Running a Queensland Body Corporate means answering to more than one piece of legislation. Workplace health and safety law, fire safety regulation, the Body Corporate and Community Management Act, tax law, insurance requirements — a Committee is expected to stay across all of it, usually without a legal background.
This page walks through what a Body Corporate is actually required to do under each area of compliance, and why it matters if you don’t. For the full picture — including SSKB’s compliance checklists, decision flowcharts, and the specific thresholds, timeframes and registers your Committee needs on hand — download the free Body Corporate Statutory Compliance Guide (QLD).
Already an SSKB Client? Body Corporate Statutory Compliance Guide is already available to you via the mySSKB Portal and the SSKB App. Simply head to the Owner Documentation section and look under the Education tab.
Disclaimer: The material in this book is intended as a general guide and not as definitive legal advice. For specific concerns, we recommend speaking with your Community Manager. They can either provide the answers you need or help you find the right professional with the expertise required to make a positive difference for your Body Corporate. Please note that legislative requirements may have changed since this information was published.
Yes. The Work Health and Safety Act 2011 applies to any “person conducting a business or undertaking” (PCBU) — and a Body Corporate counts the moment it employs a worker, engages a contractor, or has a volunteer working on Common Property. That covers virtually every scheme in Queensland. The Act requires a Body Corporate to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers and other persons on site — which in practice means identifying risks (shared access, pool chemicals, roof anchor points, asbestos, and dozens of other common-property hazards) and demonstrating they’ve been addressed, not just assuming a licensed contractor has it covered.
Our free guide includes SSKB’s Risk Assessment methodology (including the likelihood-versus-consequence rating matrix used to prioritise hazards) and a breakdown of the registers a Committee should be keeping. Download it for the full framework.
A Sinking Fund Forecast estimates the life expectancy and replacement cost of Common Property, plant and equipment, so the Body Corporate sets aside enough in levies to cover major works without an unplanned special levy. It’s mandatory for every Body Corporate in Queensland under the Body Corporate and Community Management Act, with a legal minimum planning horizon of 10 years and a review required every two to five years depending on the size and type of building.
A 10-year forecast is the legal floor, not necessarily the safe number — major capital works like roof replacement or lift overhauls often fall just outside that window. Our guide explains the difference between a Sinking Fund Forecast and a Capital Works Program, and sets out the steps involved in preparing one.
Under the Building Act 1975 (QLD), most buildings must possess and prominently display a Certificate of Classification, issued on completion of construction and confirming the building’s use, maintenance requirements and fire safety classification under the Building Code of Australia. There are exceptions: Class 1a buildings (standalone houses) and Class 10 structures (private garages, sheds, freestanding walls) don’t require one. Everything from Class 2 apartment buildings through to Class 9 aged care and public buildings does.
If your scheme doesn’t have a current certificate on file, our guide explains how to obtain one and what it should contain.
Three separate compliance obligations tend to catch Committees out. Any building constructed before 31 December 2003 must have had an asbestos audit, with a register kept on-site and reviewed at least every five years. Any shared pool must be registered with local government and hold an annually reviewed Safety Certificate, displayed at the pool. And lifts, escalators and moving walkways must be registered annually with the relevant state authority, inspected either to the manufacturer’s schedule or annually, with records of testing and maintenance kept on file.
Each of these has its own audit cycle, register format and renewal timeline — our guide sets them out obligation by obligation, including what a non-compliance notice looks like and how to rectify one.
Every new building has some degree of imperfection, and Queensland law gives Bodies Corporate a limited window to act. Claims through the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC) fall into two categories — Category 1 (structural or health-and-safety defects, such as a leaking roof) must be lodged within three months of the defect being identified, and within six years and three months of practical completion. Category 2 (minor defects, such as cosmetic finishing) generally requires contacting the contractor first, who has a six-month warranty obligation. Separately, common law claims for defective work carry a six-year limitation period from the date of the breach.
Missing these windows can mean losing the right to claim altogether. Our guide sets out the full defect-response process, including when to engage an independent engineer’s report and when a construction lawyer becomes worthwhile.
Queensland’s fire safety framework requires every Body Corporate to ensure evacuation is possible in an emergency and that fire safety installations are properly maintained — at all times, not just at audit time. Depending on the building’s size and worker numbers, this can mean appointing a qualified Fire Safety Advisor, maintaining a current Fire and Evacuation Plan, displaying evacuation signage, running annual evacuation practices, and training workers in evacuation and first-response procedures. Buildings that aren’t Class 1a (standalone houses) also need an annual Occupiers Statement summarising all fire equipment testing and maintenance, submitted to Queensland Fire and Rescue Service.
This is one of the more heavily audited areas of compliance, and non-compliance can attract fines at any time. Our guide includes SSKB’s full fire compliance decision flowchart and a breakdown of exactly which obligations apply based on your building’s classification and size.
Yes. Under Australian Tax Law, a Body Corporate constituted under strata title legislation must lodge a tax return for its assessable income each financial year, taxed at the same rate and threshold as a public company. Assessable income includes interest, dividends, investment earnings on funds such as the sinking fund, and income from common property use (mobile phone tower leases, for example) — but not levies, which fall under the principle of mutuality. Bodies Corporate must also report on the standard 1 July–30 June tax year, even if the scheme’s own financial year runs differently.
Our guide covers GST registration thresholds, ABN requirements, and how the audit obligation interacts with your annual tax position.
The Body Corporate and Community Management Act requires a specific set of statutory registers: the roll of Lots and entitlements, a register of assets over $1,000, a register of engagements and authorisations (for the Body Corporate Manager and service contractors), a register of any Common Property occupation authorities, a register of exclusive use by-law allocations, and a register of restricted issues the Committee isn’t authorised to decide alone. Missing or incomplete registers are one of the more common compliance gaps found on a scheme takeover or handover.
Our guide sets out exactly what each register must contain and who’s responsible for keeping it current.
A Committee must have between three and seven voting members, including a Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer (one person can hold more than one position). Committee Members carry legal responsibilities comparable to a company director, and the Act sets firm spending limits — tied to the number of Lots in the scheme — for what a Committee can approve without a full general meeting. Above those thresholds, decisions require an ordinary or special resolution at a general meeting instead. The Act also sets strict requirements for the first AGM, subsequent AGMs and Extraordinary General Meetings, including notice periods, quorum rules and mandatory agenda items.
Our guide includes the full spending-limit table and a walkthrough of AGM notice and voting requirements.
Queensland law requires a minimum $10 million in public liability insurance for Common Property, full replacement cover for Body Corporate assets (pools, fences and similar), and building insurance for the full replacement value — covering earthquake, explosion, fire, storm and water damage, glass breakage, and malicious damage. Building insurance isn’t required for standard format Lots with no common walls (i.e. freestanding houses), but is compulsory for building format plans and standard format Lots that share walls, such as townhouses. An independent valuation for replacement value must be obtained at least once every five years.
Our guide explains how premiums are apportioned across Lots, what excess arrangements typically look like, and the questions a Committee should be asking before renewal.
Yes. It’s mandatory in Queensland, with a legal minimum 10-year forecast, reviewed every two to five years depending on the size and type of building.
Most do. Class 1a buildings (standalone houses) and Class 10 structures (garages, sheds, freestanding walls) are exempt — everything else, including apartment buildings, must hold one.
Yes, if the building was constructed before 31 December 2003. An Asbestos Containing Materials Register must be kept, reviewed at least every five years.
Yes. Shared pools must be registered with local government and hold a Safety Certificate, reviewed and displayed annually at the pool.
Yes. Bodies Corporate must lodge a tax return for assessable income (interest, investment earnings, common property income) at the same rate and threshold as a public company. Levies are not assessable income.
Only if turnover exceeds $150,000 — Bodies Corporate are classified as “not for profit” entities, which sets a higher registration threshold than a standard business.
Yes, unless a special resolution not to audit is passed at the AGM. The auditor can’t be a Committee Member, the Body Corporate Manager, or an associate of either.
A minimum of three and a maximum of seven voting members, including a Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer — one person may hold more than one of these positions.
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