Posted on February 16, 2026 by Dimitrious Havadjia, Tasfia Kabir and Katie Mortimer

Changes to Establish Development Coordination Authority on Public Exhibition

We have previously written about the amendments to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 by the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning System Reforms) Act 2025 – see our earlier articles here and here.

One key feature of the amendments was the establishment of the Development Coordination Authority (DCA).

The Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) has said that:

“The DCA will provide a single front door to help homeowners, councils, developers and other users get in touch with the right part of the NSW Government to resolve planning matters, eliminating the need to navigate up to 22 different areas of government.”

The DCA is being established in two stages. Stage 1 commenced in December 2025 with the DCA providing advice, recommendations and reports to the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces and identifying solutions to resolve post consent delays on housing construction and completion.

Stage 2 will commence from July 2026 and will see the DCA:

  1. given powers to issue concurrences and general terms of approval for state authorities, replacing the need for a number of different referrals to NSW government departments, such as Water NSW, Transport for NSW, and the RFS,
  2. subject to strict timeframes, with responses required within 28 days in respect of referral responses, and 2 business days in respect of enquires from consent authorities as to whether a formal referral is required, and
  3. charging an increased ‘referral assessment fee’ to applicants, reflecting the increased complexity of referrals.

When finalised, changes will take effect by way of various amendments to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2021 (EPA Reg) and environmental planning instruments.

The material presently on exhibition proposes:

  • replacing the term ‘approval body’ in the EPA Reg (being a body who may grant an approval, generally in respect of integrated development) with references to the DCA,
  • creating a single set of provisions that will establish the process for consent authorities requiring input on DAs or modification applications from the DCA, and a single timeframe for that input to be provided.

We will provide a further update once changes are made to give effect to Stage 2 described above.

In the meantime, if you would like to make a submission on the proposed changes, DPHI is accepting comments until 25 February 2026. A link to the materials is here: NSW Planning Portal – Development Coordination Authority.

If you have any questions regarding the DCA, please contact Dimitrious Havadjia or Katie Mortimer.

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