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Guide 2 of 5
Over 20 m²NSW: over 20 m² or over 8 m high
the small format, a 6 sheet poster, 3 x 1.5 m, 4.5 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; mounted mainly on walls and often located in suburban areas a portrait 50s, 3 x 4.5 m, 13.5 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; it has a magazine cover look a super6, 6 x 3 m, 18 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; commonly known as poster sites and seen in local areas attached to buildings, pole or frame mounted; the source gives the 24 sheet poster the same 6 x 3 m, the size at which Victoria defines a major promotion sign; this face reaches it at exactly 18 m² Victoria: from 18 m² an application must add more material; the same figure is the definition of a major promotion sign. It crosses Super6 / 24 sheet at 6 m along, Dotto’s calculation (18 m² ÷ 3 m) a super8, 8.3 x 2.2 m, 18.26 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; the same proportion as supersites, to enable consistency of content for advertisers Victoria: from 18 m² an application must add more material; the same figure is the definition of a major promotion sign. It crosses Super8 at 8.18 m along, Dotto’s calculation (18 m² ÷ 2.2 m) a supersite, 12.33 x 3.35 m, 41.31 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; the most common large format sign, often sold in packs cells past 20 m² on the Supersite face, filled guide-sign green: past NSW's 20 m² concurrence size, for a face within 250 m of and visible from a classified road Victoria: from 18 m² an application must add more material; the same figure is the definition of a major promotion sign. It crosses Supersite at 5.37 m along, Dotto’s calculation (18 m² ÷ 3.35 m) NSW: an advertisement with a display area greater than 20 m², or higher than 8 m, within 250 m of and visible from a classified road, needs Transport for NSW concurrence before consent. It crosses Supersite at 5.97 m along, Dotto’s calculation (20 m² ÷ 3.35 m) a spectacular, 18.99 x 4.5 m, 85.46 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; frame, gantry or pole mounted cells past 20 m² on the Spectacular face, filled guide-sign green: past NSW's 20 m² concurrence size, for a face within 250 m of and visible from a classified road cells past 48 m² on the Spectacular face, filled deep red: past Brisbane's cap of 48 m² per side Victoria: from 18 m² an application must add more material; the same figure is the definition of a major promotion sign. It crosses Spectacular at 4 m along, Dotto’s calculation (18 m² ÷ 4.5 m) NSW: an advertisement with a display area greater than 20 m², or higher than 8 m, within 250 m of and visible from a classified road, needs Transport for NSW concurrence before consent. It crosses Spectacular at 4.44 m along, Dotto’s calculation (20 m² ÷ 4.5 m) Brisbane: the area of a billboard sign must not exceed 48 m² per side, for a maximum of two sides. It crosses Spectacular at 10.67 m along, Dotto’s calculation (48 m² ÷ 4.5 m)
  1. the small format, a 6 sheet poster, 3 x 1.5 m, 4.5 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; mounted mainly on walls and often located in suburban areas
  2. a portrait 50s, 3 x 4.5 m, 13.5 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; it has a magazine cover look
  3. a super6, 6 x 3 m, 18 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; commonly known as poster sites and seen in local areas attached to buildings, pole or frame mounted; the source gives the 24 sheet poster the same 6 x 3 m, the size at which Victoria defines a major promotion sign; this face reaches it at exactly 18 m² Victoria: from 18 m² an application must add more material; the same figure is the definition of a major promotion sign. It crosses Super6 / 24 sheet at 6 m along, Dotto’s calculation (18 m² ÷ 3 m)
  4. a super8, 8.3 x 2.2 m, 18.26 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; the same proportion as supersites, to enable consistency of content for advertisers Victoria: from 18 m² an application must add more material; the same figure is the definition of a major promotion sign. It crosses Super8 at 8.18 m along, Dotto’s calculation (18 m² ÷ 2.2 m)
  5. a supersite, 12.33 x 3.35 m, 41.31 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; the most common large format sign, often sold in packs cells past 20 m² on the Supersite face, filled guide-sign green: past NSW's 20 m² concurrence size, for a face within 250 m of and visible from a classified road Victoria: from 18 m² an application must add more material; the same figure is the definition of a major promotion sign. It crosses Supersite at 5.37 m along, Dotto’s calculation (18 m² ÷ 3.35 m) NSW: an advertisement with a display area greater than 20 m², or higher than 8 m, within 250 m of and visible from a classified road, needs Transport for NSW concurrence before consent. It crosses Supersite at 5.97 m along, Dotto’s calculation (20 m² ÷ 3.35 m)
  6. a spectacular, 18.99 x 4.5 m, 85.46 m², Dotto’s calculation from those dimensions; frame, gantry or pole mounted cells past 20 m² on the Spectacular face, filled guide-sign green: past NSW's 20 m² concurrence size, for a face within 250 m of and visible from a classified road cells past 48 m² on the Spectacular face, filled deep red: past Brisbane's cap of 48 m² per side Victoria: from 18 m² an application must add more material; the same figure is the definition of a major promotion sign. It crosses Spectacular at 4 m along, Dotto’s calculation (18 m² ÷ 4.5 m) NSW: an advertisement with a display area greater than 20 m², or higher than 8 m, within 250 m of and visible from a classified road, needs Transport for NSW concurrence before consent. It crosses Spectacular at 4.44 m along, Dotto’s calculation (20 m² ÷ 4.5 m) Brisbane: the area of a billboard sign must not exceed 48 m² per side, for a maximum of two sides. It crosses Spectacular at 10.67 m along, Dotto’s calculation (48 m² ÷ 4.5 m)

Who says yes to a billboard approval, and for how long

Three places, three approval paths: NSW consent, with an impact statement for a face over 20 square metres or over 8 metres high and Transport for NSW’s concurrence where it is within 250 metres of and visible from a classified road, Victoria’s scheme categories and the extra material an application from 18 square metres must carry, and Brisbane’s device approvals under a 48 square metre cap.

General information, not planning or legal advice.

Three approval paths

This guide covers three rulebooks from three places: chapter 3 of NSW’s State Environmental Planning Policy (Industry and Employment) 2021, Victoria’s planning provisions for signs, and Brisbane City Council’s advertising devices rules. None of them is a national rule, and a rule from one place is not the rule of another. Each column below names its own figures and its own body.

NSW

A person must not display an advertisement except with consent or as chapter 3 otherwise provides, and the relevant local council is the consent authority except for the cases the guidelines list in section 1.3.3. The NSW Department of Planning says the planning controls for advertising and signage sit in chapter 3 of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Industry and Employment) 2021, which also provides time-limited consents and controls advertising in transport corridors.

A bigger face adds paperwork and a second approver. An advertisement with a display area greater than 20 square metres, or higher than 8 metres above the ground, needs an impact statement addressing the Schedule 5 assessment criteria before the consent authority can grant consent. An advertisement with a display area greater than 20 square metres, or higher than 8 metres above the ground, that is within 250 metres of a classified road and visible from it cannot be consented without Transport for NSW’s concurrence, and if TfNSW does not answer within 21 days of receiving the application it is taken to have concurred. The 2017 guidelines add the steps: the application is lodged with the council, which forwards it for concurrence with a $250 concurrence fee. Over 45 square metres, consent also needs a development control plan in force that was prepared on the basis of an advertising design analysis for the area or precinct or, for transport corridor land, the consent authority’s satisfaction that the advertisement is consistent with the Guidelines.

Victoria

Victoria’s planning provisions set categories of sign control, and the zone provisions say which category applies to a zone. If a sign can be interpreted in more than one way, the most restrictive requirement must be met. A sign in Section 1 can be put up without a permit if all of its conditions are met; a sign in Section 2 needs a permit; a sign in Section 3 is prohibited and must not be put up. Some overlays require a permit for Section 1 signs.

A display area of 18 square metres or more changes the application: it must describe the existing character of the area, including built form and landscapes; give the location of any other signs over 18 square metres, or scrolling, electronic or animated signs, within 200 metres; describe any existing identifiable advertising theme; include photo montages or a streetscape perspective; give lux levels for a sign on or within 60 metres of a Transport Zone 2 or 3, a residential zone or a public land zone; and address the relationship to significant or prominent views and vistas.

Brisbane

Brisbane City Council regulates advertising devices under its Advertising Devices Local Law 2021. A prohibited device cannot be approved at all: putting one up is an offence and no application can be made for it. A self-assessable device can be displayed without applying for Council approval, as long as it complies with the Permitted Advertising Devices Designation. A device in the generally inappropriate category needs an application that demonstrates special circumstances, and a sign that does not meet the self-assessable requirements needs a full assessment and a licence.

For a billboard sign, the Council caps the area at 48 square metres per side, including any electronic display component, for a maximum of two sides, and the height of any part of the sign at 12 metres above the ground. Where the applicant is not the landowner, the application needs the landowner’s consent. The application fee and the annual permit fee for each device must be paid when the application is submitted. The Council’s first response to a full assessment comes within 30 working days.

How long a consent lasts

How long a consent lasts is set out in the same instruments. In NSW, chapter 3 of the SEPP (Industry and Employment) 2021 caps a consent at 15 years unless the consent authority specifies a lesser period, and a roof or sky sign’s consent at 10 years. The 2017 guidelines put a building wrap at 12 months of display and a special promotion at a total of 3 months in any 12, and require a road safety check for signs over 20 square metres. In Victoria, a permit for a major promotion sign expires on the date the permit specifies, 15 years from issue by default, and where the permit sets another date it must be between 10 and 25 years. In Brisbane, building work must be completed within one year of the approval, and the approval holder can apply for one extension of up to 6 months.

Consent or stepYears from the grant or the step
  1. NSW: a consent lasts up to 15 years, or less if the consent sets itNSW: a consent lasts up to 15 years, or less if the consent sets it
  2. NSW: a roof or sky sign, up to 10 yearsNSW: a roof or sky sign, up to 10 years
  3. NSW: a building wrap, up to 12 months of displayNSW: a building wrap, up to 12 months of display
  4. NSW: a special promotion, up to 3 months in any 12NSW: a special promotion, up to 3 months in any 12
  5. NSW: a road safety check for signs over 20 m², after 12 months of operation, and within 18 months of installationNSW: a road safety check for signs over 20 m², after 12 months of operation, and within 18 months of installation
  6. Victoria: a major promotion permit, 15 years from issue unless the permit sets a periodVictoria: a major promotion permit, 15 years from issue unless the permit sets a period
  7. Victoria: a period of 10 to 25 years, if the permit sets oneVictoria: a period of 10 to 25 years, if the permit sets one
  8. Brisbane: build within a year of approval, and the approval holder can apply for one extension of up to 6 monthsBrisbane: build within a year of approval, and the approval holder can apply for one extension of up to 6 months

The bars are drawn to one scale of years, from the periods cited on each line.

Today’s names for the rules

The 2017 guidelines name the instrument and the body of their day: SEPP 64, and RMS, the roads authority of the day. The advertising and signage controls the guidelines describe now sit in chapter 3 of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Industry and Employment) 2021, and the concurrence role the guidelines give RMS is today’s concurrence of TfNSW, which the SEPP defines as Transport for NSW. This guide uses today’s names throughout: chapter 3 of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Industry and Employment) 2021 for the controls, and Transport for NSW where the guidelines said RMS.

Who to ask

In NSW, the application is lodged with the local council, the consent authority except for the cases in section 1.3.3; where concurrence applies, the council forwards the application to Transport for NSW. In Victoria, the zone provisions of the planning scheme set which category of sign control applies to the site. In Brisbane, the Council assesses and licenses advertising devices, and a building certifier can say whether building approval is also needed.