on a building site under the licensee's control or where it is carrying out building work; a contravention of a notice or injunction under WHS Act Part 10 or Electrical Safety Act Part 11A	Unchanged
Who receives the notice	"the commission" for both	Notifiable incident: the regulator established under the WHS Act. Notice or injunction contravention: the commission
Who is excluded	No exclusion in the section	For a notifiable incident: a licensee that is a PCBU under the WHS Act, where the incident is a WHS Act s 35 notifiable incident; or a PCBU under the Electrical Safety Act s 21, where it is a dangerous electrical event or serious electrical incident
Maximum penalty	80 penalty units	100 penalty units
How notice is given	Fastest way possible, by telephone or in writing; written notice within 48 hours if the commission requires; form or details approved by the commission	The same, with "the relevant entity" in place of the commission

Two Acts, two definitions
of notifiable incident.

Section 54A's trigger and its exclusion use different definitions, and the words differ enough that a single internal list of reportable events may not match both.

QBCC Act, Schedule 2: A notifiable incident means "(a) the death or serious injury or illness of a person; or (b) an incident that exposes a person to a risk of serious injury or illness", with the example of "the collapse or partial collapse of a building". This is the definition s 54A(1)(a) uses for the trigger.
WHS Act, sections 35 to 37: A notifiable incident means the death of a person, a serious injury or illness, or a dangerous incident. Section 36 lists what makes an injury serious, such as immediate treatment as an in-patient in a hospital or medical treatment within 48 hours of exposure to a substance. Section 37 lists dangerous incidents, such as the collapse or partial collapse of a structure or the fall or release from a height of any plant, substance or thing.
Where they meet: The s 54A(2)(b) exclusion applies only where the event is a notifiable incident within the meaning of WHS Act s 35 and the licensee is a PCBU under s 5 of that Act. For that licensee, the WHS Act's own s 38 duty to notify the regulator is the provision that names the event.

Which report goes where

The QBCC's page also lists Queensland Health and the Electrical Safety Office as regulators a matter may need to go to. We did not read the Electrical Safety Act 2002 and do not set out its notification duties.

Event, as the provision describes it	Recipient	Timing	Provision
A notifiable incident arising out of the conduct of the business or undertaking	The WHS regulator	Immediately after becoming aware, by the fastest possible means	WHS Act s 38(1), (2)
A notifiable incident on a licensee's site, where s 54A still applies to the licensee	The WHS regulator	The fastest way possible	QBCC Act s 54A(3)(a), (4)
A person contravening a WHS Act Part 10 or Electrical Safety Act Part 11A notice or injunction on the licensee's site	The QBCC	The fastest way possible	QBCC Act s 54A(3)(b), (4)
A notifiable incident that was or may have been caused by the use of a building product that is non-conforming for an intended use, for that intended use	The QBCC, in the approved form	As soon as practicable but within 2 days, unless the person has a reasonable excuse	QBCC Act s 74AM (maximum penalty 100 penalty units)

What a notice has to carry

Neither Act prescribes the fields of a telephone notice. Both make the recipient's request the measure, and the WHS Act adds a record-keeping duty.

Details the recipient asks for: A person giving notice by telephone must give "the details of the safety matter requested by the relevant entity" (QBCC Act s 54A(5)) or "the details of the incident requested by the regulator" (WHS Act s 38(4)), and a written notice within 48 hours if required.
What the QBCC tells licensees to gather: The time and date of the incident; its address; the QBCC licensee in control of the site; who was injured or breached the notice or injunction; whether medical assistance was required; why the incident occurred; and which other agencies have been notified.
An acknowledgement: Where a telephone notice is received and no written notice is required, the recipient must give the person details of the information received or an acknowledgement (QBCC Act s 54A(7); WHS Act s 38(6)).
A record kept for 5 years: WHS Act s 38(7): a PCBU "must keep a record of each notifiable incident for at least 5 years from the day that notice of the incident is given to the regulator". Section 39 separately requires the incident site to be left undisturbed, with stated exceptions, until an inspector arrives or directs otherwise.

A site manual written
before February 2026.

A safety procedure written for the earlier version of s 54A tells a licensee to notify the QBCC of a notifiable incident. From 1 February 2026 that instruction names an agency the section no longer names for that matter, while the instruction to notify the QBCC of a notice or injunction contravention is still current.

The QBCC states that other requirements "remain the same, including who reports and the incidents that trigger the need to report", and that a company licensee's notice is given by an officeholder or senior employee. What moved is the address. A record that stores only "incident reported" cannot show which agency received it, by what means, or when, and those are the facts that s 54A and s 38 turn on.

The same reform made email the QBCC's preferred way of issuing notices, according to its reform page. Section 109C of the QBCC Act, inserted by the same amending Act, requires a licensee who gave the commission an email address to tell it of a change within 14 days, with a maximum penalty of 10 penalty units.

What we would put in a system

Where agents help here is narrow. A compliance agent can read a site incident report, suggest which notification provisions the facts may engage, check whether the record shows an agency, a time and a reference for each, and draft the written follow-up for a person to check and send. No agent decides whether an event is notifiable, and none gives a notice to a regulator.

Field	Why it is load-bearing
Event category, in the words of the provision relied on	QBCC Act and WHS Act definitions differ, and each category goes to a different agency.
The provision that required notice, and the version date	Section 54A changed on 1 February 2026; a notice given before then went to the commission.
Agency notified, means and time of notice, and the person who gave it	Both Acts measure the notice by the fastest way possible; the QBCC states a company's notice is given by an officeholder or senior employee.
Reference, acknowledgement or written notice, with dates	A written notice may be required within 48 hours; the recipient gives details or an acknowledgement.
Building product involved, if any, and any s 74AM notice	A product-related notifiable incident has its own 2-day notice to the QBCC.

Questions worth asking
of your own safety records

For a Queensland builder: does your incident procedure still tell site staff to notify the QBCC of a notifiable incident?

Since 1 February 2026, s 54A(3)(a) names the WHS regulator for that matter and the commission only for notice or injunction contraventions. A procedure with a revision date before February 2026 is the one to check first. General information as read on 19 October 2026, not legal or WHS advice.

For a licensee company: can each incident record show who gave the notice, to which agency, and when?

Both Acts require notice in the fastest way possible, and the QBCC states a company's notice is given by an officeholder or senior employee. Those three fields answer it. General information as read on 19 October 2026, not legal or WHS advice.

For a building product manufacturer or supplier: does your complaint log flag incidents that may involve your product?

Section 74AM of the QBCC Act addresses a person in a product's chain of responsibility who becomes aware of, or reasonably suspects, that a notifiable incident was or may have been caused by using a product that is non-conforming for an intended use. It requires notice to the commission as soon as practicable and within 2 days, unless the person has a reasonable excuse; whether it applies depends on those conditions. General information as read on 19 October 2026, not legal or WHS advice.

Questions people ask
about QBCC incident reporting

Do builders still report notifiable incidents to the QBCC?

Not under s 54A, since 1 February 2026. The section now directs a licensee's notice of a notifiable incident to the regulator under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, which the QBCC calls Workplace Health and Safety Queensland, and the QBCC states this replaces reporting to both agencies separately. General information as read on 19 October 2026, not legal or WHS advice.

What does a QBCC licensee still report to the QBCC?

Section 54A(1)(b) and (3)(b) send to the QBCC a matter where a person carrying out building or other work on a site under the licensee's control, or where the licensee carries out building work, contravenes a notice or injunction under Part 10 of the WHS Act or Part 11A of the Electrical Safety Act 2002. Separately, ss 74AL and 74AM require notices to the QBCC, within 2 days and subject to their conditions, about building products that are non-conforming for an intended use and incidents they may have caused, as read on 19 October 2026.

When did the QBCC incident reporting change start?

1 February 2026. Section 26 of the Queensland Building and Construction Commission and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2025 amended s 54A, and the Queensland legislation register records parts 2 to 4 of that Act commencing on 1 February 2026 (2026 SL No. 8). The QBCC calls it Tranche 3 of the Building Reg Reno.

What is the penalty for not notifying a notifiable incident in Queensland?

Under s 54A of the QBCC Act 1991, the maximum penalty is 100 penalty units from 1 February 2026, up from 80. Under s 38 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld), a PCBU that fails to ensure the regulator is notified faces a maximum of 100 penalty units, as read on 19 October 2026.

What this analysis
does and does not show.

Evidence note

What it shows: The change to s 54A of the QBCC Act 1991 that commenced on 1 February 2026, the two versions side by side, the WHS Act duty and definitions it now points to, the QBCC reports that did not move, and the QBCC's published description of the change, as read on 19 October 2026.
Key facts quoted: Recipient changed from "the commission" to "the regulator established under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011" for notifiable incidents (s 54A(3)(a)); PCBU exclusion (s 54A(2)); maximum penalty 80 to 100 penalty units; Act No. 28 of 2025 s 26, parts 2 to 4 commenced 1 February 2026 (2026 SL No. 8); notice or injunction contraventions to the commission (s 54A(3)(b)); product-related incidents within 2 days (s 74AM); records kept 5 years (WHS Act s 38(7)).

Queensland only. Other states' building regulators and WHS regulators are not covered.
The proclamation, 2026 SL No. 8, signed 29 January 2026, fixes 1 February 2026 for the commencement of the provisions of Act No. 28 of 2025 not already in force; the register's legislative history records parts 2 to 4 commencing that day.
The Electrical Safety Act 2002 was not read; electrical incident notification is not set out.
The QBCC's statements that who reports and which incidents trigger a report are unchanged, and that a company's notice is given by an officeholder or senior employee, are the QBCC's descriptions, not words of the Act.
The QBCC reform and reporting pages were last published in November 2025, before the commencement; we report what they state.
Nothing here is legal or work health and safety advice, and it does not determine whether any event is notifiable, which provision applies to a licensee, or whether a notice was given as required.

Bring us one Queensland incident file.

Send us a site incident report from 2026 and the safety procedure it was handled under. We will show you which provisions the published Acts list for that kind of event, and whether your record holds the agency, time, means and reference each one would ask about.

This article is general information about published Queensland legislation and regulator guidance. It is not legal or work health and safety advice and it does not determine whether any event is a notifiable incident or which agency must be notified of it. It covers Queensland only. All provisions and pages are as read on 19 October 2026 at the versions listed in the sources.

Send us the file · Compliance

Sources

Suggested citation: Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991 (Qld) ss 54A, 74AM, 109C and Schedule 2, as amended by Act No. 28 of 2025 from 1 February 2026, and Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld) ss 35 to 39, with QBCC and WorkSafe Queensland guidance, as read 19 October 2026. Derived figures: none.

Queensland moved the site-incident notice to WHSQ. Other notices still go to the QBCC.