A Section 10.7 planning certificate is the council’s statement of the planning controls and constraints that apply to a lot, issued under Section 10.7 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979. The 10.7(2) part must cover the 25 matters prescribed in Schedule 2 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2021, from zoning and contributions plans to flood controls, bushfire prone land and the Western Sydney Aerotropolis, while the 10.7(5) part is extra advice the council chooses to give, such as its flood studies or known contamination. Blacktown, The Hills, Penrith, Liverpool and Central Coast councils all issue the same statutory certificate, but the constraints that commonly appear differ with each council’s LEP and hazards. This article shows buyers how to read both parts and what each of those five councils tends to flag.
Key takeaways
- Section 10.7(2) of the EP&A Act requires the council to state the prescribed matters, listed in Schedule 2 of the EP&A Regulation 2021, and Section 10.7(5) lets it add other relevant advice it is aware of, without liability if given in good faith.
- A 10.7(2) certificate costs 0.62 fee units ($73 in 2026-27) and the (5) advice adds 0.94 fee units ($111); most councils issue the combined certificate within a few working days through the NSW Planning Portal or their own portal.
- The certificate names the LEP, DCP and contributions plans, but it does not tell you the development standards inside them; the Hills Shire’s own guidance says to research the instruments the certificate lists.
- Blacktown, Penrith and Liverpool certificates often carry Western Sydney Aerotropolis, growth centre, flood and contamination entries, while Central Coast certificates commonly flag bushfire, flooding and coastal hazards under Central Coast LEP 2022.
- The (5) part is where the useful warnings sit: adopted flood studies, biodiversity mapping, known contamination, road widening and unresolved orders, so always buy the (2) and (5) certificate before exchange.
Who this is for: buyers doing due diligence on a house, duplex site or granny flat block in Blacktown, The Hills, Penrith, Liverpool or the Central Coast, who want to read the certificate the way a planner does and spot the entries that change what the block can carry.
What does Section 10.7 of the EP&A Act actually require?
Section 10.7(1) lets any person apply to a council, on payment of the prescribed fee, for a planning certificate for land in its area. Section 10.7(2) requires the council to issue a certificate specifying the matters prescribed by the regulations. Section 10.7(5) allows the council to include advice on other relevant matters affecting the land of which it is aware, and Section 10.7(6) protects the council from liability for advice given in good faith under subsection (5). Section 290 of the Regulation then points to Schedule 2 for the prescribed matters and to Schedule 4 for the fees: item 9.7 sets the certificate fee at 0.62 fee units and item 9.8 allows an additional 0.94 fee units where the certificate includes subsection (5) advice.
That structure explains the two-part certificate. The (2) part is mandatory, standardised and legally reliable, and a certificate must be attached to every contract for the sale of land under the conveyancing legislation. The (5) part is discretionary, varies in depth from council to council, and is the part a buyer should read most carefully, because it is where councils record what their own studies and files say about the specific lot.
What must the 10.7(2) part cover?
Schedule 2 of the EP&A Regulation 2021 lists the prescribed matters, and they appear on every council’s certificate in this order:
- Names of the relevant planning instruments and development control plans, including draft instruments on exhibition.
- Zoning and land use under those instruments, including what is permitted with and without consent and what is prohibited, and the minimum lot size clause where one applies.
- Contributions plans that apply, and whether the land is in a Housing and Productivity Contribution area.
- Complying development: whether each Codes SEPP code can be used on the land, and if not, why.
- Exempt development in the same terms.
- Affected building notices and building product rectification orders.
- Land reserved for acquisition.
- Road widening and road realignment.
- Flood related development controls, stating whether controls apply to dwellings and other development because the land is between the flood planning level and the probable maximum flood.
- Council and other public authority policies on hazard risk restrictions such as landslip, contamination, acid sulfate soils or subsidence.
- Bush fire prone land.
- Loose-fill asbestos insulation register.
- Mine subsidence districts.
- Paper subdivision information.
- Property vegetation plans.
- Biodiversity stewardship sites.
- Biodiversity certified land.
- Orders under the Trees (Disputes Between Neighbours) Act 2006.
- Annual charges for coastal protection services.
- Western Sydney Aerotropolis: whether the land is in the Aerotropolis and affected by its noise or planning controls.
- Development consent conditions for seniors housing.
- Site compatibility certificates and conditions for affordable rental housing.
- Water or sewerage services.
- Special entertainment precincts.
- Interim development in future infrastructure corridors.
Contaminated land notes are added under Section 59(2) of the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997. What the (2) part will not do is quote the actual controls. It will name Blacktown LEP 2015 and Blacktown DCP 2015, but it will not say that Clause 4.1B requires 500 square metres for an attached dual occupancy. That is the buyer’s next step.
How do you read the (5) part?
The (5) part is free text or a set of standard paragraphs. The entries that matter most to a buyer are: flood advice based on the council’s adopted flood study where the land is not formally mapped under item 9; biodiversity or vegetation mapping under the LEP; heritage listings and conservation areas (some councils place these in the (2) part under the instrument entries); known or suspected contamination from a former use; unresolved notices, orders or outstanding development consents; road widening proposals not yet formalised; and, in growth areas, the precinct plan status. Penrith’s certificate page, for example, describes the (5) advice as covering threatened species, flooding, environmental reports, aircraft noise and potential road widening.
Because Section 10.7(6) removes council liability for good faith (5) advice, the (5) part is not a substitute for your own reports. Treat it as a list of things to investigate: if it mentions flooding, get the flood level; if it mentions biodiversity mapping, budget for an ecologist; if it mentions the Aerotropolis, check the noise contours.
Council by council: what the certificates commonly flag
| Council and instrument | Entries buyers most often see | What to check next |
|---|---|---|
| Blacktown (Blacktown LEP 2015, Blacktown DCP 2015, Growth Centre Precincts DCP) | Growth centre precinct zoning under the Western Parkland City SEPP, contributions plans by precinct, flood controls around Eastern Creek and South Creek, contamination notes on former rural land, Aerotropolis entry for the south of the LGA | Which 7.11 plan applies and its rate, the precinct plan’s lot size and frontage, flood planning level, the 4.1B dual occupancy lot sizes |
| The Hills (The Hills LEP 2019, The Hills DCP 2012) | Bushfire prone land across the north and the Hawkesbury River edge, release area precincts (Box Hill, North Kellyville, Gables), heritage items and conservation areas in Castle Hill, Kellyville and Dural, Section 88B and precinct contributions | Bushfire attack level, Clause 4.1A dual occupancy lot sizes (600 and 700 sqm in R2), Clause 4.1C which restricts Torrens subdivision of dual occupancies, DCP Part B residential controls |
| Penrith (Penrith LEP 2010, Penrith DCP 2014) | Hawkesbury-Nepean flood controls and probable maximum flood advice, Western Sydney Airport noise and the Aerotropolis entry, release areas (Jordan Springs, Glenmore Park, Caddens), contamination near former industry | Flood planning level and evacuation, Clause 4.1A which prohibits dual occupancies on battle-axe lots in R2, ANEF contours, the 7.11 plan for the release area |
| Liverpool (Liverpool LEP 2008, Liverpool DCP 2008) | Aerotropolis and airport noise for the west, South West Growth Area precincts (Austral, Leppington, Edmondson Park) under the Western Parkland City SEPP, flood controls on the Georges River and Cabramatta Creek, bushfire on the rural fringe | Precinct plan status and contributions (Austral and Leppington North plan), Clause 4.1AB dual occupancy lot sizes, flood level, acoustic requirements near the airport |
| Central Coast (Central Coast LEP 2022, Central Coast DCP 2022) | Bushfire prone land across most of the hinterland, flood controls on the Tuggerah Lakes and Hawkesbury tributaries, coastal hazards and coastal protection charges on the beach suburbs, mine subsidence at the northern edge, on-site wastewater areas | Bushfire attack level, coastal hazard maps, sewer availability under item 23, the LEP lot size and dual occupancy clauses, Central Coast Council’s single Local Planning Panel referral rules |
The entries listed are typical patterns, not guarantees. A certificate for a specific lot may show none or all of them, and the only reliable way to know is to buy the (2) and (5) certificate for that lot.
How to order and use a certificate
- Order the combined (2) and (5) certificate, not the (2) only, through the NSW Planning Portal’s online Section 10.7 service where the council participates, or through the council’s own portal (Blacktown and Penrith use their online certificate systems, The Hills uses its ePathway portal, Central Coast uses its property and payment portal).
- Expect the certificate within about two to three working days; some councils, including Penrith, offer a one day expedited service for an additional fee.
- Read the (2) part for the zone, the named instruments and the yes or no answers on complying development, flood, bushfire and the Aerotropolis.
- Open the named LEP on the NSW legislation website and read the lot size, height, floor space ratio and dual occupancy clauses for the zone, then open the DCP part for the development type.
- Read the (5) part as a list of investigations and price each one: flood levels, bushfire assessment, contamination report, ecologist, acoustic report.
- Check the certificate date. Councils note that a certificate is accurate only at its issue date, and instruments change; a certificate more than a few months old should be re-ordered before exchange.
Where buyers misread certificates
The first error is reading “dual occupancy permitted with consent” in the zoning entry as a green light, when the LEP’s lot size clause, a Penrith battle-axe prohibition or The Hills’ Clause 4.1C subdivision restriction can stop the project. The second is treating a blank flood entry as no flood risk; item 9 only records land subject to formal flood related development controls, and the (5) part or the council’s flood study may say more. The third is ignoring item 4. If the certificate says the Low Rise Housing Diversity Code cannot be used because the land is bushfire prone or in a heritage conservation area, the fast complying development pathway for a duplex is off the table and the timeline becomes a DA. The fourth is not noticing item 20; an Aerotropolis or aircraft noise entry in Blacktown, Penrith or Liverpool brings acoustic construction requirements and, in some contours, restrictions on new dwellings.
Definitions
- Section 10.7(2) certificate
- The mandatory part of a planning certificate, setting out the matters prescribed in Schedule 2 of the EP&A Regulation 2021, such as zoning, instruments, contributions plans, flood, bushfire and complying development eligibility.
- Section 10.7(5) advice
- Additional advice on relevant matters affecting the land that the council is aware of, included at the council’s discretion for an extra fee and given without liability if provided in good faith.
- Prescribed matters
- The 25 items in Schedule 2 of the EP&A Regulation 2021 that every 10.7(2) certificate must address, plus contaminated land matters under the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997.
- Flood related development controls
- Controls that apply to development on land between the flood planning level and the probable maximum flood, disclosed under Schedule 2 item 9 where the council has adopted them.
- Bush fire prone land
- Land recorded on the council’s bush fire prone land map certified by the Commissioner of the NSW Rural Fire Service, disclosed under Schedule 2 item 11, which triggers Planning for Bush Fire Protection 2019 and AS 3959:2018.
- Western Sydney Aerotropolis entry
- The Schedule 2 item 20 disclosure of whether land is in the Western Sydney Aerotropolis or affected by its aircraft noise and planning controls, relevant to lots in Penrith, Liverpool and southern Blacktown.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a 10.7(2) and a 10.7(5) certificate?
The 10.7(2) certificate contains the matters prescribed by Schedule 2 of the EP&A Regulation 2021, which every council must state. The 10.7(5) advice is additional information the council chooses to add about the land, such as flood studies or contamination, for an extra fee. The combined certificate is usually called a 10.7(2) and (5) certificate.
How much does a Section 10.7 certificate cost?
Schedule 4 of the Regulation sets the (2) certificate at 0.62 fee units and the (5) advice at a further 0.94 fee units, which for 2026-27 is about $73 and $111, or $184 combined. Councils such as Penrith and Central Coast published $71 and $178 for 2025-26, matching the previous fee unit.
Does the certificate tell me if I can build a duplex?
Only partly. It tells you the zone, whether dual occupancies are permitted with consent and which LEP applies, but not the lot size, frontage or subdivision rules inside the LEP and DCP. Those have to be read from the instruments the certificate names.
Can I rely on the 10.7(5) advice?
Section 10.7(6) of the EP&A Act says the council incurs no liability for (5) advice given in good faith, so it is a prompt for your own investigation rather than a warranty. Use it to decide which specialist reports to commission before exchange.
How long is a planning certificate valid?
There is no statutory expiry, but a certificate is only accurate at its issue date and instruments, maps and contributions plans change. Councils recommend a fresh certificate for a contract of sale, and a lender or buyer will usually want one no more than a few months old.
URBA reads planning certificates for buyers every week as part of our development due diligence reports, translating the (2) and (5) entries into what the block can actually carry in Blacktown, The Hills, Penrith, Liverpool and the Central Coast. See our development due diligence report service and our Blacktown town planner page, or request a fee proposal for a site you are considering.
Sources and references
- Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, Section 10.7 Planning certificates, accessed September 2026
- Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2021, Section 290, Schedule 2 Planning certificates and Schedule 4 items 9.7 and 9.8, accessed September 2026
- NSW Planning Portal, Online Section 10.7 Planning Certificate Service, accessed September 2026
- Service NSW, Apply online for a planning certificate, accessed September 2026
- Blacktown City Council, Apply for a certificate (Section 10.7(2) and 10.7(5) planning certificates), accessed September 2026
- The Hills Shire Council, What is a 10.7(2) Planning Certificate, accessed September 2026
- Penrith City Council, Planning Certificates, accessed September 2026
- Central Coast Council (see the council’s property certificates and planning pages), accessed September 2026
Information disclaimer. This article is general planning information prepared by the URBA Planning Team and is current at the date of publication. It is not planning, legal or financial advice for any specific property. Planning instruments, development control plans, state policies and the National Construction Code are amended regularly and councils interpret them differently; the controls quoted here should be confirmed against the versions in force at the date of lodgement and against the consent authority’s current requirements. Reliance on this article is at the reader’s own risk. URBA, a division of Contrive Consultants Pty Ltd, accepts no liability for loss arising from its use. For advice on a specific site, contact URBA for a fee proposal.