When the assessing officer has gathered all the information needed, they will then determine the outcome of your application. There are three possible outcomes for a DA, Consent – granted, with conditions, Refusal – with reasons,  and Deferred commencement consent – a consent not operating until one or more important matters are resolved. 

Depending on the scale of the development, the decision is made by a Council officer, Council or the relevant planning panel (such as the Local Planning Panel  or Joint Regional Planning Panel ). 

You will receive a notice of determination through the NSW Planning Portal, which includes conditions that must be adhered to and the approved stamped plans for the development. A consent lasts for five years unless another period is specified by council or physical commencement has occurred in which case it does not lapse.

If your application is refused or granted with conditions you consider problematic, there are three options available:

1. Request a Review of Determination by your council (with amended plans, if you wish). A fee applies and you have six months from the date of the decision for this request to be lodged and also determined. You need to allow sufficient time for this.
   
2. Commence an appeal to the Land and Environment Court. You have six months to lodge an appeal. The court hears from you or your representative, council, relevant experts and potentially the community and determines whether the DA should be approved and what conditions should apply to it. The appeal process can be time consuming and costly, particularly if a matter is not resolved through mediation before going to a hearing.
   
3. Modify and relodge your DA.

If you wish to make changes to your approved plans (or the conditions), you can submit an application for a Modification of Consent (under section 4.55 of the EP&A Act (or 4.56 of the EP&A Act for an application determined by the Land and Environment Court). This may be needed if you change your mind on particular aspects of the development. The development you seek to modify must remain substantially the same as the development the original consent was granted for. If the application varies too much from the original consent a new DA must be lodged.