Submitting digital documents to Council

23 May 2025

Hawkesbury City Council is introducing new requirements for submitting digital documents when lodging any applications submitted through the NSW Planning Portal.

The development process can be challenging for customers to navigate so Council is working to create a more standardised approach when lodging Development Applications and Building Certification applications with us.

From 1 July 2025, all documentation will need to satisfy Council’s digital submission requirements, including correct file format, size, resolution and naming conventions. This change will enhance Council’s records management and access to information obligations under the Government Information (Public Access) Act 2009. The new naming conventions will also see better navigation when using Council’s DA Tracker on its website.

Naming conventions
All document titles must be submitted in the following way:

[Application No] – [Document Name] – [Property Address]

E.G. DA0470/24 – Submitted Plans – 42 Harkness Road Oakville

Digital documents criteria
Digital documents lodged with any application must satisfy the following criteria:

Files
- All documents must be in PDF format.
- All security settings such as password protection and editing restrictions must be disabled.
- Plans, photos and other documents should not be scanned and must be directly created or converted into PDF format.
- Documents must be A4 formatted and optimised in a minimum size for online publishing.
- Zip files should not be used.
- Files larger than 25MB should be broken up into logical parts and supplied as separate
files.

Plans
- Plans must be grouped together into relevant plan types (eg, architectural, engineering etc).
- Plans must be submitted in A3 Landscape orientation at a minimum resolution of 300dpi.
- Internal floor plans must be submitted as a single PDF separately.
- Architectural plans (including site plans, elevations, sections, roof plans, shadow diagrams etc.) must be submitted as a single PDF with the file size not exceeding 30MB.

Fees
Council may apply fees if digital documents are not submitted according to these requirements. The fees would cover the conversion costs associated with publishing information to Council’s DA Tracking portal. Please refer to Council’s Fees and Charges.

Get help
Council’s Duty Planning Officer is available to provide support with the development process. The Duty Planning Officer is a planning professional who can assist you with planning policies that affect your property and explain the development application process. This service is for short enquiries and is free of charge. Contact Council’s Customer Service Team in the first instance on 02 4560 4444 or email council@hawkesbury.gov.nsw.au.

Plan and Build
Learn how the approval process works, explore common development types, and view current Development Applications on Council’s website under ‘Plan and Build’: hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au/plan-and-build

photo credit: Image from OpenBuildingInstitute.org licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.