Section 24 of the Act requires that the relevant building surveyor (RBS) must not issue a building permit unless they are satisfied the building work and the building permit will comply with the Act and the Regulations. One means of being satisfied is the acceptance and reliance on a certificate of compliance (certificate) issued by a registered building practitioner, pursuant to section 238 of the Act. Where a certificate is provided to the RBS as evidence of compliance by a registered building practitioner, section 128 of the Act removes liability from the RBS for anything done or omitted to be done in good faith in reliance on the certificate.

WHO CAN ISSUE CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE?

A certificate of compliance may be issued and relied upon in relation to a design of building work of any Class, the inspection of domestic building work, or the erection of prescribed temporary structures. The certificate must state the proposed building work, or as constructed building work, complies with provisions of the Act and the Regulations.

Regulations 122 and 123 set out the prescribed building work and the registered building practitioners who may issue a certificate under section 238 of the Act.

Regulation 126 requires the certificate to be issued in a form approved by the VBA, click here for a sample certificate by ArchiEng. The certificate must be addressed to the RBS, a municipal building surveyor or a private building surveyor. Where the certificate is for proposed building work, it must relate to the final design.

Certificates relating to design may be issued by a prescribed engineer in the relevant class of engineer, or a building surveyor registered under Part 11 of the Act.

Certificates relating to the inspection of domestic building work may only be issued by a prescribed engineer, buildingsurveyor, or building inspector registered under Part 11 of the Act. The certificate must be signed by the person who carried out the inspection.

Registered building practitioners must only issue a certificate if the proposed building work being certified as compliant falls within their area of competence and the limits of their expertise. Issuing certificates inappropriately is regarded as a conduct issue which may lead to disciplinary action.

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WHAT HAPPEN WHEN CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE ARE NOT PROVIDED?

Sometimes, there may be cases where a certificate is not provided in relation to a design prepared by an engineer. If an RBS does not have the skills to ensure a design is compliant or a certificate is not provided to the RBS who is responsible for checking the design for compliance, the RBS should arrange for independent checking and certification to be satisfied that compliance is achieved. For instance, the RBS should not determine that an engineering design is compliant unless the proposed work falls within their expertise and they have relevant experience in relation to the proposed design. AchiEng offers peer review and certification services for civil and structural engineering reports produced by others. Provided that the report satisfies the minimum requirements to demonstrate that the Performance Requirements have been satisfied, a Reg. 126 design certificate will be issued. The Reg. 126 design certificate will be issued by a fully independent third party professional Licensed Engineer who is also registered as a building practitioner.

REFERENCE

• Building Act 1993 (VIC)
• Building Regulations 2018
• Building Practice Note BP-01: When is a building permit required?

To learn more about peer review and certification, Reg. 126 design certificates, design certificates issued under Victoria Building Regulation 126, Reg. 126 installation certificates, installation certificates issued under Victoria Building Regulation 126 - www.archieng.au

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