Tasmania adopts next stage of Livable Housing Design provisions

A Tasmanian Director’s Determination regarding the application of Part H8 (Livable Housing provisions) of the NCC states that internal doors, corridors, and sanitary compartments in new building work are to comply with the Livable Housing Design requirements from 1 October 2025. This is in addition to the requirements of Part H8 introduced on 1 October 2024. They include:

• Part 2.1 (clear opening width); and  
• Part 5 (shower); and  
• Part 6 (reinforcing of bathroom and sanitary compartment walls).

From 1 October 2025:

• Part 3 (internal doors and corridors); and 
• Part 4 (sanitary compartment) if there are no habitable rooms located on that level; but excluding the requirement for installation of a sanitary compartment on the ground or entry level of a Class 1a building. 

The building work will then comply with all the performance requirements of Part H8.

What do these provisions of the ABCB Livable Housing Design Standard require? 

Internal doors

Internal doorways must provide a minimum clear opening width of 820 mm. Doorways subject to the provisions are those that connect to, or are in the path of travel to, any of the following:

• a habitable room or laundry on the ground or entry level. 
• an attached Class 10a garage or carport that forms part of an access path required by Clause 1.1. 
• a sanitary compartment on the ground or entry level complying with Parts 4 and 6. 
• a room containing a shower complying with Parts 5 and 6.

A habitable room is defined as a bedroom, living room, lounge room, music room, television room, kitchen, dining room, sewing room, study, playroom, family room, home theatre and sunroom. These provisions do not apply to stairways.

Thresholds

The threshold of those internal doorways listed above must:

• be level; or 
• have a height not more than 5 mm if the lip is rounded or bevelled; or 
• have a ramped threshold that does not does not extend beyond the face of the depth of the door jamb; and  
• has a gradient not steeper than 1:8 and is at least as wide as the minimum clear opening width of the doorway it serves. 

Internal corridors, hallways and passageways

Where a corridor hallway passage is connected to an internal door, it must have a minimum clear width of 1000 mm, measured between the finished surfaces of opposing walls.

It is important to note this measurement is taken between linings. When designing the corridors, hallways, etc. the additional width of the lining must be considered in the overall dimensions on the plans / working drawings to ensure the minimum 1000 mm is maintained.

For example, the minimum width of a corridor shown on a plan would need to be minimum 1020 mm to allow for 10 mm plasterboard linings if 10 mm plasterboard lining is used. You must also allow for where plaster may build up at internal corners for the internal join. These may create a clear width less than 1000 mm.

Any skirting boards, architraves, timber mouldings, skirting tiles, door stops, conduits, general power outlets, etc. may encroach into the 1000 mm clear space.

Note: there are no tolerances applicable in the Livable Housing Design Standard. 

Sanitary compartments

There must be at least one sanitary compartment located on the ground or entry level of a dwelling. The Director’s Determination makes clear this obligation would not require the installation of a sanitary compartment on a level that does not contain habitable rooms.

Sanitary compartments complying with this section also need to provide:

• Adequate circulation space of 1200 mm x 900 mm from the front edge of the sanitary pan; and  
• Minimum width of the compartment 900 mm (measured between finished surface of linings); and 
• Where the toilet pan is within a room with other fixtures, the side of a vanity or other obstruction (e.g. bath) needs to be at least 450 mm from the centreline of the toilet pan.