Building Notices, Orders and Permits in Victoria: What They Mean and Why They Follow the Property

A Building Notice or Building Order does not disappear when a property changes hands. Under Victoria's Building Act 1993, a registered notice or order is recorded against the property and binds the new owner exactly as it bound the previous one. That single fact is the reason an order issued years before a sale can still be a live, enforceable obligation for whoever buys next — and why understanding these documents matters long before you sign a contract.

This guide explains the difference between a building permit, a Building Notice and a Building Order, why cladding turned this into a statewide issue, and the practical steps to find out whether a property you are looking at carries one.

Building permit, Building Notice, Building Order: the three terms explained

These three instruments sit on a spectrum from routine approval to formal enforcement. They are administered under the Building Act 1993, with the Victorian Building Authority (VBA) as the regulator and building surveyors — private or municipal — and local councils exercising day-to-day enforcement powers.

A common misunderstanding is that a building permit is issued "by the council." It is not. In Victoria, a registered building surveyor issues the permit under Part 3. Councils and their municipal surveyors come into the picture more visibly at the enforcement end — when compliance is in question.

How a Notice usually precedes an Order

A Building Notice under s.106 is typically the first step. It arises where a building surveyor or council reasonably believes a building or land does not comply with the Act or regulations, or that work was carried out without a required permit. The notice requires the owner to take a specified action — commonly, applying for a building permit or rectifying non-compliant work — within a stated time frame.

A Building Order under s.111 is the more serious follow-on. It is a direct, formal instruction to do something specific by a deadline: remove non-compliant combustible cladding, vacate an unsafe building, or demolish unauthorised work. Building Orders can be issued for a range of non-compliance, including a failure to meet the Building Code of Australia's fire-safety requirements.

Why "binding on subsequent owners" is the fact that matters most

Here is the point that catches buyers out. A registered Building Notice or Order does not expire when the property is sold. It is recorded against the property and binds the new owner in the same way it bound the previous one.

That means the obligation — and the cost of complying with it — can transfer to you at settlement. An order requiring rectification work that was issued to a previous owner, perhaps years ago, remains a live and enforceable obligation once you own the property. You inherit not just the building, but its unfinished compliance history. This is why treating a disclosed notice as "the last owner's problem" is a mistake: legally, it becomes yours.

Combustible cladding: how one fire reshaped the landscape

Much of the modern volume of Building Orders in Victoria traces back to one event. The 2014 Lacrosse building fire in Melbourne's Docklands — where fire spread rapidly up the building's external cladding — triggered a statewide audit of buildings clad in combustible Aluminium Composite Panel (ACP) with a polyethylene core. That audit produced a wave of Building Orders requiring rectification across Victoria.

If a property's Building Order relates to cladding, there is one program worth knowing about: Cladding Safety Victoria (CSV), a state government program that can help fund rectification works for some eligible buildings. It is worth checking, because eligibility can materially change the likely out-of-pocket cost of complying with a cladding-related order. An order that looks financially alarming on paper may carry a very different real cost once government support is factored in — or it may not, if the building isn't eligible. Either way, you want to know before you buy, not after.

What non-compliance actually costs

Non-compliance with a Building Notice or Order can attract penalties set in penalty units under the Building Act. The maximum is materially higher for a body corporate — such as an Owners Corporation — than for an individual.

The dollar value of a penalty unit is set by the Victorian Government and adjusted periodically, most years. For that reason, this guide deliberately does not quote a specific dollar figure: always check the current penalty unit value rather than relying on a historical number, because it changes. What is durable is the structure — penalties exist, they escalate for corporate entities, and they attach to the failure to act on a validly issued notice or order.

How a notice or order should surface in the Section 32

A Building Notice or Order affecting a property should be disclosed in the vendor's Section 32 statement — typically under the Notices division, which covers any notice, order or declaration from a relevant authority affecting the land. (Our Section 32 statement guide breaks down each division in detail.)

Here is the subtle trap. This disclosure sits in a different part of the pack from the building-permit disclosure, and the two are sometimes not cross-referenced clearly by the vendor's side. A property might disclose a building permit in one division and a Building Notice or Order in another, without anyone connecting the two. That gap — between what was permitted and what was later found non-compliant — is exactly the kind of inconsistency that careful due diligence is meant to catch.

The practical problem: there's no single register to search

Buyers often assume they can look up a property's compliance history somewhere central. They can't. There is no single, publicly searchable register where you can look up every Building Notice or Order ever issued against a specific address.

The realistic paths to finding out are:

For an owners corporation property in particular, the certificate alone is not enough. It is a snapshot. The AGM and committee meeting minutes are where an active remediation process — or its conspicuous absence — actually shows up.

What to actually do before you buy

If a Building Notice or Order is disclosed, or if the building is the kind of mid-rise apartment block where cladding orders cluster, work through these checks:

• Confirm the compliance status. Ask specifically: has the required action been completed? If not, what is the current compliance status, and what is the deadline?
• Pin down the cost. Ask whether a cost estimate exists for the required works, and whether it has been obtained from a quantity surveyor or is still an unknown. "We haven't priced it yet" is itself an answer worth having.
• Read the minutes, not just the certificate. For an owners corporation property, request the most recent AGM and committee meeting minutes. Minutes often reveal an active remediation process — or its absence — that a point-in-time certificate won't show.
• Have your conveyancer cross-check the pack. Ask them to confirm specifically whether the Section 32's building-permit disclosure is consistent with any Building Notice or Order disclosed elsewhere in the pack. This is where the "different division" gap gets closed.

Not sure a Section 32 stacks up? Delora's Section 32 guide walks the whole vendor's statement division by division — including the Notices division where a Building Notice or Order should appear — so you can spot the gap between what was permitted and what was later found non-compliant before it becomes your obligation.

How to read this guide

This page describes the current regulatory framework under the Building Act 1993 (Vic) as administered by the Victorian Building Authority, with building surveyors and councils exercising day-to-day enforcement. Building legislation is periodically amended, and specific provisions — including the dollar value of a penalty unit — change over time. Treat the section references (s.106, s.111, Part 3) as the durable structure, and verify the currency of any specific provision or dollar figure before relying on it. Nothing here is legal advice; it is a plain-English map of how these instruments work so you can ask sharper questions of your own conveyancer.

Reviewed by Delora's property research team against the Building Act 1993 (Vic) framework as administered by the Victorian Building Authority. Last verified 22 July 2026. Because building legislation is periodically amended, confirm the currency of specific provisions and the penalty unit value before you rely on them.

Frequently asked questions

Does a Building Order expire when the property is sold?

No. A registered Building Notice or Order does not expire on sale. It is recorded against the property and binds the new owner in the same way it bound the previous owner. An order issued years before a sale can still be a live, enforceable obligation for whoever buys next.

Who issues a building permit in Victoria — the council or a surveyor?

A registered building surveyor issues a building permit under Part 3 of the Building Act — this can be a private or a municipal surveyor. The council does not issue the permit directly, though councils and their surveyors exercise enforcement powers, including issuing Building Notices and Orders.

What is the difference between a Building Notice and a Building Order?

A Building Notice (s.106) is usually the first step: it requires an owner to take a specified action — often applying for a permit or rectifying non-compliant work — within a stated time frame. A Building Order (s.111) is a more direct, formal instruction to do something specific, such as removing combustible cladding or vacating an unsafe building, by a set deadline.

Is there help available for cladding rectification costs?

Possibly. Cladding Safety Victoria (CSV) is a state government program that can help fund rectification works for some eligible buildings. If a property's Building Order relates to cladding, it is worth checking eligibility, because it can materially change the likely out-of-pocket cost.

How can I check whether a property has a Building Notice or Order against it?

There is no single central register. The realistic paths are the vendor's Section 32 disclosure, the Owners Corporation Certificate together with AGM and committee minutes (for a lot in an owners corporation), and a direct enquiry to the relevant council's building department.