Understanding DA Statuses: From Lodged to Determined

Development applications move through a defined lifecycle, but every council labels the stages a little differently. Across the 290+ councils we track, we see hundreds of distinct status strings that boil down to a handful of real states. Here is the map.

The core lifecycle

• Lodged / Received — the application has been submitted and fee-paid, but assessment has not started.
• Under Assessment — a planner is reviewing the application against the local planning controls.
• On Exhibition / Notification — neighbours and the public can view the plans and lodge submissions. Not every DA is exhibited; it depends on the scale of the works.
• Referred — the application is with an external agency (fire, transport, heritage) whose concurrence is required.
• Determined: Approved / Approved with Conditions — consent granted. Conditions are the norm rather than the exception.
• Determined: Refused — consent denied, with reasons. Applicants can typically appeal or resubmit a modified proposal.
• Withdrawn — the applicant pulled the application, often to avoid a refusal or to rework the design.

State differences worth knowing

In NSW, straightforward low-impact works can bypass the DA process entirely as Complying Development (CDC) — certified privately and typically determined in days rather than months. Our NSW data includes CDC records alongside DAs, which is why you will see CDC numbers in NSW suburb feeds.

Victoria calls the equivalent instrument a planning permit rather than a DA, and Queensland uses development approvals under its planning act. The terminology differs; the lifecycle above still applies.

Reading statuses as signals

For anyone watching an area commercially, the transitions carry the signal: a cluster of new lodgements marks rising development interest in a street; an approval means construction is now likely and trades will be engaged; a refusal tells you where the council has drawn a line.

Council DA normalises statuses across councils so you can filter by lifecycle stage through one API instead of interpreting each council's vocabulary yourself.