Surveying (Registration Fees) Regulations 2025

The Regulations operate through a small set of clear legal and technical concepts.

• Fees prescribed by reference to fee units: The primary drafting choice is to denominate each listed fee in fee units rather than in a fixed dollar amount (regulation 6; Schedule 1). The Explanatory details explain the calculation method: multiply the listed number of fee units by the value of a fee unit fixed under the Monetary Units Act 2004, section 7, and round the calculated amount to the nearest 10 cents. The use of fee units introduces an automatic indexing mechanism: the nominal fee level in dollar terms moves when the Treasurer changes the fee unit value for subsequent financial years (Explanatory details).

• Statutory mapping to the Act: Each fee in Schedule 1 is tied to a specific Act provision (for example “Application for registration under section 4(2)(d) of the Act”, “Registration as a surveyor under section 6(1)(d) of the Act”, “Renewal of registration under section 7(1)(b) of the Act”, and multiple entries for examinations under section 5(a) or 12(1)(b) of the Act). That mapping signals that the Regulations set monetary charges only for those discrete processes which the Act itself authorises or contemplates (Schedule 1).

• Differentiation of services: The Schedule separates several service-types and assigns different fee-unit levels: applications and non-practising registration attract lower fee units (4.28), full registration and renewal attract higher fee units (15.4), restoration to the register mirrors the higher rate (15.4), and examination fees are split by type (annual/written 15.4 fee units; oral 12.83 fee units). Documentary services,extracts from the register of confidential particulars and certificates of registration,are separately priced (4.28 fee units) (Schedule 1).

• Temporal and administrative references: The Regulations are time-bound by commencement (9 March 2025) and sunset (10-year automatic expiry on 4 March 2035) and by the annual process by which the Treasurer fixes and publishes fee-unit values ahead of each financial year (regulation 3; Endnotes; Explanatory details).

• Non-substantive legal interpretation points: The Endnotes reproduce standard Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 provisions about headings, examples, punctuation and provision numbering. Those matters affect how the Statutory Rule is read and indicate that headings, examples and notes included in a Statutory Rule made on or after 1 January 2001 form part of the rule (Endnotes, Interpretation). They do not alter the financial mechanics but affect construction and citation practice.

In short, the Regulations are a compact statutory price-list mechanism that delegates numerical discretion over the dollar cost of specific statutory interactions to a combination of a fixed schedule (fee units per item) and a variable multiplier (the Treasurer’s fee unit value).

The Regulations create direct monetary consequences for defined populations connected to the Surveying Act 2004. The primary groups affected are:

• Applicants for registration as surveyors: Item 1 in Schedule 1 charges 4.28 fee units for “Application for registration under section 4(2)(d) of the Act”. That fee falls on the person lodging the registration application (Schedule 1 item 1).

• Persons seeking registration as practising surveyors: Item 2 prescribes 15.4 fee units for registration as a surveyor under section 6(1)(d) of the Act. Whoever seeks and obtains registration under that provision will bear that fee (Schedule 1 item 2).

• Persons seeking registration as non‑practising surveyors: Item 3 sets 4.28 fee units for registration as a non‑practising surveyor under section 6(1)(d). The cost distinction between practising and non‑practising registration lies in the different fee-unit amounts (Schedule 1 items 2 and 3).

• Registered surveyors renewing registration: Items 4 and 5 prescribe renewal fees under section 7(1)(b) of the Act: 15.4 fee units for practising surveyors and 4.28 fee units for non‑practising surveyors. These fees fall on registrants at the point of renewal (Schedule 1 items 4-5).

• Late renewers: Item 6 sets a late renewal application fee of 4.28 fee units under section 7(2)(b) of the Act. The person who lodges a late renewal application will be liable for this additional fee (Schedule 1 item 6).

• Persons seeking restoration to the register: Item 7 charges 15.4 fee units for restoration of a name to the register under section 12(1)(c) of the Act. This cost will fall on the person applying for restoration (Schedule 1 item 7).

• Candidates for examinations: Item 8 lists examination fees under section 5(a) or 12(1)(b) of the Act and separates the fees by type,annual examination 15.4 fee units, written examination 15.4 fee units, and oral examination 12.83 fee units. These fees are payable by the examination candidates (Schedule 1 item 8).

• Registered surveyors requesting extracts or certificates: Item 9 is an extract fee (4.28 fee units) specifically “on application by that licensed surveyor” for confidential particulars of registration history. Item 10 is a certificate of registration fee of 4.28 fee units. These documentary costs are payable by the registrant seeking the extract or certificate (Schedule 1 items 9-10).

Indirectly, employers, clients and third parties may be affected by changes in the cost of registration, renewal and examination, because those costs can feed into the marginal cost of labour, compliance strategies, or the price of surveying services. The Regulations do not purport to impose charges on third parties or the Board; instead, they set fees for individuals using specified statutory services of the Board (regulation 6; Schedule 1).

Two institutional actors decide or influence the numeric outcomes: the Governor in Council made the Regulations under the Act (Endnotes), but the dollar conversion depends on the Treasurer fixing the value of the fee unit under the Monetary Units Act 2004 and publishing it as required (Explanatory details). The Board is the recipient of the fees; the Regulations specify the items the Board may charge for under the Act (regulation 6; Schedule 1).

The Regulations themselves do not create novel substantive duties of conduct beyond monetary obligations tied to Board processes; they prescribe payable fees for specific statutory services. The core duties and rights that follow from the instrument are:

• Duty to pay prescribed fees when seeking specified services: Where a person engages with the Board under the listed Act provisions (for example applying for registration, renewal, restoration, or examinations), the person must pay the fee set out in Schedule 1. The legal duty to pay in dollar terms arises because regulation 6 declares that “the fees payable to the Board under the Act are the fees listed in Schedule 1” (regulation 6; Schedule 1).

• Right to have the fee expressed as a fee-unit multiple: A right embedded in the drafting is predictability of numeric treatment,each listed service has an explicit fee-unit figure attached (Schedule 1). This gives persons a right to know the fee level in fee units; the dollar amount is then calculable using the Treasurer’s published fee-unit value.

• Right to certainty of calculation method and rounding: The Explanatory details record the calculation rule (multiply fee units by fee unit value, round to nearest 10 cents) and give the fee unit value for the 2024-25 baseline year ($16.33) (Explanatory details). While explanatory material is not part of the rule in every instance, the Endnotes caution which explanatory material does not form part of the Statutory Rule; nevertheless, the Explanatory details in these Endnotes are the only published statement here of the conversion and rounding method and the current fee unit value. Practically, persons have the right to calculate fees in a transparent way using that method and the Treasurer’s published value.

• No express waiver, reduction, or refund mechanism in the Regulations: The instrument contains no express provisions permitting fee waivers, reductions, refunds, or credits, nor does it set the timing or method of payment. Those matters must be located in the Act, Board policy, or other procedural instruments where applicable. The Regulations’ silence means that, for the purposes of fee quantum, persons must plan to pay the full listed fee in fee units unless the Act or other instruments provide otherwise (Schedule 1; regulation 6).

• Right to specific documentary extracts only by the registrant: Item 9 is an “Extract from the register of confidential particulars of the registration history of a licensed surveyor on application by that licensed surveyor”, which limits that particular service to the registered surveyor themself (Schedule 1 item 9). That wording creates a procedural right tied to identity: only the licensed surveyor can obtain that extract under the fee item as worded.

• Temporal rights and obligations: The Regulations commence on 9 March 2025 and remain in force until sunset on 4 March 2035 unless earlier amended or revoked (regulation 3; Endnotes). That gives persons a predictable interval during which the prescribed fee-unit schedule applies, subject to yearly variation in the dollar multiplier fixed by the Treasurer.

To locate other operational duties (for example how or when to pay, whether a payment is refundable, or the consequences of non-payment) practitioners must look to the Surveying Act 2004 and any Board directions or administrative rules, because these Regulations limit themselves to prescribing the items and fee‑unit quantum rather than procedural payment rules (regulation 6; Schedule 1).

The Regulations do not themselves create penalties or enforcement mechanisms. Their function is to prescribe the amounts payable for defined actions under the Surveying Act 2004; they do not contain offences, infringement penalties, or enforcement procedures (regulation 6; Schedule 1).

• Absence of penalty provisions: There are no fine amounts, penal provisions, or enforcement sections within the text of these Regulations. The Schedule is limited to fee items and fee-unit quantities. Therefore any enforcement concerning non-payment, late payment consequences, or disciplinary consequences for non-compliance with payment obligations must be founded on the Surveying Act 2004 or other enabling instruments rather than these Regulations.

• Enforcement would follow from the Act or administrative practice: Because the Regulations were made under s 63 of the Surveying Act 2004 (regulation 2), the Act’s provisions will determine the legal consequences of failing to pay a prescribed fee, and whether a fee non-payment can, for example, block registration or renewal. These Regulations do not alter or add enforcement options; they set the payable amounts only. Practitioners should therefore consult the Surveying Act 2004 to identify the Act’s express sanctions related to fees, registration status or other enforcement powers linked to the Board’s functions.

• Administrative enforcement and collection: Operationally, the Board will be the recipient and administrator of these fees (regulation 6). The Regulations do not describe collection mechanisms, times for payment, or whether the Board can recover unpaid fees by civil action, statutory debt collection processes, or administrative withholding of services. Those mechanisms, if any, stem from either the Act or Board policies.

• No express transitional or retrospective enforcement particulars: The instrument revokes the 2015 Regulations (regulation 4) and commences on 9 March 2025 (regulation 3). There are no transitional provisions in the text about how outstanding fees or applications made under the old regime are to be treated; practitioners should therefore examine the Act or Board communications for transitional arrangements.

Because the Regulations do not create penalties, risk assessment about enforcement must focus on the Surveying Act 2004 and the Board’s administrative practices that implement fee collection and consequences for non-payment. The Regulations, by themselves, define the quantum of fees only.

These Regulations operate as a subordinate instrument that sits in a network of statutory rules and Acts that determine their legal effect and practical operation. The key interactions set out in the instrument are:

• Surveying Act 2004: The Regulations are made under section 63 of the Surveying Act 2004 (regulation 2) and expressly prescribe fees “payable to the Board under the Act” (regulation 6). Each Schedule 1 fee item is expressly tied to a particular section of the Act (for example sections 4(2)(d), 6(1)(d), 7(1)(b), 7(2)(b), 12(1)(c), sections 5(a) and 12(1)(b)), so these Regulations must be read together with those Act provisions to determine who is eligible for the service, the Board’s statutory powers and any procedural conditions or consequences the Act imposes.

• Monetary Units Act 2004: The financial operation of the fees in dollar terms follows the fee‑unit framework in the Monetary Units Act 2004. The Explanatory details say the fee is to be calculated “in accordance with section 7 of that Act” by multiplying fee units by the fee unit value, and that the Treasurer fixes the fee unit value for future financial years under section 5 of the Monetary Units Act 2004 (Explanatory details). The Regulations therefore rely on the Monetary Units Act for the annual numeric conversion and the legal mechanism for varying the dollar amount without amending the Regulations themselves.

• Subordinate Legislation Act 1994: The Explanatory notes state that the Regulations will sunset 10 years after the day of making on 4 March 2035, citing section 5 of the Subordinate Legislation Act 1994 (Endnotes). That statutory regime sets a termination date unless the Regulations are remade or extended in accordance with the Subordinate Legislation Act’s processes.

• Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984: The Endnotes reproduce interpretive statements from the Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 concerning headings, examples, punctuation, provision numbers and what material does or does not form part of a Statutory Rule (Endnotes, Interpretation). These provisions shape how the Regulations are construed in litigation or administrative interpretation, for example confirming that headings and notes in Statutory Rules made on or after 1 January 2001 form part of the rule.

• Publication requirements and administrative law: The Explanatory details require the Treasurer to publish the value of a fee unit in the Government Gazette and a Victorian newspaper before 1 June in the preceding financial year (Explanatory details). That obligation sits alongside other requirements about the making and publication of subordinate instruments and fiscal transparency measures under Victorian administrative law.

These interactions mean that to understand the legal effect and the practical steps for compliance one must examine the Surveying Act 2004 for procedural and enforcement rules, the Monetary Units Act 2004 for conversion and indexing mechanics, the Subordinate Legislation Act 1994 for sunset and remaking issues, and the Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 for construction rules. The Regulations themselves deliberately limit their scope to prescribing fee-unit quantities and reference these other Acts for operational or interpretive detail.

These Regulations are Version No. 001 and, as enacted, have no amendments recorded against them. The regulatory text and Endnotes state:

• Date of making and commencement: The Regulations were made on 4 March 2025 by the Governor in Council under section 63 of the Surveying Act 2004 and came into operation on 9 March 2025 (Endnotes; regulation 3).

• Revocation of predecessor: The instrument expressly revokes the Surveying (Registration Fees) Regulations 2015 (regulation 4). That revocation replaces the prior fee schedule with the 2025 schedule set out here.

• No subsequent amendments: The Table of Amendments in the Endnotes records that there are no amendments made to these Regulations by statutory rules, subordinate instruments or Acts as at the version date (Endnotes, Table of Amendments).

• Sunset date and remaking: The Endnotes cite the Subordinate Legislation Act 1994 and state the Regulations will sunset ten years after the day of making on 4 March 2035 (Endnotes). This creates a statutory termination point that requires remaking or replacement of the fee schedule if the government wishes the fee regime to continue beyond that date.

Because the Regulations are newly made and there are no recorded amendments at the time of this Version No. 001, any future change to fee quantum, itemisation, or the addition/removal of fee categories will require a subsequent statutory rule or amendment. However, because fees are expressed in fee units, changes in the Treasurer’s fee unit value will alter the dollar cost without the need to amend these Regulations. The durability of the fee structure therefore depends partly on the fee-unit multiplier mechanism (Monetary Units Act 2004) and partly on future statutory rulemaking within the Subordinate Legislation Act framework if the items or fee-unit quantities themselves are to be changed.

Practitioners should note the immediate practical change: the 2015 fee regulation is revoked and replaced, so any transitional arrangements or outstanding matters under the 2015 instrument should be traced to the Act and to any Board guidance. There are no other recorded amendments in this Version No. 001.

The Regulations and Endnotes do not record any litigation history. The Table of Amendments states there are no amendments made to these Regulations by statutory rules, subordinate instruments or Acts, and there is no mention of cases or judicial consideration of these Regulations in the provided Endnotes or text.

Absent recorded litigation, two observations follow from the instrument itself:

• No reported case law concerning these Regulations at the time of publication: Because the Regulator’s published version records no court or tribunal decisions, there is no statutory record here of judicial interpretation of the fee items, the conversion method, or the application of these Regulations to contested factual circumstances.

• Points of potential dispute framed by the text: While not evidence of litigation, the text suggests lines of enquiry that could give rise to disputes in practice. These include calculation disputes (how to apply the fee-unit multiplier and rounding rule), requests for extracts limited to “on application by that licensed surveyor” (Schedule 1 item 9) where third parties might contest access to registration history, and transitional application where applications were made under the revoked 2015 Regulations around the commencement date. The Regulations do not provide transitional wording; if a dispute arises about whether an application is governed by the old or new fee, that matter would turn on statutory interpretation and administrative records in the absence of explicit transitional provisions.

Because there is no litigation history recorded in the instrument, practitioners seeking precedential guidance will need to rely on the Surveying Act 2004 and general administrative law principles until cases, if any, arise that interpret the application of these fee provisions. Any judicial review or statutory challenge to a fee decision will therefore require a close reading of the Act, the Regulations, the Monetary Units Act provisions on fee units, and any Board policies or procedural notices relevant to the decision.

The text is short, but it contains several concrete pitfalls and practical details that can cause surprises if overlooked.

• Fee units, not dollars: Each Schedule item is expressed in fee units (for example 15.4 fee units for registration as a surveyor, 4.28 fee units for application or non‑practising registration). The dollar amount payable is not the fee-unit number. You must multiply by the fee unit value fixed under the Monetary Units Act 2004 (Explanatory details). Failure to do so will lead to quoting the wrong dollar amount.

• Year-to-year variation: The fee unit value is set annually by the Treasurer under the Monetary Units Act 2004, section 5, and must be published before 1 June in the preceding financial year (Explanatory details). That means the same fee-unit figure will produce different dollar obligations depending on the financial year in which the fee is charged. Do not assume stability of dollar amounts across years.

• Rounding to nearest 10 cents: After multiplying the fee-units by the fee unit value, the calculated fee “may be rounded to the nearest 10 cents” (Explanatory details). Rounding can change the payable amount by a few cents, which matters for tight accounting, multiple transactions, or where settlement calculations are automated.

• Limited scope of Schedule items: The Schedule ties fees to specific Act provisions (for example section 4(2)(d), 6(1)(d), 7(1)(b), 12(1)(c), and sections 5(a) and 12(1)(b)). If a person requires other services from the Board not listed in Schedule 1, these Regulations do not authorise the Board to charge a fee for those services under this Schedule. Conversely, the Board’s capacity to charge fees for the listed items is authorised by these Regulations as the applicable schedule.

• Silence on payment mechanics and refunds: The Regulations prescribe amounts but are silent about how fees must be paid, the timing of payments, the consequence of non-payment, whether fees are refundable, or administrative recovery options. Those details are likely governed by the Act or Board policies. Practitioners must not assume payment method or refund entitlements from the Regulations alone.

• Extracts limited to the registrant: Item 9 explicitly prices an extract “on application by that licensed surveyor” and is described as an extract of “confidential particulars of the registration history”. That wording limits availability of that specific extract to the registrant, which may preclude third-party access to the same material at the fee set out in the Schedule. If a third party seeks similar information, a different process or fee may apply (Schedule 1 item 9).

• Different fees for examinations by type: The Schedule distinguishes “annual examination”, “written examination” and “oral examination” and sets a different fee for the oral exam (12.83 fee units) compared to the written or annual exams (15.4 fee units). Ensure the correct item is charged; misclassification could lead to disputes.

• No transitional provisions: The Regulations revoke the 2015 instrument with immediate effect on commencement but include no transitional wording. Where applications straddle the changeover date, the Act or Board communications must be checked to determine which fee schedule applies.

• Sunset date: The Regulations will sunset automatically on 4 March 2035 (Endnotes). That creates a long-stop for renewal of the schedule. If practitioners rely on the schedule for long-term budgeting, they should note the sunset and the need for a future instrument to replace or extend these fees.

• Explanatory details versus operative text: The Explanatory details include conversion and publication instructions and give the current fee unit value. The Endnotes caution that some explanatory material and other text after the Endnotes does not form part of a Statutory Rule (Endnotes, Interpretation: “Other material… does not form part of a Statutory Rule”). Practitioners should therefore confirm whether reliance on Explanatory details is appropriate for legal argument and should verify the published fee unit value in the Government Gazette as the legally binding source for conversion.

• Potential administrative mismatch between fee schedule and Act sections: The Schedule references particular subsections of the Act. If the Act is subsequently amended and subsection numbering changes, the Schedule may require amendment to maintain alignment. Until then, there may be ambiguity about which Act provision the fee item is intended to cover if the Act’s text is modified.

Those are concrete operational “gotchas” to look for in advising clients: treat the Schedule as a fee‑unit map whose dollar effect depends on external fiscal instruments, watch the narrow wording limiting access to certain extracts, and locate procedural and enforcement rules in the Act or Board guidance rather than in these Regulations.

The Regulations prescribe a straightforward compliance sequence for anyone seeking a service listed in Schedule 1. The steps below are practical and derive directly from the Regulations and the Explanatory details:

1. Identify the relevant Schedule item: Determine which Schedule 1 item corresponds to the Act provision under which you are applying. The Schedule explicitly maps items to sections of the Surveying Act 2004 (for example application for registration s 4(2)(d), registration s 6(1)(d), renewal s 7(1)(b), restoration s 12(1)(c), examinations under s 5(a) or s 12(1)(b), extract requests “on application by that licensed surveyor”) (Schedule 1). Correct identification avoids underpayment or misapplied fees.

2. Obtain the active fee unit value: Use the value of a fee unit fixed by the Treasurer for the relevant financial year. The Explanatory details state the law: multiply fee units by the fee unit value fixed under the Monetary Units Act 2004, and the Treasurer must publish that value in the Government Gazette and a Victorian newspaper before 1 June in the preceding financial year (Explanatory details). For the financial year commencing 1 July 2024 the Explanatory details record the fee unit value as $16.33. For later periods, confirm the Treasurer’s published figure in the Gazette.

3. Calculate the dollar amount: Multiply the fee-unit figure from Schedule 1 by the Treasurer’s published fee unit value. Apply rounding to the nearest 10 cents as prescribed in the Explanatory details (Explanatory details). For example, using the 1 July 2024 fee unit value of $16.33, 4.28 fee units would calculate to approximately $69.8924 and round to $69.90; 15.4 fee units would calculate to approximately $251.482 and round to $251.50. Record the calculation method and the fee unit value used for auditability.

4. Confirm any procedural rules in the Act or Board guidance: The Regulations do not state payment methods, timing, or refund rules. Before remitting payment, check the Surveying Act 2004 and any Board directions, forms, or published administrative procedures for where, when and how the Board expects payment, what supporting documentation is required, and whether payment must accompany the application or is invoiced. If the Board’s website or published forms specify electronic payment methods, account details or reference numbers, use those to ensure correct allocation.

5. Prepare supporting documentation: Where the Schedule item requires an application “on application by that licensed surveyor” (for example the extract in item 9), include identification and authorisation demonstrating entitlement. Ensure any application references the relevant Act section and fee item to assist administrative processing.

6. Retain proof of payment and calculation: Keep a record of the fee calculation (fee units × fee unit value), the rounding applied, and the payment confirmation for the Board, because the Explanatory details set out the calculation method and rounding and this may be needed in any subsequent administrative query.

7. Watch renewal and late fees: For renewals, pay the appropriate renewal fee in time to avoid the late fee item 6 (4.28 fee units). If a late renewal is unavoidable, calculate and pay the late application fee as specified (Schedule 1 items 4-6).

8. Check for updates each financial year: Because the dollar amount changes with the Treasurer’s fee unit value, incorporate an annual check in compliance calendars to update fee calculations and budget forecasts before the beginning of the new financial year. The Treasurer’s publication deadline before 1 June is a practical trigger.

9. Consider transitional timing: If lodgement occurs around the commencement date (9 March 2025) or if a matter straddles revocation of the 2015 Regulations, verify via Board communications or the Act whether the old or new fee schedule applies. The Regulations contain no transitional clause, so administrative guidance or Act principles will determine outcomes.

10. Seek Board clarification where necessary: Because the Regulations are silent on payment mechanisms, refunds, enforcement and other procedural details, obtain Board guidance or written confirmation if any ambiguity arises. Doing so reduces the risk of mispayment or application rejection.

Following these steps will align practitioners and applicants with the mechanical requirements of the Regulations: identify the correct Schedule entry, convert the fee-unit quantum to dollars using the Treasurer’s published fee unit value, round to the nearest 10 cents, and pay by the Board’s accepted method while preserving records of the calculation and payment.