Effective 1 July 2019, the VBA’s Building Activity Management System (BAMS) goes live. BAMS has been developed by the VBA to facilitate a number of changes to the Building Act 1993 and Building Regulations 2018 including:

  • The VBA will become responsible for issuing building permit numbers to the Relevant Building Surveyor (RBS) prior to the issue of the building permit.
  • Owners now have an obligation to advise the VBA of changes in the cost of works listed on the building permit.
  • The VBA will have the power to reassess the applicable levy amount following the issuance of the building permit and after the issue of Occupancy Permits/Certificates of Final Inspections.
  • Revised reporting requirements for building surveyors under Regulation 47.

You may wish to refer to our previous communication about BAMS available here.

After 1 July, once a building permit application has been accepted, the RBS must lodge an application to the VBA via BAMS for a Building Permit Number (BPN). When BAMS has received all of the required information for a BPN application, an invoice will be generated and emailed to the nominated levy payer. The VBA will not release the BPN, which the RBS requires prior to being able to issue the building permit, until the invoice has been paid in full. The payer of the levy will need to be nominated by the applicant for the building permit and the RBS will include their contact details as a part of the application for a BPN.

We strongly recommend that you discuss these changes with your permit provider to avoid undue delays when applying for a building permit. As a result of the changes, an application must include the prescribed information required by the RBS to make an application for a BPN and without this information the surveyor may refuse to accept the application until it has been provided. For further information regarding the prescribed information please refer to your permit provider as they will have likely updated their building permit application form to include all of the necessary information.

If you have any questions about the upcoming changes or you would like to enquire about using Master Builders Victoria’s Building Services team for all your building permit needs, please contact Sam Clark, Senior Manager of Building Services on [email protected] or 0436 005 126.