From 1 March 2027, amendments affecting Development Contributions Plans and Infrastructure Contributions Plans will move through Victoria’s new low, medium or high-impact pathways. For developers and landowners, the classification of an amendment will be critical because it may determine whether there is a right to make formal submissions and whether the amendment is independently reviewed by a planning panel.

In our earlier article, Victoria’s planning shake up: What developers need to know, we outlined the broader reforms introduced by the Planning Amendment (Better Decisions Made Faster) Act 2026 (Better Decisions Made Faster Act). This follow-up focuses on one particularly important aspect of the reforms for the development industry: how amendments involving development and infrastructure contributions will be classified and progressed.

On 27 October 2026, the Victorian Government proclaimed that the new planning scheme amendment pathways will commence on 1 March 2027. The reforms replace the current process with three pathways: low, medium and high-impact. The applicable pathway will affect consultation, submission and panel rights, as well as the timeframe for progressing an amendment.

Development contribution amendments can directly affect project feasibility, land value and the timing and cost of development. An amendment may introduce a new contributions regime, extend an existing plan, alter the land or development liable to pay, increase levy rates, change indexation or change the infrastructure funded by the levy.

What are development contributions and development contributions plans?

Development contributions are payments made by developers towards the cost of infrastructure needed to support new development. Under Part 3B of the Planning and Environment Act 1987 (Vic) (PE Act), they are collected through two levies:

• a development infrastructure levy, which funds infrastructure such as roads, drainage, public transport and open space works
• a community infrastructure levy, which funds community facilities such as community centres and sporting pavilions.[1]

The community infrastructure levy payable for each dwelling is capped by the PE Act.[2]

A Development Contributions Plan (DCP) is the instrument, incorporated into a planning scheme, that authorises those levies to be imposed.[3] Among other things, a DCP identifies the area it applies to, the infrastructure projects to be funded, how the cost of those projects is shared between development (usually through demand units), and the levy payable.[4] Levies are generally collected as a condition of a planning permit or through a section 173 agreement, or, where no permit is needed, before a building permit is issued.[5]

Contributions must be fair and reasonable. The courts and tribunals have consistently required a demonstrable link (or ‘nexus’) between the development that is levied and the infrastructure it is required to fund, and that the cost of that infrastructure be shared equitably among those who benefit from it.[6] This is why changes to demand units, liable land or funded infrastructure can be contentious, and why the level of scrutiny an amendment receives matters.

Under the new framework, the classification will depend on the content and effect of the amendment, rather than simply whether it concerns a DCP or an Infrastructure Contributions Plan (ICP). The following categories are particularly relevant.

A key change from earlier reform proposals is that an amendment extending the implementation period of a DCP or ICP is no longer automatically within a prescribed high-impact category. An extension should therefore not be assumed to attract the highest level of scrutiny merely because it concerns development contributions. Its classification will depend on its content, effects and the final prescribed criteria.

For developers and landowners, the amendment pathway selected may be just as important as the substantive changes proposed. In particular:

Where an amendment does not fall neatly within a prescribed category, classification will turn on broader considerations including environmental, social and economic impacts, regulatory burden, conflicts between policy objectives and changes to notice, decision and review rights. Implementation guidance and worked examples are expected in early 2027.

Until that guidance is released, planning authorities and proponents should document the basis for the proposed classification. Landowners and developers should also monitor the classification decision closely, particularly where a DCP or ICP amendment could materially alter contribution liabilities.

The proclaimed provisions also introduce the broader three-tier amendment framework, complete the reforms to statements of planning policy for declared distinctive areas and landscapes, and establish a new framework for state and regional planning strategies. Those changes remain relevant to rezoning and precinct planning, but the immediate commercial issue for many development projects will be how contribution amendments are categorised and what procedural rights follow.

Developers and landowners with current or proposed DCP and ICP amendments should:

• review amendments already in the pipeline and identify the likely pathway and any applicable transitional arrangements
• test whether proposed changes alter contribution amounts, indexation, demand units, liable land, mapped boundaries or funded infrastructure
• factor the likely consultation, submission and panel process into project programs and feasibility assumptions
• engage early where a low-impact pathway may apply, because formal submission and panel rights may not be available
• monitor the Government’s implementation guidance and final categorisation criteria expected before commencement.

Our Planning and Environment team will continue to monitor the implementation guidance and the operation of the new pathways. If you would like advice on how a proposed DCP or ICP amendment may affect a current or proposed project, please contact our team.