The objectives of these Regulations are to prescribe—
(a) times for doing things required to be done by the Subdivision Act 1988 or these Regulations; and
(b) procedures for the registration of plans under that Act; and
(c) information to be included in any plans, statements and other documents prepared or given for the purposes of that Act; and
(d) other matters necessary for the purposes of that Act.
2 Authorising provision
These Regulations are made under section 43 of the Subdivision Act 1988.
3 Commencement
These Regulations come into operation on 10 November 2021.
4 Definitions
In these Regulations—
appurtenance, in relation to a building, means forming part of or belonging to that building and includes air-conditioning and heating units;
parcel means the land shown on a plan as a lot, road, reserve, common property or residual land;
strata plan means a registered or approved plan of strata subdivision or strata redevelopment;
the Act means the Subdivision Act 1988.
Part 2—Form and content of plans
5 Form and layout of plans and documents
(1) The Registrar may require any text, diagrammatic information or other content in a plan unrelated to a boundary to be removed from the plan.
(2) The Registrar may direct that the text or diagrammatic information in a plan unrelated to a boundary be contained in a memorandum of common provisions for inclusion in instruments to be subsequently lodged for registration.
6 Use of Registrar's plan numbers
(1) All plans and related forms (except for a plan under sections 32, 32AI and 32AL of the Act) must bear the plan number made available by the Registrar when submitted to a Council for certification, a referral authority for consent or lodged with the Registrar.
(2) When requested and on payment of the relevant fee, the Registrar must make a plan number available for use on a plan under section 32B of the Act or a plan of subdivision or a plan of consolidation.
(3) A plan number made available by the Registrar must be used for one plan only except for a staged subdivision.
(4) All plans that are part of a staged subdivision under section 37 of the Act must bear the same plan number on the master plan, the plan for the second stage and any plans for subsequent stages.
7 Form of plans
The Registrar may accept a plan for lodgement that is—
(a) a paper plan; or
(b) a plan in a form or medium other than paper that is a representation of a paper plan; or
(c) a plan in an electronic format or medium that is acceptable to the Registrar.
8 Information which must be on plans
(1) A plan must include—
(a) a notation indicating the section of the Act under which it is to be lodged; and
(b) an indication whether it is or is not a staged subdivision.
(2) A plan must be accompanied by, in a manner approved by the Registrar, the information given to the applicant by the Council about street numbers and lot location of each lot on the plan.
(3) A plan must include or be accompanied by—
(a) the certification or re-certification of the plan by the Council in the form required by the applicable Regulations made under the Act; and
(b) Map Grid Australia co-ordinates of the approximate central point of the land in any plan prepared by a licensed surveyor.
(4) If a plan lodged in the form described in regulation 7(a) or (b) comprises more than one sheet—
(a) each sheet must be consecutively numbered; and
(b) the first sheet of the plan must be annotated with the following statement "Sheet 1 of [total number of sheets] sheets"; and
(c) each sheet must contain the plan number made available by the Registrar.
(5) Each sheet of a paper plan must be signed and dated by—
(a) a licensed surveyor if the plan—
(i) is prepared by the licensed surveyor; or
(ii) is based on survey; or
(iii) is a plan of subdivision; or
(b) the applicant, if paragraph (a) does not apply.
(6) A plan in a form other than a paper plan must be signed or authorised and dated by a licensed surveyor.
(7) By signing or authorising a plan a licensed surveyor certifies that the plan and any related survey is accurate and was undertaken by the licensed surveyor or under the licensed surveyor's supervision.
(8) A plan must contain a new version number when the plan has been amended, altered or recertified.
9 Meaning of abbreviations on plans
(1) In a plan—
A (no.), when preceding a number, means appurtenant easement number;
AMG means Australian Map Grid;
CP means Common Property;
E (no.), when preceding a number, means encumbering easement number, a condition in the nature of an easement in a Crown grant or any other encumbrance;
MGA means Map Grid Australia;
POS means Public Open Space;
R (no.), when preceding a number, means land not being a lot which is part of a road;
S (no.), when preceding a number, means Stage number.
(2) The Registrar may publish, from time to time, a list of meanings of abbreviations, being meanings which are to be used to interpret those abbreviations when the abbreviations are used on plans.
10 Use of buildings to define boundaries
(1) A boundary may be shown on a plan by reference to a building.
(2) Any building or part of a building that defines a boundary must be identifiable from the plan.
(3) If a boundary on a plan is defined by reference to a building or part of a building, the plan must specify whether the boundary is one or more of the following—
(a) Interior Face;
(b) Median (floor and ceiling);
(c) Median (wall, window, door, balustrade);
(d) Exterior Face;
(e) in some other location.
(4) Unless otherwise specified on the plan, the location of any building boundary defined as—
(a) Interior Face lies along the interior face of any wall, floor (upper surface of elevated floor if any), ceiling (underside of suspended ceiling if any), window, door or balustrade of the relevant part of the building and any internal coverings, waterproof membranes and fixtures attached to walls, floors, and ceilings are included within the relevant parcel;
Example: Interior Face
Interior Face.JPG
(b) Median (floor and ceiling) lies within the middle of the building structure of any floor or ceiling of the relevant part of a building which defines a boundary and any elevated floor or suspended ceiling does not form part of the building structure;
Example: Median (floor and ceiling)
Median (floor and ceiling).JPG
(c) Median (wall, window, door, balustrade) lies along the mid point between exposed surfaces of any wall, window, door and balustrade of the relevant part of a building and any vertical projection of a boundary beyond the building is a projection of the median of the wall;
Example: Interior - Exterior
Interior - Exterior (1).JPG
Example: Interior - Interior
Interior - Exterior (2).JPG
Example: Median (wall, window, door, balustrade)
Median (wall window door balustrade).JPG
(d) Exterior face lies along the exterior face of any wall (and vertical projection thereof), door, window, balustrade, foundation, overhanging roof, eave or guttering of the relevant external part of the building and any vertical projection of a boundary beyond the building is a projection of the exterior face of the wall.
Example: Exterior Face
Exterior Face.JPG
(5) Subject to subregulation (4)(a), if all structures defining building boundaries and service installations or appurtenances not shown on the plan are within common property, a notation to that effect must be shown on the plan.
Example
Location of boundaries defined by buildings.
Interior Face: all boundaries.
The structure of any wall, floor, ceiling, window, door, balustrade (or other) which define boundaries are contained within Common Property (…)
or
Common Property (....) is all the land in the plan except the lots and (Roads and/or Reserves—if applicable) and includes the structure of any wall, floor, ceiling, window, door, balustrade (or other) which define boundaries.
(The following notation may be shown with either of the above statements)
All internal columns, service ducts, pipe shafts and cable ducts, service installations (or other) within the building are deemed to be part of common property (...). The positions of these columns, service ducts, pipe shafts and cable ducts, service installations (or other) may not have been shown on the diagrams contained herein.
(6) If a plan adopts any part of a building as a boundary and there is a discrepancy between any dimensions shown and the location of that part of the building, the boundary is that part of the building.
(7) Subregulation (6) does not apply to the external boundaries of the subdivision, except when defined by a building in a previously registered plan.
(8) If a plan uses exterior face, interior face or a combination of both exterior and interior face of a building to define boundaries, the extent of the building must be clearly identifiable on the plan by either depiction or notation.
Example
The extent of the building includes those spaces defined by balconies, enclosed courtyards and the entrance to the underground car park (or other).
(9) If a plan adopts a face of a building or part of a building to define the location of boundaries, the plan must identify which parcels contain the relevant structure of that building.
Note
See examples provided in subregulation (4) and regulation 11(4).
11 Method of showing boundaries on a plan
(1) Subject to this regulation, a boundary must be shown on a plan by a continuous thin line.
(2) The depiction of any structure or feature of a building on a plan that does not constitute a parcel boundary must differ significantly to that of an easement on the same plan, unless the structure or feature is the easement.
(3) If the whole or part of a boundary is defined by a building or part of a building, the relevant boundaries must be identified on the plan by one or more of the following—
(a) a thick continuous line (subject to this regulation); or
(b) notation.
(4) If the position of hatching along a parcel boundary, easement boundary, or feature of a building is used to define the location of the structure of a building, an appropriate notation to this effect must be shown on the plan.
Example
Location of boundaries defined by buildings.
Median: boundaries marked M.
Face of wall, floor, ceiling, door window (or other): all other boundaries.
Hatching within a parcel indicates that the structure of the relevant wall, floor, ceiling, door, window, balustrade, roof (or other) is contained in that parcel.
image1.tif
(5) If parcels are located above or below each other or above or below parcels not in the plan, a cross section or diagram must be shown on the plan.
(6) Unless defined by dimensions, a cross section must indicate the extent of relevant parcels by identifying the specific features of any buildings that define a boundary.
(7) The information required by subregulations (5) and (6) may be approximately to scale.
(8) Subregulations (5) and (6) do not include those parts of parcels located above or below each other created by the location of the boundary defined in regulation 10(4).
(9) Projections of building boundaries on a cross section must be shown as thick broken lines and clarified by an appropriate notation if required.
(10) Only vertical or near vertical projections can be depicted in plan view.
(11) Vertical or near vertical projections on plan view must be shown by thick continuous lines and clearly identified by notation.
(12) Except in the case of an existing boundary defined by reference to a natural feature, a boundary defined in a previously registered plan by reference to a building or a boundary defined by reference to a projection in a cross section, dimensions must be shown for—
(a) all the boundaries of the land the subject of the plan; and
(b) each other boundary or part of another boundary not defined by a wall or part of a building; and
(c) variable horizontal distances between building boundaries (may occur when said boundaries are not completely vertical).
(13) The distance referred to in subregulation (12)(c) must be shown on the plan and is at ground or floor level between exposed building faces or from the exposed face of the building to the title boundary, unless otherwise stated.
(14) Despite subregulations (12) and (13), the Registrar may accept a plan as suitable for registration where dimensions are not shown for all of the boundaries of the land the subject of the plan if the Registrar considers that—
(a) a survey indicates that any of the dimensions of the relevant title boundaries may be inaccurate; or
(b) the dimensions of any of the boundaries are not shown on the relevant folio of the Register.
(15) If redeveloping parcels on a plan registered under the Subdivision (Registrar's Requirements) Regulations 2011[1], the Subdivision (Procedures) Regulations 2000[2] or the Subdivision (Procedures) Regulations 1989[3], any conflict as to definition of a boundary between the registered plan and the new plan must be reconciled by either—
(a) notation on the new plan; or
(b) supplying the Registrar at lodgement with new compiled sheets for the entire plan.
12 Plans for acquisition of land
A plan of subdivision to facilitate the acquisition of land must indicate the land acquired or to be acquired.
Note
Under section 18(3) of the Land Acquisition and Compensation Act 1986, land acquired by agreement is treated as if it has been compulsorily acquired.
13 Removal or variation of easements
A plan of subdivision or plan of consolidation which also removes or varies an easement must—
(a) refer to the grounds for the removal or variation; and
(b) include a statement indicating every easement which is to be removed or varied; and
(c) clearly show on the plan the effect of the removal or variation of the easement.
14 Creation, removal or variation of restrictions
A plan of creation of restriction, plan of removal of restriction or plan of variation of restriction must—
(a) indicate the restriction proposed to be created, removed or varied; and
(b) describe the restriction by the use of a number or other notation.
Note
Section 3(1) of the Act provides that a restriction means a restrictive covenant or a restriction which can be registered, or recorded in the Register under the Transfer of Land Act 1958.
15 Information to accompany plans—section 27F(2)
(1) For the purposes of section 27F(2) of the Act, the prescribed information is—
(a) the postal address for the service of notices on each owners corporation to be created; and
(b) in the case of a limited owners corporation that is not limited to common property, the details of the limitation.
(2) For the purposes of subregulation (1)(a), Postal Box addresses and "care of" addresses are not acceptable postal addresses.
16 Information to be on master plans—staged subdivisions
For the purposes of section 37(3)(a) and (b) of the Act, the prescribed information is, as the case requires—
(a) the lots and any roads, reserves, common property, easements and restrictions in the first stage; and
(b) all residual land with the lot number or stage number, as appropriate; and
(c) any permit or planning scheme provision which will regulate the development of future stages.
17 Information to be on plans for subsequent stages—staged subdivision
A plan submitted for the second or any subsequent stage must—
(a) be numbered with the master plan number made available by the Registrar; and
(b) show the lots and any roads, reserves, common property, easements and restrictions in that stage and which land (if any) is the residual land; and
(c) show any residual land with the lot number or stage number, as appropriate; and
(d) show the lots for the second or subsequent stages using different lot numbers from those contained in previous stages.
18 Special information for the Registrar
(1) Abstracts of field records, surveyors reports, electronic copies of plans, data, or other supporting documents required by the Registrar must be submitted to the Registrar when the plan is lodged.
(2) The additional information referred to in subregulation (1) is not part of the plan and must not be numbered as sheets of the plan but must include the plan number made available by the Registrar.
(3) Any other information required by the Registrar must be lodged with the plan.
Note
Under section 3(2) of the Act, and subject to these Regulations, a plan may contain information in any form, including words and drawings.
Part 3—Applications to the Registrar
19 Other applications
If no form of application or advice is prescribed by any regulations made under the Act or approved by the Registrar, the applicant must apply in writing to the Registrar stating the applicant's name and address and also—
(a) state what is required to be done and the relevant section of the Act; and
(b) describe the relevant land by reference to the folio of the Register or by any other description which is sufficient to satisfy the Registrar.
20 Advice concerning amendments to plan
(1) The Registrar must advise the Council within 10 working days of any amendments that are made under section 22(2)(a) of the Act to any certified plan.
(2) A plan submitted by an owners corporation under section 32AD(1) of the Act must refer to the number of the plan it is intended to amend.
21 Time for Registrar to consider boundary plans—section 26(2)
For the purposes of section 26(2) of the Act, the prescribed time is 45 days from the date on which the boundary plan is lodged with the Registrar.
22 Plan of subdivision—section 35
At the time of lodgement of a plan of subdivision under section 35 of the Act, one of the following must be provided to the Registrar—
(a) the relevant vesting transfers and Certificates of Title; or
(b) copies of the pages of the Government Gazette in which any relevant notice of acquisition is published.
Part 4—Miscellaneous
23 Registrar records statement of compliance
The Registrar must record the receipt of a statement of compliance if the statement is in the form prescribed under section 21 of the Act.
Note
See the Subdivision (Procedures) Regulations 2021[4].
24 Compliance with geographic place names legislation, rules and standards
A plan containing place names, including for roads, must comply with—
(a) the Geographic Place Names Act 1998; and
(b) the guidelines in force under the Geographic Place Names Act 1998; and
(c) any Australian standard on rural and urban addressing in force.
25 Name of owners corporation
(1) If only one owners corporation is created on a plan, that owners corporation must be named "Owners Corporation 1" followed by the plan number allocated by the Registrar.
(2) If more than one owners corporation is created on a plan, those owners corporations must be named "Owners Corporation" followed by—
(a) a consecutive number (beginning with the number one) that individually identifies each of the owners corporations created on that plan; and
(b) the plan number allocated by the Registrar.
Example
Two owners corporations are created on one plan. That plan is allocated the number 123 by the Registrar. The names of the owners corporations will be Owners Corporation 1—PS123 and Owners Corporation 2—PS123.
(3) If 2 or more owners corporations merge, the merged owners corporation must be named "Owners Corporation" followed by—
(a) a consecutive number that individually identifies the new owners corporation; and
(b) the plan number previously allocated by the Registrar to one of the merging owners corporations.
Example
Owners Corporation 1—Plan No. 111 merges with Owners Corporation 1—Plan No. 222. The new owners corporation will be named Owners Corporation 2—Plan No. 222.
26 Registrar to record information
(1) For the purposes of section 27H of the Act—
(a) the prescribed manner for recording information is to record the information contained in or provided with a plan in the Register; and
(b) the prescribed manner for amending information is to record the amended information in the Register; and
(c) the prescribed circumstance for amendment is whenever a material alteration is brought to the notice of the Registrar in writing under the Act.
(2) The Registrar must record the time and date the plan is registered.
(3) The Registrar must record the lodging details on any document accompanying a plan.
27 Notice of intention to wind up owners corporation—section 34G(4)
(1) The form of notice to the Registrar of an application to VCAT for the winding up of an owners corporation under section 34G(4) of the Act is a form approved by the Registrar.
(2) For the purposes of section 34G(4) of the Act, the prescribed manner to record the notice is—
(a) with the words "Application to VCAT to wind up owners corporation"; and
(b) to include, after the words in paragraph (a), the dealing number allocated by the Registrar and the date that the Registrar is served with the notice.
28 Location of boundaries on strata plans
(1) On a strata plan a thick continuous line on which no measurement is shown represents a vertical or near vertical boundary or part of a boundary along or within a wall or fence.
(2) On a strata plan a thick broken line on which a measurement is shown represents a vertical or near vertical boundary or part of a boundary which does not lie along or within a wall or fence.
(3) On a strata plan the location of any common boundary between a unit and another unit or a unit and common property is the median of any wall, fence, floor or ceiling unless the plan by legend or otherwise indicates that the boundary is in another position.
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Endnotes
1 General information
The Subdivision (Registrar's Requirements) Regulations 2021, S.R. No. 134/2021 were made on 9 November 2021 by the Governor in Council under section 43 of the Subdivision Act 1988, No. 53/1988 and came into operation on 10 November 2021: regulation 3.
The Subdivision (Registrar's Requirements) Regulations 2021 will sunset 10 years after the day of making on 9 November 2031 (see section 5 of the Subordinate Legislation Act 1994).
See www.legislation.vic.gov.au for Victorian Bills, Acts and current Versions of legislation and up-to-date legislative information.
INTERPRETATION OF LEGISLATION ACT 1984 (ILA)
Style changes
Section 54A of the ILA authorises the making of the style changes set out in Schedule 1 to that Act.
References to ILA s. 39B
Sidenotes which cite ILA s. 39B refer to section 39B of the ILA which provides that where an undivided regulation, rule or clause of a Schedule is amended by the insertion of one or more subregulations, subrules or subclauses the original regulation, rule or clause becomes subregulation, subrule or subclause (1) and is amended by the insertion of the expression "(1)" at the beginning of the original regulation, rule or clause.
Interpretation
As from 1 January 2001, amendments to section 36 of the ILA have the following effects:
• Headings
All headings included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after
1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any heading inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.
This includes headings to Parts, Divisions or Subdivisions in a Schedule; Orders; Parts into which an Order is divided; clauses; regulations; rules; items; tables; columns; examples; diagrams; notes or forms.
See section 36(1A)(2A)(2B).
• Examples, diagrams or notes
All examples, diagrams or notes included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after 1 January 2001 form part of that Statutory Rule. Any examples, diagrams or notes inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, form part of that Statutory Rule. See section 36(3A).
• Punctuation
All punctuation included in a Statutory Rule which is made on or after
1 January 2001 forms part of that Statutory Rule. Any punctuation inserted in a Statutory Rule which was made before 1 January 2001, by a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Statutory Rule.
See section 36(3B).
• Provision numbers
All provision numbers included in a Statutory Rule form part of that Statutory Rule, whether inserted in the Statutory Rule before, on or after
1 January 2001. Provision numbers include regulation numbers, rule numbers, subregulation numbers, subrule numbers, paragraphs and subparagraphs. See section 36(3C).
• Location of "legislative items"
A "legislative item" is a penalty, an example or a note. As from 13 October 2004, a legislative item relating to a provision of a Statutory Rule is taken to be at the foot of that provision even if it is preceded or followed by another legislative item that relates to that provision. For example, if a penalty at the foot of a provision is followed by a note, both of these legislative items will be regarded as being at the foot of that provision. See section 36B.
• Other material
Any explanatory memorandum, table of provisions, endnotes, index and other material printed after the Endnotes does not form part of a Statutory Rule. See section 36(3)(3D)(3E).
2 Table of Amendments
There are no amendments made to the Subdivision (Registrar's Requirements) Regulations 2021 by statutory rules, subordinate instruments and Acts.
3 Amendments Not in Operation
This version does not contain amendments that are not yet in operation.
4 Explanatory details
Reg. 11(15): S.R. No. 111/2011 as amended by S.R. No. 15/2012. Revoked by virtue of Act No. 104/1994 s. 5. ↑
Reg. 11(15): S.R. No. 101/2000. Reprint No. 1 as at 21 August 2008. Reprinted to S.R. No. 123/2007. Extended in operation by S.R. No. 103/2010. Revoked by S.R. No. 112/2011. ↑
Reg. 11(15): S.R. No. 250/1989. Reprint No. 2 as at 6 March 1997. Reprinted to S.R. No. 65/1996. Extended in operation by S.R. No. 119/1999. Revoked by S.R. No. 101/2000. ↑