NSW rewrote its planning rules in 2026. Here is what the reforms change for development applications, and whether they will actually speed up approvals.
By Liam Taylorwood-Roe
NSW rewrote how development gets approved in 2026, and most people building here still don't know. The short version: the government has changed the planning system to move faster, driven by a commitment to deliver 377,000 new homes by July 2029. The changes are real and they help. But they don't make planning simple.
Here is what actually changed, and what it means for your next development application.
The driver is housing supply. NSW has committed to 377,000 new homes by July 2029 as its share of the national target. The existing system could not move fast enough to deliver them.
So rather than start again, the government amended the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act through the Planning System Reforms Act 2025. The next phase of changes commenced on 21 March 2026. The stated goal is a system that assesses land use to produce outcomes, not one that gets stuck in process.
Three changes matter most if you build in NSW.
For years you had two options. Complying development if your project fit neatly inside the rules. A full development application if it did not. Nothing sat in between, so plenty of low risk projects got dragged through a full merit assessment they did not need.
The reforms introduce a new targeted assessment pathway. The idea is to bridge that gap. If the impacts of a development type are already well understood and dealt with upfront, the project can skip the full assessment.
One important caveat. It is not live yet. The pathway is written into the Act, but the detail of what actually qualifies comes through a State Environmental Planning Policy expected to go on exhibition later in 2026. Low and mid-rise housing is one of the likely candidates. Worth watching closely if your projects keep landing just outside the CDC rules.
This one is already in effect and it is a clear win. From 21 March 2026, minor modifications to a development consent run on a 14 day clock.
That covers a minor error, a miscalculation, or a change with no real environmental impact. The council now has 14 days to decide. If it does not decide in time, the modification cannot be refused.
A few things to know:
If you have ever watched a build stall over a clerical fix, you will understand why this matters.
Multiple government agencies often need to weigh in on a development application. Chasing concurrence from several of them at once is a common source of delay.
The reforms establish a new Development Coordination Authority to centralise those referrals. Instead of coordinating five agencies yourself, the intent is a single point of contact. For projects that touch multiple agencies, that could genuinely shorten timelines.
Not on its own.
The reforms are a real step in the right direction. They are built around speed, and they should help. But they do not make planning simple. The complexity is still there. Council interpretation still varies. You still need to coordinate a stack of sub consultants to get a project approved.
Knowing where your project actually stands, which pathway it falls under, and what the local controls allow, is worth more now than it used to be. That is the part Develpr was built to streamline. Test a site, see the likely pathway and constraints, and understand your approval risk before you commit.
When did the NSW planning reforms start?
The Planning System Reforms Act 2025 is being rolled out in phases. The most recent phase commenced on 21 March 2026, including the 14 day determination period for minor modifications.
What is the targeted assessment pathway?
It is a new approval pathway that sits between complying development and a full development application. It lets certain low risk development types skip a full merit assessment where the impacts are already understood. It is not operational until a supporting SEPP is made, expected later in 2026.
Do the reforms make development applications faster?
For minor modifications, yes, straight away. For larger projects, the new pathways and the Development Coordination Authority are designed to speed things up, but much of the detail arrives through instruments still being finalised through 2026.