The Accredited Professionals Scheme enhances the decision-making in the planning system and gives applicants greater confidence in the way that their development applications are assessed.
Any decision-maker in the planning system who is involved in assessing development applications can apply to become accredited under the scheme.
The Accredited Professionals Scheme Review is now complete. The Accreditation Authority has released the Consultation Report - What We Heard and How We Responded (PDF, 185 KB). The Department would like to thank those who took the time to provide feedback throughout the review process. The feedback received has assisted in shaping an enhanced Scheme for accredited professionals and stakeholders.
About the scheme
The Accredited Professionals Scheme provides reliability, flexibility and accountability of decision-makers in the planning system. The scheme gives development applicants greater confidence in the way their submissions are assessed.
The Accredited Professionals Scheme began on 1 April 2019. All planning and building professionals can apply to become accredited.
Under the scheme, planning and building professionals who assess development applications must maintain minimum standards of professional practice and produce evidence that they are sufficiently qualified to make key decisions at certain levels.
Applicants for accreditation must lodge their application accompanied by evidence that supports their eligibility to become accredited in the class that they request.
The Chief Executive of the Department for Housing and Urban Development (the Department), is the Accreditation Authority and administers accreditation for planning and building professionals.
Once accredited, they are registered in a central database managed by the Department.
All practicing Accredited Professionals must:
- hold professional indemnity insurance (unless they are covered by another form of indemnity scheme or arrangement that is approved by the accreditation authority)
- comply with an Accredited Professionals code of conduct
- participate in annual compliance checks
- complete specified units of continuing professional development.
The Accredited Professionals Scheme is part of the planning system created under the Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016.
Accredited Professionals may identity themselves with the use of the Accredited Professionals brand identity.
Use of the brand identity is permitted by Accredited Professionals who hold active accreditation under the Scheme. Under Regulation 31 of the Planning, Development and Infrastructure (Accredited Professionals) Regulations 2019 a person must not purportedly act as an accredited professional unless the person holds accreditation under these regulations.
Maximum penalty: $10 000.
There are several classes of accreditation available under the Scheme and each will require a different level of qualification, skill and experience. The accreditation classes are not dissimilar to the accreditation levels identified by the Planning Institute of Australia, the Australian Institute of Building Surveyors, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and the Surveying and Spatial Sciences Institute
Planning professionals and surveyors
There are four classes of planning accreditation available as well as a class for surveyors under the Scheme. Each class requires different qualifications, skills and experience (PDF, 650 KB), and each level is able to assess different types of proposals.
Accreditation Class | Approved Activities |
|---|---|
Planning Level 1Assessment Manager |
|
Planning Level 2Assessment Panel Member |
|
Planning Level 3Accredited Professional |
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Planning Level 4Accredited Professional |
|
SurveyorAccredited Professional |
|
*All approved activities are subject to the Planning, Development and Infrastructure (General) (Development Assessment) Variation Regulations 2019
Building professionals
There are four classes of building accreditation available. Each class requires different qualifications, skills and experience, and each class is able to assess different types of proposals.
Becoming accredited at Building Level 2 also includes Building Level 3 and Building Level 4 accreditation. This is the only higher level accreditation that includes accreditation at the lower levels.
Accreditation Level | Approved Activities |
|---|---|
Building Level 1Accredited Professional |
|
Building Level 2Accredited Professional |
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Building Level 3Accredited Professional |
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Building Level 4Building Inspector |
|
* All approved activities are subject to the Planning, Development and Infrastructure (General) (Development Assessment) Variation Regulations 2019
The Accredited Professionals Scheme helps to facilitate the following:
- Better decision making
The scheme ensures that planning and building professionals are suitably qualified and experienced to assess development applications and that they adhere to relevant planning requirements and a strict code of conduct. - Improved recognition of professionals
The scheme recognises the skills and experience of planning and building professionals and the value they bring to the decision-making process. - Faster processing for applicants
Development applicants have the choice to engage accredited professionals in the public or private sectors, resulting in faster and more responsive turnaround times on applications. - Better management of complaints
The scheme provides a clear auditing and compliance process to ensure that all decisions are transparent and that issues and complaints can be investigated swiftly and fairly. - Centralised public register for all accredited professionals
All Accredited Professionals are registered on a central directory on the PlanSA portal, making it easier for users to access up-to-date information on all planning and building decision-makers.
There are a number of significant benefits to becoming accredited as a decision-maker in South Australia’s planning system:
- As an Accredited Professional, your skills and experience in the development assessment process will be formally recognised and the importance of your role in the planning and development profession will be elevated sector-wide.
- You will also be part of a high-profile community of practice that leads the nation in professional standards and conduct and values ongoing professional development.
- Accredited professionals will also benefit from applicants having greater confidence in the development assessment process and the people who administer it through enhanced accountability and flexibility.
- Importantly, clearer auditing and compliance processes will be available to all accredited professionals to ensure that all issues and complaints are investigated swiftly and fairly and practitioners can continue to do their work without unwarranted or prolonged disruption.
The accredited professionals register shows planning and building professionals who are accredited under the Accredited Professionals Scheme.
Fees are set out by a Ministerial fee notice (PDF, 284 KB) published in the Government Gazette. A simplified version of these fees is set out below:
| Fees under Planning, Development and Infrastructure (Accredited Professionals) Regulations 2019 | Fee |
|---|---|
| Application for accreditation (non-equivalent scheme pathway) | $628.00 |
| Application for accreditation under an equivalent scheme pathway | $303.00 |
| Reapplication for accreditation within 12 months | $303.00 |
| Application for continuation of accreditation/renewal | $202.00 |
| Late application fee | $67.00 |
| Application for enrolment into APS core competency course |
$566.50 (inc. GST) |
As of 2 April 2024, a fee for private accredited professionals using the ePlanning system was introduced.
The fee applies to all decisions made on applications submitted from 2 April 2024 that have been issued a consent decision of either ‘granted’ or ‘refused’.
Fees will be billed quarterly for decisions made in the previous quarter. Reports are available through the Development Application Processing (DAP) system that provides a summary of the consent decisions made in any given date range, including the total payable fee amount and the list of applications where a consent decision has been made.
Fees are set out by a Ministerial fee notice (PDF, 284 KB) published in the Government Gazette.
Documents
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