Development approvals, from the applicant's side
Last checked 2026-11-13
Councils assess development applications. Applicants assemble them, often from a dozen consultants. This page is about the applicant's side: getting a complete application in and meeting the conditions that come back.
Completeness before lodgement
In New South Wales, Australia, the NSW Planning Portal guidance says applications "must be reviewed for completeness before they can be lodged". A council can reject an application "within 14 days of lodgement", and only for the reasons set out in section 39 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2021.
An incomplete application costs weeks. Before lodgement, an AI worker can:
- Compare your folder against the portal's document requirements for the application type, item by item.
- Check that the address, lot and DP, and project description match across the plans, statement of environmental effects and consultant reports.
- Confirm each report is the latest version and matches the plan revision it refers to.
- List anything missing or inconsistent for your planner to resolve.
If the project also needs an environmental referral or a separate operating permit, see environmental approvals and permit and licence applications.
Consultant reports and versions
A DA can involve an architect, planner, surveyor, traffic engineer, stormwater engineer, arborist, acoustic consultant and others. Reports arrive by email, are revised when the plans change, and quietly go out of date.
- The AI can file each report as it arrives in Outlook, record which plan revision it relies on, and keep a schedule in Excel or a SharePoint List.
- When the architect issues a new plan revision, it lists the reports that reference the old one so you can ask those consultants to confirm or update.
- It can draft the request to each consultant for you to approve before it is sent.
Tracking assessment and requests for information
The NSW Department of Planning's council guide sets benchmarks for councils: standard applications "determined with[in] 40 days", fast-track applications "within 25 days", and "14 days to withdraw incomplete applications". These are benchmarks from a guide updated on 4 May 2023, not the statutory deemed-refusal period, so do not treat them as legal deadlines.
An AI worker can keep a simple timeline for each application: lodgement date, each contact from council, referrals, requests for information and their due dates. When a request arrives, it logs it, finds the material that answers it, routes technical questions to the right consultant and drafts the covering response for the applicant to approve.
Conditions of consent
A consent can come with many conditions, triggered at different stages: before a construction certificate, before work starts, during construction, before occupation, and ongoing. Missing one can delay a certificate or lead to enforcement.
| Register column | What the AI fills in | Who confirms |
|---|---|---|
| Condition number and text | Copied from the consent, word for word | Project manager |
| Trigger stage | Suggested from the condition's wording | Planner or certifier |
| Owner | Suggested from the type of work | Project manager |
| Due date or event | Drafted from the programme | Project manager |
| Evidence of compliance | Linked once filed | Owner of the condition |
Reminders go to each owner in Teams. The evidence becomes part of your approval evidence pack.
What stays with a person
- Planning judgement. What to apply for, and how to argue it, comes from your planner and designers.
- Lodging. The applicant lodges through the portal, signs the declarations and pays the fees. The AI does not lodge.
- Responses to council. Every response is approved by the applicant before it is sent.
- Certifying conditions. Whether a condition is met is for the responsible person and, where required, the certifier.
Before you start
Approval files hold drawings, site details, personal information about neighbours and staff, and sometimes commercially sensitive designs. Before you point any AI tool at them, check your own obligations:
- Privacy and data location. The Everything runs against your own Microsoft 365 tenant, but its AI processing uses Microsoft Azure OpenAI and OpenAI, and its privacy policy says those providers may process information outside your country. If a contract, a client or a regulator restricts where your data goes, settle that first.
- Record keeping. Some approvals, conditions and industries carry their own rules on what you must keep and for how long. The AI helps you keep the record; it does not decide what the law requires you to keep.
- Certifications. The Everything does not claim SOC 2, ISO 27001 or any other certification. If your procurement or quality system requires one, it is not a fit for that requirement.
- Neighbour and submission data. Submissions and neighbour details may contain personal information. Handle them under your privacy obligations.
Your data is not used to train AI models, and if you cancel, your files stay where they always were, in your Microsoft account.
Questions people ask
Can the AI lodge my DA on the NSW Planning Portal?
No. It prepares and checks the documents. The applicant lodges, signs and pays.
Why might a council reject an application?
In NSW, the portal guidance says rejection within 14 days of lodgement can only be for the reasons in section 39 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2021. Ask your planner how those apply to your application.
Is 40 days a legal deadline for council?
No. The NSW council guide describes 40 days for standard applications as a benchmark, not the statutory deemed-refusal period.
Can it track conditions after consent?
Yes. It can turn the conditions into a register in Excel or a SharePoint List, with owners and due dates, and remind owners in Teams.
Does this work outside NSW?
The method is the same anywhere: give the AI the authority's published requirements and it checks against them. The NSW figures on this page apply only to NSW.
Try an AI worker on your next application
The Everything works inside your Microsoft 365 and Teams. It gathers, checks and drafts; you approve, sign and lodge. $400 AUD a month plus GST per company, with a 14-day free trial and no credit card.
See how The Everything works