General lease process

A Crown land lease allows the lessee to exclusively occupy and use a specific area of Crown land for an approved purpose and a set period of time.

Leases are generally granted for commercial activities or community purposes where long-term access and security are needed.

We issue leases to individuals, companies, non-government organisations, government agencies, local councils and community and sporting groups.

Examples of lease purposes include:

• marinas and other waterfront businesses
• caravan and tourist parks
• registered clubs and sporting organisations, including bowling clubs, golf clubs and surf lifesaving clubs
• community organisations
• aged care, childcare and disability services
• restaurants and kiosks
• aquaculture and land-based oyster farming activities.

We will only lease Crown land to applicants that:

• meet the fit and proper criteria as a person, business or organisation
• are legally able to hold land under lease.

For more information, refer to the fit and proper criteria in Annexure A of the Leasing Crown land policy (PDF, 296 KB).

Companies must have a valid Australian Business Number (ABN) and GST registration.

Legal entity requirements

We will only enter into an agreement with a legal entity or entities. Applicants must provide evidence of their legal status or capacity to contract.

Where the proposed lessee is a company, applications must be submitted by a legal entity, or in the case of a joint tender, by legal entities that have the capacity to contract.

Where the lessee is a company, the lease offer must be signed in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001 by either:

• 2 appointed directors of the company
• an appointed director and a company secretary of the company
• a sole director of the proprietary company, who is also the sole company secretary.

A company can also apply its company seal to the lease document.

• Read the Guideline—leasing Crown land (PDF, 342 KB).
• Prepare all supporting documents.
• Complete and obtain signatures on the Crown Land Lease – proposed lease holder/s consent form (PDF, 141 KB) from all applicants.
• Upload all required supporting documents to a cloud service. For example, Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive, and provide a direct download link in your application.

Applicants must submit all necessary documentation and evidence to support their application.

Individuals, signatories and office bearers

Each signatory to this application must provide 2 forms of identification, such as:

• a current Australian driver’s licence
• a current Australian or foreign passport
• other form of photo identification showing their current residential address.

Business entity documents

Each business entity that is a party to this application must provide one of the following:

• business partnership deed
• company extract
• certificate of incorporation of an association
• certificate of registration of a cooperative
• trust deed.

Additional information

Each signatory will need to supply copies of documents relating to any of the following matters that occurred within the past 10 years:

• insolvency or bankruptcy
• voluntary or involuntary administration, receivership or liquidation
• Crown Lands compliance action or debt management action
• an original or certified copy of a National Police Check issued by the Australian Federal Police
• if the signatory was in a country outside Australia for 12 months or more immediately before the application, an original or certified copy of a criminal records check issued by the relevant authority in that country.

Supporting documents

To apply for a lease, you will need to provide:

• a location map showing the boundaries of the land that is the subject of the application
• a NSW Planning Portal Property Report for each parcel of land that is the subject of the application
• site plan and layout
• statements from financiers confirming finance arrangements, which may include evidence of a lender’s commitment to fund capital works, including the proposed split of debt and equity
• tax returns and statements of net worth for the past 3 financial years for each relevant person or entity
• annual reports including profit and loss statements and balance sheets for the past 3 years
• other records confirming current financial status and financial performance for the past 3 years
• details of significant events, including pending litigation, that may impact on an applicant’s capacity to implement the proposal
• details of previous projects demonstrating relevant experience, including photographic evidence
• 2 referee statements attesting to the business capability and experience of the applicant(s)
• a statement explaining why the lease should be granted by direct negotiation
• 2 forms of identification for each applicant signatory and/or party to the application.

Additional documents may be required depending on the specifics of your application. You will be prompted throughout the new lease application form to add the required documents.

You can generate a free location map and access maps and property reports in the NSW Planning Portal Spatial Viewer.

The Crown land general lease application fee is non-refundable and acts as an initial payment towards the cost of processing your application.  

Additional assessment fees may apply depending on the complexity of your application.  

If required information or documents are missing, we will request them and pause the assessment until they are received.  

Visit Fees and applications overview for more information about general lease fees.

We may undertake the following assessment activities:

• site and land status investigations
• land assessments
• community engagement
• identifying any action required under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979
• survey instructions
• land valuations
• publication of required notices
• negotiation and preparation of lease documents
• NSW Land Registry Services registration fees.