Change of Use Applications
A change of use application is needed when the building stays the same but what happens inside it changes - retail to cafe, warehouse to gym, office to medical suite. Council assesses whether the new use is permissible in the zone and whether the premises can support it. Some changes of use qualify as complying development and can be certified in two to three weeks. Others need a full DA.
Free consultation
- CDC 2–3 weeks where eligible · DA 6–10 weeks
- From $2,600 + GST (CDC) · from $4,200 + GST (DA)
- Quoted fixed after a free scope check
Common change-of-use scenarios
Retail shop to cafe or takeaway. Warehouse to gym or indoor recreation. Office to medical or allied health suite. Shop to beauty or hairdressing salon. Industrial unit to place of public worship. Dwelling to child care or boarding house. Restaurant to retail.
Three questions, in order
Is the use permissible in the zone? This is threshold. If the land use table in the LEP does not permit it with or without consent, nothing else matters.
What is the premises currently approved for? The starting point is the approved use, not what the last tenant actually did. Premises are frequently operating outside their approval, and inheriting that is a real risk.
Can the premises support the new use? Parking rates, waste, ventilation, accessibility, fire safety, and hours. This is where the cost usually sits.
The pre-lease check
Food and health uses
Any change of use to a food premises, beauty salon or skin penetration premises triggers environmental health obligations in addition to planning. EHUP handles both, which is the difference between one scope and two consultants - see home business approvals and CDC for restaurants and cafes.
How it works
Existing use and permissibility check
24–48 hours
We establish what the premises is currently approved for and whether your intended use is permissible in the zone.
Pathway and cost picture
2–4 days
CDC or DA, plus the likely building upgrade and report requirements.
Documentation
1–3 weeks
Planning documentation, fitout plans, and the health requirements where applicable.
Certification or lodgement
2–10 weeks
Managed through to issue or determination.
What we take off your hands
What EHUP handles
- Checking the existing approved use and whether your intended use is permissible
- Pre-lease feasibility so you do not commit to an unusable premises
- Confirming CDC eligibility versus a DA requirement
- Environmental health and food safety requirements where the new use triggers them
- Waste, acoustic, traffic and parking assessments where required
What you don't have to deal with
- Signing a lease on premises that cannot legally be used as you intend
- Assuming the previous tenant's approval covers your business
Frequently asked questions
Does a change of use always need approval?
Not always. Where the new use falls within the same defined land use category as the approved one, and no building work or intensification is involved, approval may not be required. But that is a narrower exemption than most people assume, and the consequence of being wrong is enforcement. It is worth checking rather than assuming.
Can I rely on the previous tenant's approval?
Only if your use is genuinely the same. "Retail" covers a lot of ground in ordinary speech and much less in planning terms - a shop selling goods and a cafe serving food are different land uses with different requirements, even in the same tenancy. This is the most common misunderstanding we correct.
What if my use is not permissible in the zone?
Then no amount of application quality fixes it - permissibility is threshold, not discretionary. This is exactly why the check belongs before the lease, not after. Occasionally an alternative characterisation of the use is available, and we will tell you if so.
Does a change of use trigger building upgrade requirements?
Frequently, yes. A change of use can bring accessibility, fire safety and Building Code obligations that did not apply to the previous use. On older buildings this is often the largest single cost, and it is much better identified before you commit.
Related services
Commercial & Industrial Approval
Commercial and light industrial projects span a wide range - from a cafe fitout that can be certified in two to three weeks, to a warehouse development where the capital at risk makes feasibility the first priority, not documentation.
CDC - Retail & Office
Retail and office fitouts, and many changes of use within commercial premises, can be certified as complying development in two to three weeks where the premises satisfies the Codes SEPP.
CDC - Restaurants & Cafes
A cafe or restaurant fitout, and in many cases the change of use to a food premises, can be certified as complying development in as little as two to three weeks where the premises satisfies the Codes SEPP in full.
Why clients choose EHUP
- 10+
- 250+
- 14
- 1
Not sure which approval you need?
Tell us the address and what you want to do. We'll help identify the appropriate planning pathway, whether it is exempt development, complying development or a full DA. Your first conversation is free.