{"id":"F2021L00375","name":"Airports (Major Airport Developments) Determination 2021","slug":"airports-major-airport-developments-determination-2021","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":440805,"registerId":"F2021L00375-fast-fetch-1775956307633","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Airports (Major Airport Developments) Determination 2021","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\n---\n\n?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"utf-8\" standalone=\"no\"?>\n\n![Commonwealth Coat of Arms of Australia](image.001.jpeg)\n\n \n\nAirports (Major Airport Developments) Determination 2021\n\nI, Michael McCormack, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development, make the following determination.\n\nDated  25 March 2021 \n\nMichael McCormack\n\nDeputy Prime Minister and   Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\n1  Name\n\n2  Commencement\n\n3  Authority\n\n4  Definitions\n\n5  Costs associated with an activity or thing\n\n6  Costs included in cost of construction\n\n7  Costs not included in cost of construction\n\n \n\n \n\n1  Name\n\n  This instrument is the Airports (Major Airport Developments) Determination 2021.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n  This instrument commences on the day after it is registered.\n\n3  Authority\n\n  This instrument is made under subsection 89(8) of the Airports Act 1996.\n\n4  Definitions\n\nNote: A number of expressions used in this instrument are defined in the Act, including the following:\n\n(a) building activities;\n\n(b) major airport development.\n\n  In this instrument:\n\nAct means the Airports Act 1996.\n\nbase building fit-out means all fixtures, fittings and finishings that are not tenant fit-out.\n\nbase services means electricity, gas, telecommunications, water, sewerage, mechanical, fire protection  and other like services.\n\nearthworks includes excavating, embanking, levelling, filling, tunnelling and drilling.\n\nGST has the same meaning as in section 195-1 of the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999.\n\nsite establishment means constructing or installing buildings, structures, amenities or equipment at a construction site for use during construction, for example site offices and toilet facilities.\n\ntenant fit-out means fixtures, fittings and finishings attached to a building that:\n\n (a) are provided according to the specifications of a tenant under a lease;\n\n (b) are or become the property of a tenant under a lease; or\n\n (c) a tenant has a right or duty to remove under a lease.\n\ntrunk infrastructure includes gas mains, electricity substations, and infrastructure for the delivery of water, sewerage and telecommunications services, that is designed to be shared to a significant degree with other developments.\n\n\n\n\n \n\n5  Costs associated with an activity or thing\n\nFor the purposes of this instrument, the following costs are included within costs associated with an activity or thing in sections 6 and 7:\n\n1.     all material, equipment, labour and freight costs; and\n2.     all taxes (excluding GST).\n\n\n6  Costs included in cost of construction\n\n1.       For the purposes of paragraph 89(7)(a) of the Act, the cost of construction includes costs associated with the following:\n\n\n1.      site establishment;\n2.     undertaking earthworks;\n3.     constructing the following (if applicable):\n\n\n1.      footings;\n2.    structure;\n3.  cladding;\n4.  roofing;\n\n\n1.     constructing or installing base services;\n2.     builders' margins; and\n3.      for a development that consists of constructing a new building:\n\n\n1.      constructing car parking facilities for use by the building’s occupants or visitors; and\n2.     installing base building fit-out.\n\n\n1.       Despite subsections (1), a cost that is not included in the cost of construction because of section 7 is not included in the cost of construction for the purposes of paragraph 89(7)(a) of the Act.\n\n\nNote: Subsection 89(2A) of the Act provides that, for the purposes of the Act, constructing a thing includes carrying out all associated building activities.\n\n7  Costs not included in cost of construction\n\nFor the purposes of paragraph 89(7)(b) of the Act, the cost of construction does not include costs associated with the following:\n\n1.     design fees, legal fees and financial consultant fees;\n2.     construction contingencies;\n3.     installing tenant fit-out and tenant-supplied items, including signage;\n4.     obtaining permits, approvals or authorisations (however described);\n5.     site remediation;\n6.      constructing trunk infrastructure;\n7.     financial incentives offered to attract tenants;\n8.     car parking to which subparagraph 6(1)(f) does not apply;\n9.      landscaping, external paving and fencing; and\n10.      GST.\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This determination clarifies and specifies which project costs count as 'cost of construction' for the purposes of paragraph 89(7) of the Airports Act rather than introducing new types of regulated activity (authority under subsection 89(8): section 3). It prescribes inclusions (section 6) and exclusions (section 7), so it narrows uncertainty by ordering categories (notably treating GST differently via section 5 and 7(10)). Who pays: project owners/developers ultimately bear the cost‑allocation work. Compliance burden: requires itemised accounting and possible negotiation over classification (sections 5–7). Decision points: factual interpretation of defined terms and 'shared' trunk infrastructure creates administrative discretion (section 4)."},"complexity_factors":["Direct cross-reference to the Airports Act (instrument made under subsection 89(8)) requires users to map this determination onto statutory paragraphs 89(7)(a) and (b) (see section 3 and sections 6–7).","Several defined terms are relied on (base building fit‑out, tenant fit‑out, base services, trunk infrastructure), so interpretation depends on those definitions (see section 4).","Separate inclusion and exclusion lists create an allocation task for project accountants and lawyers — items must be allocated to either section 6 (included) or section 7 (excluded).","The rule in section 5 that 'costs associated' include materials, labour, freight and taxes (excluding GST) plus section 7(10) excluding GST means GST is treated differently from other taxes for qualification purposes (see sections 5 and 7(10)).","Some phrases are open to factual judgement — e.g. 'if applicable', 'other like services', and 'designed to be shared to a significant degree' — which leaves room for disputes about classification (see section 6(1), definition of trunk infrastructure in section 4).","Practical compliance burden: administrators and developers must itemise costs (e.g. builders' margins, car parking for new buildings, base versus tenant fit‑out) to justify entitlement under the Act (see section 6 and section 7(3,8)).","Priority rule: section 6(1)(7) makes exclusions in section 7 decisive where there is overlap, which affects how ambiguous items are treated in practice.","Operational timing: the instrument commences the day after registration, so projects near commencement must quickly apply the allocation rules (see section 2)."],"plain_english_summary":"**What it does:** This instrument defines which costs count as the “cost of construction” for major airport developments under the Airports Act 1996. It lists included costs (site establishment, earthworks, structure, base services, builders' margins, car parking for new buildings, base building fit‑out) and excluded costs (design/legal fees, contingencies, tenant fit‑out, permits, trunk infrastructure, incentives, landscaping, GST).\n\n**Who it affects:** Airport owners, developers and financiers — it determines which project costs qualify for the Act’s construction treatment and so influences accounting, approvals and contractual cost allocation."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument remains tightly focused on its original purpose: providing a detailed costing methodology for determining whether airport developments meet the 'major airport development' threshold under the Airports Act 1996. It does not expand beyond this technical accounting function."},"complexity_factors":["Short instrument: only 7 sections spanning approximately 2 pages","Minimal cross-referencing: only references to the Airports Act 1996 (subsection 89(8) and paragraph 89(7))","Simple structure: straightforward 'included' and 'excluded' lists in sections 6 and 7","Limited defined terms: 8 definitions in section 4, all intuitive (e.g., 'earthworks', 'GST', 'tenant fit-out')","No nested exceptions or conditional logic: section 6(2) contains a simple carve-out referencing section 7, but no complex layering","Clear delineation between 'base building' and 'tenant' responsibilities, reflecting standard commercial construction practice"],"plain_english_summary":"This Determination sets out the rules for calculating the 'cost of construction' for major airport developments in Australia. It matters because this cost figure is used to determine whether a development is big enough to trigger special approval requirements under the Airports Act 1996.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Defines what counts toward construction costs** — things like site offices, earthworks, building structure, base services (electricity, water, etc.), builders' profit margins, car parking for occupants, and standard interior finishes ('base building fit-out').\n- **Defines what does NOT count** — professional fees (architects, lawyers), contingency funds, tenant-specific fit-outs, permits and approvals, cleaning up contaminated land, shared infrastructure like power substations, tenant incentives, landscaping, and GST.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Airport operators and developers planning major construction at federally-leased airports.\n- The federal government, which uses these cost calculations to decide which projects need formal approval as 'major airport developments'.\n\n**Why it matters:**\nGetting this calculation right determines whether a project must go through a rigorous federal approval process. If costs are calculated too high, projects might unnecessarily trigger red tape; too low, and significant developments might escape scrutiny."},"summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"This determination sets out a uniform cost calculation method for the purposes of the Airports Act 1996; it does not amend the Act itself."},"complexity_factors":["Uses technical construction and accounting terminology","Relies on definitions from the Airports Act 1996","Contains a structured list of inclusions and exclusions"],"plain_english_summary":"This determination under the Airports Act 1996 defines what costs are included and excluded when calculating construction cost for developments at Commonwealth‑leased airports. That calculation decides whether a project crosses the Act’s threshold to be a “major airport development,” triggering public consultation and ministerial assessment. \n\nIt applies to airport lessees, developers and contractors and creates a consistent national method for deciding when the major‑development approval process is required."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/airports-major-airport-developments-determination-2021","history":"/api/acts/airports-major-airport-developments-determination-2021/history","analysis":"/api/acts/airports-major-airport-developments-determination-2021/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/airports-major-airport-developments-determination-2021/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/airports-major-airport-developments-determination-2021/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/airports-major-airport-developments-determination-2021/documents"}}