Updates to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 ensure that the planning system is fit for purpose and operates efficiently.
Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment Act 2025
In May 2025, the NSW Government amended the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 to streamline the planning system and support the delivery of housing projects.
Supporting the Housing Delivery Authority
To accelerate the delivery of much-needed homes, the NSW Government established the Housing Delivery Authority in December 2024.
The recent changes to the Act will help to streamline the process for the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces to declare housing projects as state significant development (SSD). The changes formalise the processes undertaken by the Housing Delivery Authority and support its operation. These include:
- Removing the need for the Independent Planning Commission to provide advice to the Minister before relevant residential applications can be declared SSD. The Housing Delivery Authority already provides this advice.
- Using more flexible meeting formats to deliver high-quality housing recommendations to the Minister.
- Requiring meeting records to be published within 14 days of the meeting, reflecting current practice.
- When the Minister declares a project to be state significant, the Planning Secretary must notify the relevant council.
For more information, visit the Housing Delivery Authority.
Changes to public exhibitions and submissions
Community feedback remains a vital part of the planning process.
The Act now gives greater confidence to applicants and the community by providing certainty on how submissions are counted and considered.
Only submissions received during the public exhibition period will be counted for certain planning purposes, such as identifying the consent authority or appeal rights.
A consent authority may still consider issues raised in material received outside of a public exhibition period during its assessment.
The Act also now provides greater flexibility to change the minimum public exhibition period for relevant residential SSD applications, through the Department’s community participation plan.
For more information about making a submission, and to have your say on applications, plans and policies currently on exhibition, visit the NSW Planning Portal.
Supporting practical approaches to modifications and concept development assessments
Councils and other consent authorities now have clarity that they can modify a condition of development consent that does not result in a change to the original development. This change enables councils to make practical decisions on modification applications. It provides applicants with confidence that they’re not required to include physical changes to the development in their modification request.
Updates to the Act also allow subsequent development applications to differ from an original concept approval, provided the concept approval is modified or surrendered. This change means projects can benefit from updated planning controls, like housing bonuses for additional height or floorspace.
Modernising affordable housing contributions
Changes to the Act will modernise the framework for affordable housing contribution requirements. It removes unnecessary requirements from the Act to enable consent authorities to deliver faster assessments and speed up the delivery of housing.
Affordable housing contributions can now be required under any type of planning instrument, with changes to apply retrospectively from 1 March 2018.
Visit Housing SEPP for more information about affordable housing and contributions.
A more consistent strategic planning framework
References to the Six Cities Region and specific districts will soon be removed from the Act. This change will allow a new regional plan for Greater Sydney to be developed and exhibited. Other amendments will make strategic planning consistent across the state.
The update will take effect on a future date, to be decided. Until then, current regional and district plans will remain in place.
Learn more about strategic planning for your area.
Improving how essential development and infrastructure are assessed
In December 2024, the NSW Government updated the Act to give the Planning Secretary the power to decide whether related components of a state significant development application should be assessed as part of the single proposed development that is state significant development, or through an alternative planning pathway.
This change gives greater certainty to applicants and the community and allows the planning system to work more effectively.