CDC or DA: which approval path is faster for your Sydney project?

The two paths, in plain terms

In New South Wales, most building work needs either a Development Application (DA) to council, or a Complying Development Certificate (CDC) issued by a registered certifier. A small amount of very minor work is exempt development and needs no approval at all.

A DA goes to your local council for assessment against its planning controls. If approved, you then need a Construction Certificate (CC) before you can start building, which checks the detailed construction drawings against the Building Code of Australia and the DA conditions. That CC can be issued by council or by a private certifier.

A CDC is different. It combines the planning approval and the construction approval into a single certificate, issued by a registered certifier rather than council, provided your project meets a set of predetermined development standards. Those standards sit in the State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008, generally known as the Codes SEPP. The relevant codes include the Housing Code for house alterations and additions, the Low Rise Housing Diversity Code for dual occupancies and terraces, and the Commercial and Industrial Code for some non-residential work.

Why CDC is usually the quicker route

Because a CDC is assessed against fixed, published rules rather than merits-based judgement, it tends to move faster once your certifier has everything they need. There is no public exhibition period and no council meeting to wait on. Complying development also carries statutory assessment timeframes set out in the regulations, which give both you and your certifier a clear benchmark to work to. We would rather describe it as "often assessed within" a shorter window than promise a fixed number of days, because the clock only starts once your application is complete and every project has variables.

A DA, by contrast, goes through council's own assessment queue, may require notification to neighbours, and can involve requests for more information. For straightforward projects that fit within a council's controls, this can still move reasonably, but it is generally the slower of the two paths and the one with less certainty on timing.

Why you might not have a choice

CDC is not available for every project. It only applies if your development meets every standard in the relevant code: things like site coverage, height, setbacks, floor space ratio and, for some codes, whether your land is in a heritage area, bushfire zone or flood-prone area. If your project departs from even one standard, whether that is a slightly larger extension or a setback that does not comply, you cannot use CDC for that scope of work and need to go the DA and CC route instead.

Some projects also fall outside CDC by nature, for example larger developments, some subdivisions, or work in certain zones. A certifier or town planner can tell you quickly which category your project sits in, often from a set of drawings and a few site details.

What decides the right path for you

A few practical factors usually settle the question:

Getting the assessment started

Key takeaways

If you are not sure which path your Sydney project fits, our Complying Development Certificates page goes through the Housing Code and Low Rise Housing Diversity Code in more detail, and our Construction Certificates page covers the DA and CC route. Call our Sydney office on (02) 9821 2062 or get a free quote and we will tell you straight which path your project is on.