Airport Zone Granny Flats: Questions for Your Certifier

For airport zone granny flats, agree who checks the planning route and acoustic requirements before commissioning detailed plans. Ask the certifier to explain their scope and identify any separate planning or acoustic advice needed.

The NSW Government announcement of 19 May 2026 describes secondary dwellings up to 85 square metres on eligible ANEC 20–25 land, with aircraft noise attenuation. It names parts of Wollondilly, Camden, Fairfield, Liverpool and Penrith. This is targeted permission, not an approval for every property in those council areas.

Ask for a defined scope of work

A fee proposal should distinguish preliminary advice, statutory certification and inspections. Ask what information is required, what is excluded and how additional assessment is charged if the design changes.

Don’t expect one practitioner to perform every role. The certifier, designer, planner, engineer and builder have different responsibilities. Record who supplies each report and who checks that its requirements appear in the drawings.

Take the actual proposal to the discussion

Provide title details, current mapping and a sketch of the proposed dwelling. Explain whether it is a new detached building, an attachment or a conversion. Ask which assumptions must be confirmed before advice can become an application.

If somebody guarantees approval solely from a postcode, request the property-specific basis in writing. A nearby approved project can be useful experience, but it doesn’t settle the conditions on your land.

Keep specifications aligned through construction

Once acoustic and other design requirements are documented, include the relevant specifications in the builder’s scope. Ask how substitutions will be assessed. A product being available sooner doesn’t establish that it performs the same job.

Agree when inspections or supporting records are needed before work is covered. The project schedule should name who books each check, so responsibility doesn’t disappear between the factory, installer and site builder.

At handover, collect the required certificates, approved drawings and product records. Keep unresolved items on a dated list with the responsible party. Photos can supplement that record, but they don’t replace statutory documentation.

Questions to resolve before proceeding

Does the announcement approve my design?

No. Obtain advice on the current rules and the proposed building for your property. The announcement explains the policy change; it isn’t a site approval or a construction specification.

Where should I start?

Read our NSW approval overview, then take your address, title details and project brief to the relevant practitioner. Ask for the source and date of the rules used in their assessment.

By The Granny Flat Guide Team. Last updated October 2026. About our research · Project budget calculator