A Sydney Water building plan referral does not mean your proposal has been rejected. It means the proposed building or excavation work needs a closer assessment before approval can be issued.
This usually happens when the work may affect a Sydney Water asset, restrict access to it, or expose the proposed structure to risk if the asset later requires maintenance. The next step is to engage a Water Servicing Coordinator who can review the plans, explain the requirements and manage the approval pathway.
Why Sydney Water refers building plans
Building plans are submitted through Sydney Water Tap in. Sydney Water uses the information provided to determine whether the work could affect its water, wastewater or stormwater infrastructure.
Plans that meet the criteria may receive online approval. When further technical assessment is required, the application is referred to a Water Servicing Coordinator under Sydney Water’s building plan approval process. A coordinator can usually assess the proposal, specify asset protection requirements and advise what documents are needed. Some applications must be referred back to Sydney Water for specialised review.
A referral may arise when a project involves:
- Building over or close to a wastewater pipe
- Excavating a basement near an existing asset
- Constructing near a water or recycled water main
- Working within or near a Sydney Water easement
- Dewatering associated with excavation
- Building near Sydney Water stormwater infrastructure
The significance of the referral depends on the asset, its location, the proposed structure and the construction method.
What should you do after receiving the referral?
Review the referral information and keep your Sydney Water Tap in application reference. You will then need to select a listed Water Servicing Coordinator in Sydney and provide the available project documents.
These may include:
- Architectural, site and survey plans
- Structural drawings
- Development consent and relevant conditions
- Excavation, footing, pier or basement details
- Existing service diagrams or asset information
- Geotechnical information, where relevant
Providing current, coordinated drawings can reduce unnecessary questions and revisions. Construction affecting the relevant area should not proceed until the approval requirements are understood.
What will the Water Servicing Coordinator assess?
The coordinator examines how the proposed works relate to Sydney Water infrastructure. This assessment considers clearances, the depth and type of the asset, proposed excavation, structural loads and whether Sydney Water can retain safe access for inspection, repair and replacement.
A Service Protection Report may be required to confirm the position and depth of an asset. Structural details may also be needed to show how loads will be transferred away from a pipe or how the structure will remain protected during future asset work.
LP Consulting’s Sydney Water building plan approval services include reviewing architectural and structural drawings, obtaining Service Protection Reports, coordinating asset information and managing complex or out-of-scope submissions.
What outcomes are possible?
The outcome is not the same for every Sydney Water building plan referral. Depending on the assessment, the coordinator may:
- Approve the plans without major additional work
- Issue approval subject to conditions
- Request revised architectural or structural details
- Require a Service Protection Report or further asset investigation
- Specify piering, concrete encasement or another protection measure
- Require clearances or access provisions
- Recommend adjustment or relocation of an affected asset
- Refer the plans to Sydney Water for specialised review
Asset protection requirements are project-specific. Piering or encasement should not be assumed merely because an application has been referred.
What is an out-of-scope application?
An out-of-scope Sydney Water application is one that a Water Servicing Coordinator cannot approve independently. The coordinator submits it to Sydney Water for a detailed engineering review.
This pathway may apply where plans affect larger wastewater pipes, pressure wastewater infrastructure, water or recycled water pipes, certain easements, nearby Sydney Water stormwater assets, basements or dewatering proposals.
Sydney Water reviews the effect on its infrastructure, its ability to access and maintain the asset, and the protection of the proposed building.
Once Sydney Water provides its requirements, the coordinator helps the applicant address them. Sydney Water advises that conditions for a non-complex out-of-scope review are generally issued within 42 days, although the overall timeframe can vary.
How can approval delays be reduced?
Delays can occur when drawings are incomplete, consultants’ plans do not align, or the proposed structure lacks enough detail for assessment.
Applicants can improve the process by:
- Providing the latest architectural, structural and survey information
- Identifying Sydney Water assets early in design
- Showing excavation depths and structural elements clearly
- Responding promptly to information requests
- Informing the coordinator before making design changes
- Engaging a Sydney Water approvals consultant in Sydney before construction deadlines become critical
Building Plan Approval and a Section 73 Compliance Certificate are separate requirements. Some developments need both, but a building plan referral does not automatically mean every applicant requires a Section 73 certificate.
How LP Consulting can help
If Sydney Water has referred your building plans, LP Consulting can review the referral, examine the available documents and identify the likely assessment pathway.
As a Water Servicing Coordinator in Sydney, we coordinate the technical review, asset protection requirements and communication needed to progress the application.
Send us your Tap in referral, architectural plans, structural drawings and available site information. Contact LP Consulting to discuss the next steps for your Sydney Water building plan approval.
