A City of Melbourne footpath hoarding pays a space occupation fee. How much?

What the City says

The City of Melbourne's page on installing hoardings, gantries or scaffolds on public land says you must get a permit for them on a public road or footpath, called a temporary protective structure permit. It says you don't need a permit to install a hoarding on private property.

If the structure will project over the street alignment, the page says you must get a report and consent first, before you apply for the permit. The application must be lodged at least 10 business days before the proposed works.

What the fee is

The page says you must pay a space occupation fee of A$2.60 per square metre per day or part thereof. The City's permit page and its fee schedule give different application fees for the scaffold permit, so this site states none: read both before you rely on either.

What happens after it goes up

The City says the temporary protective structure must be inspected by a structural engineer after it is installed, and that every six months it remains in place it must be inspected on site and recertified by the structural engineer.

What to ask the provider

Ask whether the permit, the space occupation fee and the engineer's inspections are in the quote, which council covers the building's address, and who lodges the application. A repair that cannot start until a permit issues is a repair whose start date is the council's, not the provider's.

What could change

The City of Melbourne's fees take effect on 1 July each year, and the fee schedule this site read took effect on 1 July 2026. Read the City's current page before you rely on any figure here.