What it does
The Boarding Houses Act 2012 (the Act) establishes a comprehensive regulatory framework for boarding accommodation in New South Wales. At its core, it classifies certain premises as “registrable boarding houses” and imposes two parallel tracks of oversight: a registration system for all such houses (Part 2) and a stricter licensing and service-standard regime for “assisted boarding houses” that accommodate people with additional needs (Part 4).
Section 3 states the objects as providing a registration system, enforcing occupancy principles, licensing assisted boarding houses and their staff, and promoting sustainability and continuous improvement. “Registrable boarding house” is defined in s 5 as either a general boarding house (premises providing beds for fee or reward to 5 or more residents, excluding the proprietor, manager or their relatives) or a regulated assisted boarding house. A long list of exclusions appears in s 5(3), removing hotels, motels, backpacker hostels, aged-care facilities, mental health facilities, social housing, NDIS specialist disability accommodation and certain funded crisis or refuge premises.
Part 2 requires proprietors to notify the Commissioner of detailed particulars (name and address of proprietors, address of the house, type, development consent status, resident numbers, age of minors, manager, bedroom count and other approved particulars) within 28 days of becoming a registrable boarding house or changing proprietor (s 9). An annual return updating those particulars is required (s 10), and cessation of use must be notified (s 11). The Commissioner maintains a Register (s 12) that records notified particulars, enforcement actions and other information (s 13). Certain core information is published online for public access (s 14). Councils must arrange initial compliance investigations within 12 months of first registration (or re-registration or change of proprietor) to check compliance with planning, building, fire safety and shared-accommodation standards under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and Local Government Act 1993 (s 16). Extensive powers of entry, inspection, measurement, sampling and questioning are conferred on authorised council officers (ss 17–25), with safeguards including notice, limits on force, care to minimise damage and compensation for non-contravention damage.