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City of Wollongong
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Bush Fire Certificates

If you’re doing work on bush fire prone land as complying development, you will need to get a Bush Fire Attack Level (BAL) Risk Assessment Certificate.

This certificate confirms that your development isn’t in an area with a high BAL (BAL-40) or in the flame zone.

There are two ways to check if your land is bush fire prone:

  1. See our online map
  2. Apply for a property certificate, which will explain any risks including flood and bush fire.

If you’re unsure, call us on (02) 4227 7111 or use the button below.

For online enquiries about bush fire prone land, please select 'Duty Building Officer' in the field 'Which Duty Officer is this enquiry for?'.

Development Duty Officer enquiry
Development Duty Officer enquiry

The types of complying development that must have a Bushfire Attack Level Certificate are explained in NSW planning laws. You can read these laws using the links below:

Bush Fire Attack Level Certificates can be issued Council, or a qualified consultant recognised by the NSW Rural Fire Service.

The next section explains how to apply to Council for a Bushfire Attack Level Certificate.

You will need to include the following information with your application:

  • A statement describing your proposed development
  • A site plan that’s drawn to scale. This should include your reference number and the date. It should also show the following features where relevant:
    • Buildings that are already on the site and their uses
    • The proposed development
    • Setbacks (ie the distance) of your proposed development to the site boundaries.

You should follow our format guidelines for all digital documents when applying.

  • If you’re applying for a Bushfire Attack Level Certificate online, you only need to provide one digital copy of each document.
  • If you’re applying with the hard copy form PDF, 252.69 KB in person or by post, you will need to include one hard copy and one digital copy of each document.

There are two ways you can apply for a Bush Fire Attack Level Certificate.

Apply online

Before you can apply, you need to log in or register in our Online Services system.

Once you are logged in, select Lodge an Application, then Planning & Development and Bushfire Attack Level Certificate Assessment.

Apply using PDF form

Download the form below and return it to Council with your supporting information.

Application for Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) Risk Assessment Certificate PDF, 252.69 KB

Parent HierarchyArea Fee NameFee Name GSTGST Current Fee (incl. GST)Current Fee (incl. GST)
Parent HierarchyDevelopment Assessment | Bushfire Attack Level Assessment Fee NameBushfire Attack Level (BAL) Assessment Certificate Fee GSTY Fee incl. GST$500.00