Australia: Top 5 significant legislative changes, regulatory developments or trends affecting the construction industry

On 1 February 2026, the Commonwealth Government published the National Construction Code 2025 (NCC 2025), introducing significant amendments aimed at improving building safety, sustainability and performance across Australia. Key changes include strengthened commercial energy efficiency requirements, including improved lighting controls and mandatory on‑site solar photovoltaic systems for certain building classes. The Code also enhances condensation management and waterproofing provisions, particularly for roofs, external walls, balconies and podiums, to address moisture ingress and durability issues.

NCC 2025 introduces updated water management measures for commercial and multi‑residential buildings, enhanced carpark fire safety requirements, and clearer assessment frameworks for structural reliability and fire safety Performance Solutions, promoting more consistent compliance outcomes.

The amendments are supported by updated Australian Standards and form part of a broader commitment by Building Ministers to modernise and simplify the NCC. States and Territories may adopt NCC 2025 from 1 May 2026, subject to local transition arrangements.

The States and Territories continue to take steps to address the persistent residential accommodation shortages in Australia’s major cities.

The Queensland Government has passed the Queensland Building and Construction Commission and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2025 aimed at creating electronic processes for managing builders’ licences, building approvals and workplace health and safety obligations. Further legislation is expected this year to modernise home warranty insurance settings and improve dispute resolution processes.

The South Australian Government passed the Statutes Amendment (Building and Construction Industry Review—Penalties) Act 2025 improve consumer protections, increase home warranty insurance coverage, modernise enforcement mechanisms and increase penalties for builder misconduct.

The Victorian Government has taken steps to modernise residential construction contracts and provide enhanced protections to residential apartment buyers via the Building Legislation Amendment (Buyer Protections) Act 2025 and the Domestic Building Contracts Act 2025.

The New South Wales Government has introduced the Fair Trading and Building Legislation Amendment Bill 2026 to improve standards across the construction sector and give the State’s property and building regulators more powers to take disciplinary action and protect consumers.

In late 2025, the Victorian Government passed the Building Legislation Amendment (Fairer Payments on Jobsites and Other Matters) Act 2025, which introduced significant changes to the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2002. The changes bring the Victorian regime into greater alignment with the other States, although important distinctions remain. The focus has been to streamline the payment claim processes, including the statutory adjudication process, along with creating protections from unfair contractual notice periods and employers having recourse to contract security. These changes will come into effect on 1 September 2026.

The State Development Act 2025 was passed in December 2025. The Act seeks to align Western Australia’s major projects approvals processes with other jurisdictions, including Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory. The processes are aimed at accelerating strategic developments by empowering the Premier to declare special precincts (State Development Areas) and individual projects of State significance. A Coordinator General will oversee fast-tracked, coordinated approvals and government support for strategically important developments in clean energy, critical minerals, advanced manufacturing, defence, or infrastructure.