Victoria pushes ahead with NCC 2025

The news comes after both NSW and Queensland announced that they would defer the code’s adoption by a year.

In February, the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB) published a preview edition of NCC 2025. The state government notes that this preview edition does not include specific variations that will affect how NCC 2025 applies in Victoria. However, in a press release, the Victorian government highlighted some changes to expect.

What’s new for Victoria

• Fewer variations: Redundant variations have been removed to align with national requirements. The number of Victorian variations will drop from 115 in NCC 2022 to 60 in NCC 2025
• Lead‑free plumbing products: Plumbing products that contain copper alloys and are intended for drinking water must meet the lead‑free limit of no more than 0.25% weighted average lead content. There will be no transition period
• Expert judgement retained: Victoria will continue to allow expert judgement as an assessment method for structural and fire safety performance solutions, despite this having been removed nationally
• Updated children’s services provisions: Changes will align with the National Quality Framework in order to reduce regulatory burden
• Relocation of technical provisions: Some requirements currently in the Building Regulations 2018 and Plumbing Regulations 2018 will move into the NCC. 

According to the government, the updates should:

• Provide clearer, more consistent national requirements
• Reduce compliance burden where possible
• Ensure high standards of safety and consumer protection.

Industry response

Victoria’s positive approach to NCC 2025 has been welcomed by stakeholders in the HVAC&R industry.

“Our members have identified many opportunities in NCC 2025 for reducing costs and improving performance outcomes,” says AIRAH’s Advocacy and Policy Manager Mark Vender.

“So it is pleasing that these options will be available to designers sooner rather than later. In particular, the inclusion of the 2024 version of the mechanical ventilation standard AS 1668.2 offers clearer compliance pathways that mark a shift away from overdesign and towards fit-for-purpose engineering.

Other interest groups from the construction industry have reacted negatively to the news.

In a statement, Master Builders Victoria (MBV) says it is “extremely disappointed” that the updated code will be adopted on May 1.

“The adoption of NCC 2025 brings further operational and compliance demands that, in the current environment, risk placing unsustainable pressure on construction businesses already doing it tough,” the MBV statement reads.

“The industry has less than a month to adjust to rapid regulatory change, and state and territory-based variations of the NCC are yet to be disclosed. MBV is concerned that the variations may disproportionately impact smaller builders, many of whom lack the resources to update systems swiftly, retrain staff and realign supply chains.”

Keith Ryan, Victorian Executive Director of the Housing Industry Association (HIA), has also slammed the move, claiming that the rapid adoption of the code could have negative effects amid a cost-of-living crisis exacerbated by recent geopolitical developments.

Image courtesy of Jcomp via Freepik

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