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Building Designer licence

building designer is a practitioner that specialises in providing both design and documentation for small to medium scale projects, both residential and commercial.

Building designers prepare design documentation and ensure that the building work they have designed and documented is in accordance with the Building Act 2016 and the National Construction Code (NCC).

Eligibility

Building designers can be licensed in one of three sub-classes

  1. Restricted
    • Advanced Diploma in Building Design (AQF 6) or higher qualification
    • Three years experience in building design within the scope of work for this class
  2. Limited
    • Diploma in Building Design (AQF 5)
    • Two years experience in building design within the scope of work for this class
  3. Domestic
    • Certificate IV in Building Design Drafting (AQF 4)
    • Two years experience in building design within the scope of work for this class

All building service providers must act only within the area of their competence, as detailed in the Occupational Licensing (Building Services Work) Determination (PDF, 836.0 KB).

IMPORTANT: To apply for a building designer licence, you must have a minimum qualification and a minimum amount of supervised experience; at least half of this minimum experience must have been gained after the awarding of the minimum qualification and be above the class of any building designer licence that you may already have. More information on minimum qualifications, experience and scope of work is detailed in the Occupational Licensing (Building Services Work) Determination 2021 (PDF, 836.0 KB).

CPD (Continuing Professional Development)

As a licence holder, you are required to maintain and develop skills and knowledge through ongoing learning activities known as Continuing Professional Development or CPD. Find out more information about CPD points, training providers, CPD events calendar and training resources.

Checklist

  1. Read the information on this licence page so you know what to do and what documents to provide
  2. Read the Personal Information Protection Statement
  3. Provide evidence of your identity (Tasmanians and people living interstate / New Zealand) (new applications only)
  4. Have a photo taken for your licence card at any Service Tasmania shop (Tasmanian applicants only)
    1. Interstate and overseas applicants will need to provide a passport size photo certified by a Commissioner for Declarations or a Justice of the Peace (JP).
  5. Applicants may be asked to attend an interview at their nearest Consumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS) office if requested to do so as part of the application process.  Failure to attend as requested may be considered as non-compliance with the application process and may cause an application to be refused.
  6. Scan and save (computer or storage device like a USB) a digital copy of your qualifications (Tasmanians and people living interstate / New Zealand) (new application only)
  7. Scan and save (computer or storage device like a USB) a digital copy of your professional indemnity insurance policy ($1 million restricted, $750,000 limited, $500,000 domestic) (new application and renewal)
  8. Scan and save (computer or storage device like a USB) a digital copy of your curriculum vitae (CV).  (new application only). Your CV should include
    1. a list of projects you have worked on
    2. dates of the projects
    3. NCC building class of the projects
    4. project size in square metres
    5. number of storeys
  9. Scan and save (computer or storage device like a USB) a digital copy of two written references from industry professionals attesting to your experience in the field for which you wish to be licensed (new application only)
  10. You will need to confirm that you have undertaken Continuing Professional Development (CPD) (renewal only)
  11. Have a credit card ready to pay for your licence fee online or at any Service Tasmania shop.

If your application is successful, you will receive confirmation within 21 days.

Declaration

You will be required to answer the following questions in your online application.  If you answer ‘yes’ to any of the questions below, you will need to provide details and copies of all relevant documents.

  1. Have you in the last 10 years been convicted of a criminal offence (other than a minor traffic offence) or are any court proceedings pending?
  2. Have you ever been disqualified from holding, or refused an application for, registration or licence as a building practitioner, or have you had any occupational licence or certificate cancelled or suspended (including interstate licences, certificates or registrations)?
  3. In respect of any work you have done in an equivalent position, have you ever been fined, reprimanded or cautioned for any breach of rules, professional code of conduct or code of ethics?
  4. Been declared bankrupt, been discharged from bankruptcy, entered into arrangements with creditors in the last 10 years?
  5. Have you, in the past 10 years, been a director, secretary or a person in a position to control or substantially influence a company's conduct or affairs within 12 months of that company being placed in receivership, administration, official administration, under a deed of company arrangement, in liquidation or wound up for the benefit of creditors?
  6. Have you undertaken Continuous Professional Development during the last licence period? (renewal only)
  7. Is there a record that Continuous Professional Development has been completed? (renewal only)

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Related information

Last updated: 03 Oct 2023

This page has been produced and published by the Consumer Building and Occupational Services Division of the Department of Justice. Although every care has been taken in production, no responsibility is accepted for the accuracy, completeness, or relevance to the user's purpose of the information. Those using it for whatever purpose are advised to verify it with the relevant government department, local government body or other source and to obtain any appropriate professional advice. The Crown, its officers, employees and agents do not accept liability however arising, including liability for negligence, for any loss resulting from the use of or reliance upon the information and/or reliance on its availability at any time.