Council applications & responses / MORNINGTON PENINSULA
Council RFI or permit conditions: what to do next
Identify the notice, protect the response date and prepare one clear response with the right reports and drawings.
Give every Council item an owner and an answer
Keep the original wording, record the response date, then add the action and drawing or report reference for each item.
Build an RFI response table →A Council letter is easier to handle when you separate three things: the deadline, the information requested and any design concern. Start by identifying the type of letter. An incomplete-application notice, a request for further information and conditions on an issued permit have different effects. You can organise the response yourself; the assessment behind a specialist report still needs the appropriate practitioner.
Which document have you received?
Use the actual Council document as your starting point. Is it a section 48A incomplete-application notice, a section 54 request for further information, or a list of conditions on an issued permit? Copy the notice type, exact original wording, application reference, date stated in the notice and each numbered requirement. Do not calculate a replacement date from the guide. The existing editable RFI and condition tool turns the original items into an owner/action/evidence table; a draft extension request is not an extension approval.
| Document | What it means | First action |
|---|---|---|
| Section 48A incomplete-application notice | Missing application information or fees. The usual notice-issue window is 5 business days. The specified response date cannot be earlier than 5 business days after notice, subject to any prescribed longer period. | Use the date in your notice. Supply every listed item; non-compliance makes the application void under section 48B. |
| Section 54 request for further information (RFI) | A written request during assessment. A request made within the prescribed time carries a lapse date, at least 30 days after the notice. | Record the lapse date and check who can produce each outstanding item. |
| Issued permit with conditions | An approval with requirements attached. Different conditions may apply before endorsement, before work, during construction or before occupation. | Copy each timing phrase and the evidence needed to satisfy it. |
The five-business-day notice window is not a standard five-day deadline for every applicant. Planning and Environment Act, sections 48A–48D and 54. Council also distinguishes mandatory missing items from other information sought alongside a notice: read both parts of the letter. Council’s application process
If you cannot meet the RFI date
Apply for an extension before the stated lapse date, giving the additional time needed and the reason. Obtain the written decision and record the confirmed date. Under section 54A(6), refusal produces a new date 14 days after the decision only if the existing lapse date has passed or falls within the following 14 days. It is not a blanket extra fortnight for every refusal. Sections 54A–54B
Application [reference], RFI dated [date]: I request an extension to [proposed date]. Items [numbers] remain outstanding because [reason]. The expected delivery date is [date and basis]. Please confirm your decision and the applicable lapse date in writing.
Use the Section 54A extension request draft to organise your proposed date, reasons, expected consultant delivery and outstanding items. This is only for a Section 54 RFI; confirm the applicable procedure and date with the original notice.
Keep the sent request, delivery record and reply together. Do not assume a phone call or a partly completed response settles the timing question. If a deadline is already disputed or missed, obtain prompt planning advice rather than waiting for another draft email.
Build a response someone can check
Paste the complete numbered requirements into the builder, then compare the extracted rows with the original letter. Keep sub-items, dates and attachment references. Label preliminary design concerns separately where Council has done so. These are different from merely supplying a missing document. Council’s initial-assessment guidance
| Keep in each row | Useful example |
|---|---|
| Original request | Keep item 2(a) exactly as Council wrote it. |
| Owner and next action | Designer: revise the drawing after receiving the arborist’s tree-protection advice. |
| Response and evidence | Drawing A03 revision C, tree schedule on page 2. |
| Unfinished work | Pending — report expected on [date]; do not mark it attached. |
Use the exported Word table or CSV in your existing job folder. Before submission, check that the site plan, report and response all refer to the same proposal and drawing revision. A polished covering letter does not resolve contradictory attachments.
Buy the report that answers the request
Send the consultant the full Council item, current drawings and relevant existing reports. Ask them to identify the deliverable, investigation needed, author’s qualifications and exclusions. A tree-health letter, construction-impact assessment and native-vegetation assessment answer different questions.
Please scope a response to item [number]. What inspection and information do you need? Which report or drawings will you supply, for which design revision? Are responses to Council and one drawing revision included? What would trigger additional work?
If the purpose of the request is unclear, ask the officer which issue the information must resolve before buying a generic report. If the underlying site fact is unknown, a specialist may need to establish it first. Share their findings with the designer before paying for final revised plans.
After approval: follow the conditions that apply
Group conditions by their actual timing phrases. A landscaping requirement before occupation should not be silently converted into a pre-start requirement. Conversely, a plan required before works must be endorsed before those works begin. Council’s endorsement guidance
For projects requiring Development Engineering approval, Council reviews engineering plans after Condition 1 plans are endorsed. Where a CMP is required, its published review prerequisites are endorsed Condition 1 plans, approved engineering plans and payment of the relevant fees. Use Council’s CMP template and checklist. Engineering plans · CMP requirements
Apply these dependencies to the relevant conditions, not to every project. A CMP review may also identify road or Council-land permits; asset protection remains separate. Check the applicable approvals with the responsible team. Other permits alongside a CMP
Use the permit-condition handover tracker to keep each permit condition’s original wording, required timing, owner, progress and evidence reference together. A status entered by an owner is not Council endorsement.
Use AI for the draft, keep the evidence
AI can organise supplied wording and help draft a response or quote request. It cannot confirm an unmeasured fact, author a professional assessment or establish that a condition is satisfied. Preserve the original request, keep unknowns visible and check every claim about attachments. Remove unrelated personal information before sharing documents with an AI service.
Give every Council item an owner and an answer
Keep the original wording, record the response date, then add the action and drawing or report reference for each item.
Build an RFI response table →