In short
Short answer: the Farming Zone (FZ) is a Victorian planning zone set out in clause 35.07 of the Victoria Planning Provisions and applied to land through each council's planning scheme. In the clause's own words, its first purpose is: “To provide for the use of land for agriculture”. (Department of Transport and Planning (Victoria), verified 27 Sep 2026)
A zone sets the main purpose of the land and what can be built on it; every Victorian lot has one.
What it typically means for a buyer (Delora editorial, not legal advice): Land intended for agriculture; a dwelling or subdivision typically needs a permit and must be justified against farming use.
Check whether the Farming Zone applies to an address with Address Check. For a decision on a specific property, the official record is a Planning Property Report from VicPlan, and the council's schedule sets the local detail.
What the clause says
Clause 35.07 of the Victoria Planning Provisions (Farming Zone) states its purposes as: to provide for the use of land for agriculture; to encourage the retention of productive agricultural land; to ensure that non-agricultural uses, including dwellings, do not adversely affect the use of land for agriculture; to encourage the retention of employment and population to support rural communities; to encourage use and development of land based on comprehensive and sustainable land management practices and infrastructure provision; and to provide for the use and development of land for the specific purposes identified in a schedule to this zone. (Department of Transport and Planning (Victoria), verified 27 Sep 2026)
Ask your conveyancer: Does the land already have a dwelling approval?
Shown on planning scheme maps as FZ.
How much of Victoria this covers
From the 2899 sample suburbs Address Check's export has processed so far — a lower bound, not a statewide total, until the export runs statewide.
127,375 land parcels and 143,368 addresses in the sample so far.
Councils with the most coverage
- South Gippsland (6899 lots)
- East Gippsland (6806 lots)
- Wellington (5844 lots)
- Greater Shepparton (5150 lots)
- Mildura (5082 lots)
- Moira (4958 lots)