Owner builder permit QLD: cost and timeline

What you pay

There are two fixed costs on the way to a permit, and a few smaller ones around them.

• Owner builder course: $185 with 101ed. You register for free and pay when you pass the assessment.
• QBCC permit application fee: $493.59 (fee schedule effective 1 July 2025), paid online when you lodge.
• Replacement permit: $35.18 if the original is lost.
• Amending a permit (for example, changing the description of the work): no fee.
• Application for work already completed, or an exemption from the six-year rule: no fee.

Other costs to budget for

Outside QBCC you will pay for a current title search from Titles Queensland, council building approval and certifier fees for the work itself, and insurance for the build. If the home was built before 1990 you also need an asbestos general awareness course from a Registered Training Organisation before QBCC will accept your application. None of these is part of the permit fee.

How long each step takes

The course is the only part you control the pace of. Everything after it runs on QBCC’s clock.

• Owner builder course: about 20 hours of self-paced online study and assessment. You can spread it across days; most people finish within a week, and you have up to 4 weeks.
• Statement of Completion: emailed to you as soon as you pass, so there is no waiting on a printed document.
• Title search: order online from Titles Queensland. It must be less than 30 days old when you lodge, so order it after you pass the course, not before.
• QBCC processing: QBCC says the average is within 30 working days. Incomplete applications go back to you and the clock restarts.
• Course certificate validity: five years, so there is no rush to lodge if your plans slip.

A sample calendar

Here is how a typical application runs if you start the course on a Monday.

• Week 1, Monday to Tuesday: register and complete the online course. Your certificate arrives by email when you pass.
• Week 1, Wednesday: order the title search, gather photo ID, the company extract or lease documents if they apply, and write up the description of the work with its estimated value.
• Week 1, Thursday to Friday: have every title holder sign, then lodge and pay the $493.59 through myQBCC.
• Weeks 2 to 7: QBCC assessment. Respond the same day if QBCC asks for anything.
• Weeks 7 to 8: permit issued. Only now can you start work on site, including excavation.

Working days are not calendar days

30 working days excludes weekends and Queensland public holidays, so an application lodged just before Easter or the Christmas shutdown takes longer in calendar terms. If you have trades booked, lodge early rather than counting on the average.

Ways to lose time

Most delays come from the application, not from QBCC. The common ones:

• A title search that is older than 30 days at lodgement.
• A missing signature from a joint title holder.
• A course certificate more than five years old.
• No asbestos awareness certificate for a home built before 1990.
• Starting work before the permit is issued, which can lead to a fine and a separate work-already-completed application.