NSW Annual Fire Safety Statements

An Annual Fire Safety Statement (AFSS) is a yearly declaration confirming a NSW building’s essential fire safety measures, extinguishers, hydrants, alarms, exit systems, have been assessed by an accredited practitioner and meet the required standard. Owners of buildings with a fire safety schedule must lodge it with council, Fire and Rescue NSW, as well as display it on-site.

Miss your AFSS deadline and penalties start at $1,000 in week one and only escalate from there. This guide covers who needs one, who can sign it, what it costs, where to lodge it, and how the 2026 reforms change the rules for NSW owners.

If you own, manage or represent an owners corporation for a building in New South Wales that has fire safety measures like extinguishers, hydrants, alarms or emergency lighting, you’re almost certainly required to issue an Annual Fire Safety Statement (AFSS) every year. This guide covers what an AFSS is, which buildings need one, who is legally allowed to sign and assess it, how much it costs, where to lodge it, what happens if you miss the deadline, and what’s changing under NSW’s 2026 fire safety reforms.

An Annual Fire Safety Statement is a declaration from a building owner that the essential fire safety measures in their building “have been checked and continue to perform to the relevant standard.” It confirms that an accredited practitioner (fire safety) has assessed, inspected and verified the performance of each essential fire safety measure, and that the building’s exit systems have been inspected for compliance (NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure).

The requirement is set out in the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and the Environmental Planning and Assessment (Development Certification and Fire Safety) Regulation 2021.

An AFSS is different from a Fire Safety Certificate (FSC). A Fire Safety Certificate is issued once, when a new or altered essential fire safety measure is first installed. An AFSS is issued every year after that, for as long as the building has essential fire safety measures (Fire & Rescue NSW).

The requirement applies to existing Class 1b to Class 9 buildings (under the Building Code of Australia classification system) that have essential fire safety measures specified in a fire safety schedule.

In practice, this covers most buildings other than standalone houses (Class 1a): apartment buildings, strata and mixed-use developments, offices, retail and hospitality premises, warehouses, schools, health and aged-care facilities, and industrial sites.

Buildings approved before 1 July 1988 are generally only caught if a development approval, construction certificate, complying development certificate or fire safety order has been issued for the building since that date (FPAA).

If you’re not sure whether your building is required to hold an AFSS, your fire safety schedule (held by the building owner, or available from council) will confirm it but it’s recommended you engage a certified fire safety professional to remove any uncertainty and confirm your compliance requirements.

Essential fire safety measures are the specific fire safety systems and features listed in a building’s fire safety schedule. Common examples include portable fire extinguishers, fire hydrants and hose reels, sprinkler systems, fire detection and alarm systems, emergency and exit lighting, exit signage, and fire-resisting (passive) construction elements (NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure).

Each measure must be assessed against the standard set out in the building’s fire safety schedule, or where no schedule specifies a standard, against the standard to which it was originally designed and installed (FPAA).

There are two separate roles, and it’s a common point of confusion:

Importantly, the person who signs the owner’s declaration cannot be the same accredited practitioner who assessed the fire safety measures listed in that statement This is a built-in conflict-of-interest safeguard (FPAA).

You can find an accredited practitioner (fire safety) via Fire Protection Association Australia, which Fire and Rescue NSW points building owners to for this purpose (Fire & Rescue NSW).

A separate accreditation change is coming, but it isn’t for AFSS assessments. From 13 February 2027 (or 18 months after an approved accreditation scheme is published, whichever occurs first), building owners will need to use an accredited person to certify newly installed fire safety measures for Fire Safety Certificates. It doesn’t replace or change the existing APFS requirement for annual statements described above (NSW Gov).

There’s no fixed government fee for the AFSS itself, most NSW councils and Fire and Rescue NSW accept lodgement at no charge, though some councils charge a small administration fee for processing submissions, it’s worth checking with your local council.

The real cost driver is the accredited practitioner’s inspection and assessment work, plus any rectification of defects found along the way. This varies significantly with the size of the building, the number and type of essential fire safety measures on the schedule, and whether any measures are found to be non-compliant. Because of this variation, the most accurate way to understand your cost is a building-specific quote rather than a rule-of-thumb figure. This is something our team at Essential Asset & Fire’s AFSS service can provide you based on your fire safety schedule.

A copy of the completed statement must be given to your local council and to the Commissioner of Fire and Rescue NSW.

Fire and Rescue NSW accepts AFSS submissions electronically through its online lodgement form. If you need help with lodgement, FRNSW’s fire safety team have published a guide with links to their online portal which can be accessed via this link “Lodge a fire safety statement“.

Councils vary in how they accept lodgement, some by email, some by post, and some through an online portal, so check your specific council’s process (for example, City of Sydney accepts lodgement by email, post or in person.

An AFSS must be issued within 12 months of the date the previous statement was given, or within 12 months of a Fire Safety Certificate being issued for a new or altered measure (City of Sydney).

Because the accredited practitioner’s assessment has to fall within the three months before you submit the statement, it’s worth starting the process well ahead of your due date as leaving it to the last minute increases the risk of a defect being found with no time left to rectify it before the deadline (Cootamundra Gundagai Regional Council).

Non-compliance carries real financial and legal risk, and the penalties escalate the longer a statement is outstanding.

Late Lodgement Penalty Notices – increase week by week: $1,000 in the first week overdue, a further $2,000 in the second week, a further $3,000 in the third week, and a further $4,000 from the fourth week onward (City of Sydney).

Further Prosecution Costs – through The Land & Environment Court Can Carry Much Larger Penalties, but published sources disagree materially on the exact ceiling, and we could not confirm a single figure directly against the current legislation. Figures found in council and industry sources include $110,000 (City of Sydney) and, for continuing offences, up to $5,000,000 for corporations (plus $50,000 for each additional day) and up to $1,000,000 for individuals (plus $10,000 per additional day) (Wollongong City Council).

Additional Penalties – The below can also apply, depending on the situation:

Beyond direct fines, non-compliance can also affect building insurance and expose owners to a council-issued Fire Safety Order, Wollongong City Council, for example, states it may issue a Fire Safety Order where an AFSS has not been submitted on time. If you’ve received one, see our guide on what to do if you receive a council fire order.

NSW’s fire safety framework is being progressively reformed, and it’s easy to conflate the different dates. Here’s what’s actually changing, and when, sourced directly from the NSW Government’s Building Commission.

For the full details on these reforms and what they mean for your building, see our dedicated article, NSW Fire Safety Regulation Changes: What’s New for 2026.

In a strata scheme, the owners corporation is generally responsible for maintaining essential fire safety measures on common property, while individual lot owners are typically responsible for any measures within their own lot. Strata managers commonly coordinate the AFSS process on the owners corporation’s behalf, working with an accredited practitioner for the assessment.

For a full breakdown of strata-specific obligations, testing schedules and responsibility splits, see our guide: Fire Protection Requirements for Strata Buildings in Australia.

An Annual Fire Safety Statement isn’t just an annual compliance task, it’s the mechanism that confirms your building’s fire safety measures will actually work if they’re ever needed.

Buildings that treat AFSS as an ongoing 12-month cycle, rather than a once-a-year scramble are the ones that avoid penalty notices and last-minute defect surprises. If you’re unsure where your building stands, your fire safety schedule is the best place to start.

Essential Asset & Fire manages the full AFSS process for commercial, strata and residential buildings across Sydney, the Hunter, Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and the Central Coast, from accredited practitioner assessment through to council and Fire and Rescue NSW lodgement. Get a compliance quote for your building or talk to our team about your due date.

Important Disclaimer: This article is general in nature and does not constitute legal or building compliance advice. Always consult a licensed fire safety practitioner and review relevant legislation for your property classification.