Guidance on When Domestic Building Trade Contracts Are Needed

Latest update 03/08/2023 | Last update 02/08/2023 | First published 25/04/2021

This guidance was provided to TradeBox Australia by Aitchison Reid Building and Construction Lawyers. Individual liability limited by a scheme approved under professional standards legislation. Read more about Aitchison Reid.

Domestic building contracts must be used for all domestic building work over $3,300 (including materials, labour and GST), in Queensland. This means that if you want to use your TradeBox trade terms for domestic building you must use these Domestic Building trade terms. The maximum fine for not using a domestic building contract is currently $13,345. So it’s a costly mistake if you get it wrong. The definition of domestic building, which stretches over the governing Act and Regulations is complicated.

So, we’ve come up with a simplified version.

You are probably doing domestic building work, if you are:

• doing building work to a residential dwelling or property;

• contracting with the owner or the owner’s agent (including a body corporate or real estate agent); and

• the work is more than $3,300 (including materials, labour and GST).