QLDIn ForceAct
Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991
sec.42Unlawful carrying out of building work
Start here
Get a plain-English read of sec.42
Turn the raw legal text into a practical explanation grounded in Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991.
### sec.42 Unlawful carrying out of building work
Unless exempt under schedule 1A , a person must not carry out, or undertake to carry out, building work unless the person holds a contractor’s licence of the appropriate class under this Act.
Maximum penalty—
for a first offence—250 penalty units; or
for a second offence—300 penalty units; or
for a third or later offence, or if the building work carried out is tier 1 defective work—350 penalty units or 1 year’s imprisonment.
An individual who contravenes subsection (1) and is liable to a maximum penalty of 350 penalty units or 1 year’s imprisonment, commits a crime.
Subject to subsection (4) , a person who carries out building work in contravention of this section is not entitled to any monetary or other consideration for doing so.
A person is not stopped under subsection (3) from claiming reasonable remuneration for carrying out building work, but only if the amount claimed—
is not more than the amount paid by the person in supplying materials and labour for carrying out the building work; and
does not include allowance for any of the following—
the supply of the person’s own labour;
the making of a profit by the person for carrying out the building work;
costs incurred by the person in supplying materials and labour if, in the circumstances, the costs were not reasonably incurred; and
is not more than any amount agreed to, or purportedly agreed to, as the price for carrying out the building work; and
does not include any amount paid by the person that may fairly be characterised as being, in substance, an amount paid for the person’s own direct or indirect benefit.
s 42 amd 1994 No. 20 s 3 sch ; 1999 No. 43 s 21 ; 2000 No. 10 s 183 sch 1 ; 2003 No. 1 s 16 ; 2007 No. 47 s 14 ; 2013 No. 51 s 229 sch 1
sub 2013 No. 58 s 25
amd 2017 No. 43 s 260
(sec.42-ssec.1) Unless exempt under schedule 1A , a person must not carry out, or undertake to carry out, building work unless the person holds a contractor’s licence of the appropriate class under this Act. Maximum penalty— for a first offence—250 penalty units; or for a second offence—300 penalty units; or for a third or later offence, or if the building work carried out is tier 1 defective work—350 penalty units or 1 year’s imprisonment.
(sec.42-ssec.2) An individual who contravenes subsection (1) and is liable to a maximum penalty of 350 penalty units or 1 year’s imprisonment, commits a crime.
(sec.42-ssec.3) Subject to subsection (4) , a person who carries out building work in contravention of this section is not entitled to any monetary or other consideration for doing so.
(sec.42-ssec.4) A person is not stopped under subsection (3) from claiming reasonable remuneration for carrying out building work, but only if the amount claimed— is not more than the amount paid by the person in supplying materials and labour for carrying out the building work; and does not include allowance for any of the following— the supply of the person’s own labour; the making of a profit by the person for carrying out the building work; costs incurred by the person in supplying materials and labour if, in the circumstances, the costs were not reasonably incurred; and is not more than any amount agreed to, or purportedly agreed to, as the price for carrying out the building work; and does not include any amount paid by the person that may fairly be characterised as being, in substance, an amount paid for the person’s own direct or indirect benefit.
- (a) for a first offence—250 penalty units; or
- (b) for a second offence—300 penalty units; or
- (c) for a third or later offence, or if the building work carried out is tier 1 defective work—350 penalty units or 1 year’s imprisonment.
- (a) is not more than the amount paid by the person in supplying materials and labour for carrying out the building work; and
- (b) does not include allowance for any of the following— (i) the supply of the person’s own labour; (ii) the making of a profit by the person for carrying out the building work; (iii) costs incurred by the person in supplying materials and labour if, in the circumstances, the costs were not reasonably incurred; and
- (i) the supply of the person’s own labour;
- (ii) the making of a profit by the person for carrying out the building work;
- (iii) costs incurred by the person in supplying materials and labour if, in the circumstances, the costs were not reasonably incurred; and
- (c) is not more than any amount agreed to, or purportedly agreed to, as the price for carrying out the building work; and
- (d) does not include any amount paid by the person that may fairly be characterised as being, in substance, an amount paid for the person’s own direct or indirect benefit.
- (i) the supply of the person’s own labour;
- (ii) the making of a profit by the person for carrying out the building work;
- (iii) costs incurred by the person in supplying materials and labour if, in the circumstances, the costs were not reasonably incurred; and