Tasmania's Draft Strata Titles Amendment Bill 2026: What Changes for Bodies Corporate and Owners

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• The Tasmanian Government has released a draft Strata Titles Amendment Bill 2026 for public comment. Submissions close at 11:55pm on Sunday 25 October 2026.
• The bill follows a review of the Strata Titles Act 1998 that started with a discussion paper in 2020. The Land Titles Office plans to table a revised bill in Parliament in late November 2026.
• Every strata scheme would need a registered management statement, reviewed every year. Existing schemes would get 12 months to lodge one.
• Every body corporate would need a five-year maintenance plan, reviewed every 12 months, plus a trust account with separate administrative and maintenance funds, and audited accounts presented to the AGM.
• Meetings get a quorum range of 25% to 50%, a fixed adjournment rule, a cap on proxies and a right to attend by technology.
• Owners, mortgagees and longer-term tenants could get access to body corporate records within 7 days of a written request. Owners would have to tell the body corporate about changes in ownership, tenancy or mortgagee within 14 days.
• Schemes of four or fewer residential lots with no shared walls, floors or ceilings would get their own, lighter regulations. Those regulations are still being drafted.

Why Tasmania is rewriting the Act

The Information Paper puts numbers on how much Tasmanian strata has changed since 1998. There are now 42,545 strata titles, about 11% of all titles in the state, across 11,598 developments. They range from two lots to 255. Eighty-four per cent of developments have between two and four lots, and the most common size is two.

That last figure explains a lot of the bill. A single set of rules has to cover a pair of units sharing a driveway in Launceston and a 200-lot apartment building in Hobart. Announcing the consultation, the Minister for Parks and Heritage, Nick Duigan, said "a one-size-fits-all approach is no longer suitable" (media release via Mirage News, 12 September 2026). The government also links the reform to housing supply and more medium- and higher-density development.

The Land Titles Office says the review is being delivered in three tranches. The 2026 draft bill takes forward some of the recommendations from the 2020 discussion paper and consultation feedback report. The Information Paper groups the bill into 13 items. The sections below follow the bill's own provisions, because in a few places the bill and the paper do not line up.

Two tiers of regulation

The bill rewrites the regulation-making power in section 159 so that regulations can apply differently to different classes or types of strata schemes. A new section 147A lets regulations exempt a scheme, or a class of schemes, from parts of the Act, with conditions or alternative requirements.

Two sets of regulations are planned. One will apply generally. The other will apply to smaller developments, which the Information Paper describes as schemes with four or fewer residential lots and no shared walls, floors or ceilings. Short-term and long-term rentals count as residential lots.

For those smaller developments, the paper says the regulations being considered include:

• Owner's agreements. Decisions would be made by a written agreement signed by all owners, which can be done by email. This would be the only way the body corporate makes decisions.
• Insurance. The body corporate would insure common property for public risk. The buildings could be insured by the owners individually or by the body corporate.
• Meetings. After the developer's first meeting, there would be no required meeting frequency or agenda, and no minutes if the owners do meet.
• No roll of owners.
• Contributions and sinking funds handled through owner's agreements. A scheme that chooses to keep a sinking fund would still need to meet at least every 15 months.
• Maintenance plans not needed where each owner maintains the buildings on their own lot and shared items like fences and driveways are covered by an owner's agreement.
• Disputes going straight to the Recorder of Titles, with no internal dispute resolution step first.

Read the definition closely. The 84% figure covers all developments of two to four lots. The smaller-development rules, as described, only cover those with no shared walls, floors or ceilings. A block of four attached units, or two townhouses with a party wall, looks like it would stay under the general rules: management statement, maintenance plan, trust account, audit and all. The regulations will be consulted on separately, so that is a question to raise now.

Management statements for every scheme

At present, only staged development schemes and community development schemes need a disclosure or management statement. The bill adds a new Part 5A that extends management statements to all schemes.

Under the new section 70A, a management statement has to include:

• a description of the land and buildings, and the site name and address
• the body corporate's details and its constituent documents, including its by-laws
• the unit entitlement schedule and any special unit entitlements, with the basis for allocating them
• the contributions levied on owners and how they are calculated
• clear identification of the common property and its allowed uses
• information about service infrastructure
• the maintenance plan
• anything else the regulations prescribe

The deadlines:

Failing to lodge or review carries a maximum fine of 50 penalty units. A Tasmanian penalty unit was $205 in 2025–26 and is indexed each July, so that is more than $10,000.

A new section 149A also sets an order of priority. If the strata plan, management statement and maintenance plan conflict, the strata plan wins, then the management statement, then the maintenance plan.

For a committee in an older building, preparing the first management statement may be the biggest single task in the bill. It means pulling together the by-laws, unit entitlements, levy basis, a description of the common property and a maintenance plan, and getting all of it into a form the Recorder will register.

A clearer definition of common property

Arguments about whether a pipe, a gutter or a window belongs to the lot or to the body corporate are common everywhere. The bill brings the common property rules together in a new Part 1A.

Under the new section 3A, common property includes all land in the scheme outside the lots, other property the body corporate administers, roof guttering where the roof is common property, and service infrastructure. Service infrastructure inside a lot that serves only that lot is common property only if it sits within a boundary structure between that lot and another lot or common property.

Section 3B requires developers to clearly identify common property on the plan, taking into account how the lots will be used and the type of development.

The Information Paper lists questions the general regulations may require new strata plans to answer, such as whether the building's paintwork is common property, whether the cladding is common property and what type it was at registration, whether doors and windows belong to the lot where boundaries run to the centre of walls, and which car parks belong to which lots and which are for visitors. These are proposals only, and will mostly help new schemes rather than existing ones.

Two related changes affect existing schemes:

• Exclusive use by-laws (section 94) would need a unanimous resolution rather than an ordinary resolution. Unless the by-law says otherwise, the owner who gets exclusive use of common property becomes responsible for maintaining and repairing it, and the body corporate is released from that obligation.
• Applications to amend the strata plan under section 19 would also need a unanimous resolution.

Unit entitlements

Unit entitlements must already be fixed on a "fair and equitable basis". Amended sections 16 and 124 list the factors that can be considered: the size, nature and structure of the scheme; the size and characteristics of the lot; the extent of the common property and each lot's use of it; any difference in market value between lots when the entitlement is fixed; and anything prescribed. The Recorder can use the same factors when deciding whether to reallocate entitlements. Purposes for special unit entitlements move into the regulations, and a body corporate could add its own.

Meetings, quorum and proxies

The first AGM

The developer must already call the first annual general meeting within three months of registration, or when half the lots are sold, whichever comes first. The amended section 75 lists what that meeting must deal with: electing a committee or appointing a manager, insurance, contributions, by-laws, whether to appoint an auditor, and how future meetings and voting will work. The developer must produce the insurance policies at the meeting. If the developer doesn't call the meeting, any member can, by giving 7 days' written notice.

For schemes registered before 1 January 2006, which were never covered by the developer's duty, the transitional provision lets any lot owner convene the first AGM. The Information Paper goes further and says pre-existing schemes that have never held one must do so within six months. That obligation does not appear in the transitional section of the draft bill as released.

The secretary must keep full and accurate minutes and make them available to any member on request.

Attending by technology

A new section 75A lets a body corporate permit members and proxies to attend by technology, as long as the technology lets them hear and take part as the discussion happens and is authorised by the by-laws. A body corporate must allow it where a member could not otherwise take part. If it unreasonably refuses to make a by-law allowing a type of technology, the member can apply to the Recorder, who can make the by-law. Owners can also nominate an email address for service of notices.

Quorum and proxies

A member who thinks the quorum set in the by-laws is inappropriate can apply to the Recorder for relief. A proxy cannot vote on a matter if the owner who appointed them is voting on it personally. Our proxy voting guide explains why caps like these exist in other states.

Records and the roll of owners

Access to records

Under the new section 88A, an "eligible person" can ask in writing to inspect or copy body corporate records. Eligible people include owners, registered mortgagees, personal representatives, tenants with a lease of six months or more, and anyone they authorise in writing. The body corporate must respond within 7 days, or face a fine of up to 20 penalty units (more than $4,000).

It can refuse if the request is vexatious or repetitive, involves confidential third-party information or legal advice, or would impose an "unreasonable administrative burden". How records are kept, how access works and what fees can be charged will be set by regulations.

The Information Paper says those regulations may require most records (financial statements, minutes, correspondence and contracts) to be kept for at least seven years, with proxies and ballot papers kept for 12 months. Digital records would be allowed if they are accessible, secure and backed up.

The roll

Section 88B requires every body corporate to keep a roll. For each lot, it must record the owner's name, emergency contact and address for service; any occupier; the length of any lease and the tenant and letting agent details; any mortgagee; the lot's insurance policy number, insurer and expiry date; the unit entitlement; and whether the owner has agreed to electronic notices. The roll must also show the office bearers and any strata manager.

Owners must notify the body corporate within 14 days of a change of name or address, ownership, mortgagee, or an occupancy of six months or more. The body corporate must record it within 14 days. Owners, mortgagees and their representatives can ask for roll information, giving a reason, and get it within 7 days. The offences for keeping a roll and for owners failing to notify don't apply for the first 12 months after commencement.

Money and maintenance

Five-year maintenance plans

Section 83A requires every body corporate to have a maintenance plan covering five years. It must list the common property expected to need non-routine maintenance, repair, renewal or replacement over that period, with estimated costs, and must be reviewed every 12 months. Unless regulations exempt them, this applies to every scheme, including small ones with attached buildings.

If your building has never costed its roof, lifts or paintwork, our guide to what a healthy capital works fund looks like is a reasonable place to start, even though it draws on other states' rules.

Trust accounts and audits

Section 83B would require every body corporate to:

• keep a trust account with an authorised deposit-taking institution and put all its money into it
• keep separate administrative and maintenance funds within that account
• keep proper accounts of income, spending, assets and liabilities
• have those accounts audited at the end of every financial year
• present the audited accounts to the next AGM, together with the expected spending for the coming year under the maintenance plan
• let any member inspect the current accounts on request

Each obligation carries a maximum fine of 20 penalty units, and none applies for the first 12 months after commencement. The annual audit is a real cost for a 6-lot or 10-lot scheme. Unless the regulations set a threshold or an exemption, it would apply to every scheme outside the smaller-development tier.

Strata managers

Tasmania does not license strata managers. The bill does not change that. The Information Paper calls the change a "first step": section 80 would require a manager's appointment to be made in writing and to contain particulars set by regulation.

The paper says the regulations may require the contract to include the manager's name and ABN or ACN, start and end dates, duties, the basis of payment, which account the manager operates, written reporting, declaration and management of conflicts of interest, grounds and process for termination, and a warranty that the manager holds professional indemnity insurance at a prescribed level. For committees that have been relying on a letter of engagement and an old fee schedule, that list is a useful checklist now. Our article on strata manager licensing across Australia shows how far Tasmania is behind other states.

By-laws and disputes

Compliance notices

At present, a body corporate gives at least 30 days to remedy a by-law breach. The new section 95 makes notice compulsory: if the body corporate reasonably believes an owner or occupier has breached a by-law, it must give a written notice requiring them to stop and to fix the breach within at least 30 days.

Under section 95A, an owner or occupier in a dispute with a neighbour can ask the body corporate to issue a compliance notice. They must first make reasonable attempts to sort it out with the neighbour. If the body corporate issues the notice, it must tell the person who asked within 14 days. If it refuses, the person can apply to the Recorder for relief.

Section 93B requires the body corporate, as far as reasonably practicable, to make sure every owner and occupier knows the by-laws, any changes to them and their rights and obligations under the Act. Section 133 makes an owner jointly liable with their tenant for by-law penalties caused by the tenant, and jointly liable with their visitors for penalties caused by those visitors.

Internal dispute resolution

A body corporate may set up an internal dispute resolution process in its by-laws (section 93A). If it has one, a complainant must make reasonable attempts to use it before applying to the Recorder, and the application must say what was tried. That requirement doesn't apply if the other party won't take part or can't be contacted, the matter is urgent or serious, there are urgent health and safety risks, there is a documented by-law breach with previous warnings, or the matter went through external mediation in the past six months.

Applications for relief can be made by the body corporate, a member, an occupier, a mortgagee, a personal representative or anyone else the Recorder considers has sufficient interest.

Questions worth raising in a submission

The consultation is the point where these details can still change. Based on the documents, these are areas where owners and committees may want to comment. They are open questions, not criticisms.

1. Who counts as a smaller development. Should small schemes with shared walls, such as duplexes and four-unit blocks, get the lighter rules, or at least an exemption from the annual audit and full maintenance plan?
2. The cost of compliance for mid-sized schemes. A trust account, annual audit, five-year maintenance plan and annually reviewed management statement add up for a scheme of 5 to 20 lots with no strata manager. Thresholds or tiered requirements could be set in the regulations.
3. Differences between the paper and the bill. The Information Paper mentions 20 business days to register an amended management statement, six months to set up a roll and a six-month deadline for older schemes to hold a first AGM. The draft bill has three months, a 12-month grace period, and only a power for an owner to call the meeting. Submissions can ask which is intended.
4. The proxy cap in small schemes. One proxy per person in schemes of 20 lots or fewer protects against proxy farming. It may also make quorums harder in buildings with many interstate owners, although remote attendance and the adjournment rule help.
5. The records exceptions. "Unreasonable administrative burden" is broad, and fees will be set by regulation. Owners may want limits on both.
6. Strata manager standards. A written contract with prescribed terms is a start. Some may argue for licensing, trust account rules for managers, or mandatory professional indemnity insurance in the Act rather than only in the contract.
7. What is left to regulations. Strata plan requirements, records, fees, technology, manager contracts and the whole smaller-development regime are in regulations still to come. Submissions can ask for a draft before the bill is passed.

How to make a submission

Submissions must be received by 11:55pm on 25 October 2026.

• Email: star@nre.tas.gov.au
• Post: Land Titles Office, Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania, Hobart TAS 7001. The consultation web page gives the address as GPO Box 541 and the Information Paper as PO Box 541. With the deadline this close, email is the safer option.

The department asks for submissions in plain English, preferably as a Word document. Your name, or your organisation's name, will be published unless you ask otherwise, and the content is public unless you clearly mark parts as confidential and explain why. Submissions can also be released under the Right to Information Act 2009. Read both the draft bill and the Information Paper before writing. A short submission that refers to section numbers is more useful to the department than a long general one.

The department's published timeline:

The provisions start on dates to be proclaimed, and several have 12-month grace periods after that. The Land Titles Office's Strata Living in Tasmania brochure remains the reference for current law until the changes take effect.

What committees can do now

Most of the bill asks bodies corporate to write down things a well-run building should already have. Starting early spreads the work out.

1. Find the strata plan, by-laws and unit entitlement schedule, and confirm they match what is registered with the Land Titles Office. These are the core of the future management statement.
2. Start a roll. Collect each owner's contact and service details, tenancy and mortgagee information, and lot insurance details, and get written consent for email notices.
3. List the common property items that will need major work in the next five years, with rough costs. That becomes the first maintenance plan.
4. Check where the body corporate's money is held. If levies go into an owner's personal account, that will need to change.
5. If you use a strata manager, check the engagement is in writing and covers term, fees, duties, reporting, conflicts and insurance.
6. Set up an email address in the body corporate's name for correspondence and records.
7. Decide whether you want a by-law setting a lower quorum, a by-law allowing remote attendance, or an internal dispute resolution process. Each would need to be passed under the new rules once they commence.

What UnitBuddy tracks

UnitBuddy keeps a building's roll, documents, contracts, meeting records and maintenance schedule in one place. Owners can update their own contact, tenancy and insurance details. Requests for records are logged with the date received, which helps with a 7-day response time. Maintenance items can be grouped into a five-year plan with costs and review dates, so the annual review is easy to show at the AGM.

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The draft bill is the biggest change to Tasmanian strata law since 1998. For most owners the practical effect will be more paperwork for the body corporate and more information for owners. How much falls on small schemes depends on regulations that have not yet been published. If you want a say, the deadline is 25 October 2026.

Sources and further reading

• Strata Titles Act 1998 – Current Reform, Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania, last published 11 September 2026
• Draft Strata Titles Amendment Bill 2026 Consultation, Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania
• Draft Strata Titles Amendment Bill 2026 (Consultation Version), PDF
• Strata Titles Amendment Bill Consultation Version Information Paper, August 2026, PDF
• Review of the Strata Titles Act 1998, Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania
• Reforms Aim for Simpler, Fairer Strata Living, Tasmanian Government media release republished by Mirage News, 12 September 2026
• Strata Living in Tasmania, Land Titles Office, June 2025
• Strata Titles Act 1998 (Tas), Tasmanian Legislation

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