The NCC in 2026: the freeze, the new edition, and what applies in your state
NCC 2025 finally landed on 1 May 2026, but only some states have switched it on, residential changes are frozen until 2029, and the Coalition wants the whole code cut to 80 pages. Here is where the rules actually stand for builders and tradies.
There is no NCC 2026 edition, and that is the point. The current edition, NCC 2025, was released by the Australian Building Codes Board on 1 May 2026, and the federal government has frozen further residential code changes until mid-2029, with state and territory building ministers endorsing the pause in October 2025. Only some jurisdictions have switched NCC 2025 on: Victoria and Tasmania adopted it from 1 May 2026, WA and the ACT from the same date with 12 month transitions, while NSW, Queensland and South Australia’s building code wait until 1 May 2027 and the Northern Territory has not adopted it at all.
So a builder in Melbourne and a builder in Sydney are working to different editions of the same national code for at least the next nine months. Here is what actually changed, what is frozen, and what it means on the tools.
The residential freeze, explained
After its economic reform roundtable in August 2025, the federal government announced that no new residential changes would be made to the National Construction Code until mid-2029, a move analysed in detail by The Conversation. The stated aim is a stable rulebook so homes can be approved and built faster during the housing crunch.
Three things are carved out of the freeze: urgent safety fixes, serious quality issues that need regulatory action, and the voluntary certification scheme for prefabricated and modular construction that was already in consultation. Just as important is what the freeze does not do: it does not wind anything back. The government confirmed existing standards, including the 7-star energy efficiency requirement that arrived with NCC 2022, stay in place. Reporting on the October 2025 building ministers meeting also indicated that proposed residential energy efficiency upgrades and EV charging provisions were shelved rather than included in the new edition.
What NCC 2025 actually changes
With houses quarantined, NCC 2025’s real content is aimed at apartments and commercial buildings. According to the ABCB’s release announcement, the headline changes are:
- Waterproofing and water management: strengthened provisions for apartments and complex buildings in Volume One Section F, targeting the water ingress defects that dominate strata claims
- Condensation control: refined requirements including vapour permeance specifications for control layers and mandatory wall cavities in colder climate zones
- Carpark fire safety: reduced fire-resistance concessions and new sprinkler protection requirements for open-deck carparks
- Commercial solar: mandatory on-site solar photovoltaic systems for new Class 3 and Class 5 to 9 buildings, which the ABCB describes as the most significant technical change in the edition
- Sanitary facilities: an optional all-gender facility pathway for commercial buildings
For detached housing, NCC 2025 is close to a non-event by design. The 7-star NatHERS standard and the silver-level livable housing design provisions both date from NCC 2022 and simply carry over, though livable housing adoption still varies by state.
Which code applies in your state
The Building Ministers set a national availability date, but each jurisdiction issues its own commencement rules. As listed on the ABCB’s adoption information page in mid-August 2026:
| Jurisdiction | NCC 2025 adoption | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| VIC | 1 May 2026 | In force now |
| TAS | 1 May 2026 | Position has shifted during 2026; confirm with CBOS |
| ACT | 1 May 2026 | 12 month transition |
| WA | 1 May 2026 | 12 month transition |
| SA | Split | Plumbing code from 1 May 2026; building code from 1 May 2027 |
| NSW | 1 May 2027 | NCC 2022 applies until then |
| QLD | 1 May 2027 | NCC 2022 applies until then |
| NT | Not adopted | Continues on NCC 2022 |
Treat this table as a snapshot. Tasmania’s parliament and the Northern Territory both revisited their positions during 2026, and state variations can switch individual provisions on or off. Before you price or certify a job that straddles a transition date, confirm the in-force edition with your state building regulator, because the edition that applies is generally the one current when the building approval is issued.
What it means for carpenters and builders
If you build detached homes, your compliance target barely moves: 7-star, livable housing (where your state adopted it) and the existing structural provisions all continue, and the freeze means the goalposts stay put until at least mid-2029. That is exactly what the pause was for. The action is in Class 2 and commercial work: stricter waterproofing detailing at balconies, wet areas and facades, and condensation provisions that dictate wall cavity construction in colder climates. Framers and fixers on apartment jobs in Victoria and WA should expect certifiers to look hard at control layers and cavity details now, and NSW and Queensland crews get the same scrutiny from May 2027. Our state licensing guide covers who signs off on what.
What it means for electricians
Two things. First, mandatory rooftop solar on new Class 3 and Class 5 to 9 commercial buildings is a genuine pipeline of design and installation work in every state as NCC 2025 commences, and it lands on top of an already stretched solar workforce. Second, the residential EV charging provisions that had been mooted for this cycle were reportedly shelved with the freeze, so EV-ready wiring in new homes remains a client upsell rather than a code requirement for now. Sparkies quoting apartment work should also note the carpark changes, since sprinkler and fire system upgrades usually drag electrical work with them.
What it means for plumbers
South Australia is the trap: the Plumbing Code of Australia part of NCC 2025 commenced there on 1 May 2026 even though the building code side waits until 2027, so SA plumbers are already on the new edition while their builders are not. Elsewhere, plumbing follows the state’s general adoption date. The strengthened waterproofing and water management provisions in apartment buildings sit right at the plumbing and waterproofing interface, which means more explicit detailing responsibilities on Class 2 jobs, and fire sprinkler contractors pick up the new open-deck carpark protection requirements.
The 80-page code debate
Hanging over all of this is the Coalition’s proposal, championed by shadow housing minister Andrew Bragg, to cut the code from more than 2,000 pages to about 80, covering basic amenity only and dropping energy efficiency requirements entirely. The Housing Industry Association welcomed the push to simplify but argued the real problem is layered complexity rather than page count, the Australian Institute of Architects countered that the code sets minimum standards that should be strengthened rather than weakened, and building surveyors have pushed back on the practicality of certifying against an 80-page document.
For now it is politics, not regulation. The rulebook that matters is NCC 2025 where your state has adopted it, NCC 2022 where it has not, and a residential code that is legally allowed to stand still until mid-2029. In a decade of constant regulatory churn, that stability is itself the biggest change tradies have been handed in years.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an NCC 2026?
No. The current edition is NCC 2025, released by the Australian Building Codes Board on 1 May 2026. There will be no new residential code changes before mid-2029 under the federal freeze, apart from essential safety and quality fixes, so NCC 2025 is the edition that matters for the rest of the decade's first half.
When does NCC 2025 apply in my state?
Victoria, Tasmania and the ACT adopted it from 1 May 2026 (the ACT with a 12 month transition), WA from 1 May 2026 with a 12 month transition, and South Australia adopted the plumbing code from 1 May 2026 but deferred the building code to 1 May 2027. NSW and Queensland deferred to 1 May 2027, and the Northern Territory has not adopted it. Positions have shifted during 2026, so confirm with your state regulator before pricing work.
Do the 7-star energy efficiency rules still apply?
Yes. The 7-star NatHERS requirement came in with NCC 2022, not NCC 2025, and the federal government confirmed existing standards including 7-star energy efficiency stay in place during the freeze on residential changes.
What are the livable housing standards?
Silver-level livable housing design provisions, such as step-free entries, wider doorways and reinforced bathroom walls for future grabrails, entered the code in NCC 2022 and carry over in NCC 2025. Adoption still varies by state, so check what your local regulator has switched on before designing.
Will the code really be cut to 80 pages?
It is a Coalition proposal, not law. Shadow housing minister Andrew Bragg has pushed a plan to shrink the code from more than 2,000 pages to around 80 pages of basic amenity standards without energy efficiency requirements. Industry reaction is split and nothing changes unless a future government legislates it.
What does the residential freeze mean for jobs I already have underway?
Nothing changes on current jobs. The freeze stops new residential requirements being added to the code before mid-2029; it does not wind back rules already in force. The code edition that applies to a job is the one in force in your state when the building approval is issued, so transition arrangements matter more than the freeze.