QBCC Licence Fees in 2026-27: How the Annual 1 July Indexation Works

QBCC licence fees change each 1 July — here’s how it works

If you hold a licence with the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC), the start of the financial year is when fees move. The QBCC states plainly on its fee page: “Our fees and charges increase on 1 July each year.” The 2026-27 financial year began on 1 July 2026, so the fee schedule you see today reflects the new year’s rates.

This isn’t a QBCC-specific quirk. Most Queensland government fees set in regulation are adjusted annually under the state’s indexation policy, administered through Queensland Treasury’s principles for fees and charges. For 2026-27, the Queensland Government Indexation Rate (GIR) is 3.4%, applied from 1 July 2026 — the standard rate used across government fees and charges for the new financial year.

Increases aren’t guaranteed every year

While annual indexation is the default, the government can pause it. QBCC licence fees were frozen for the 2024-25 financial year as part of the Queensland Government’s cost-of-living measures, before indexation resumed. So rather than relying on a rule of thumb, always check the current schedule before you budget or renew.

How QBCC fees are structured

There’s no single “QBCC licence fee.” What you pay depends on:

• Licence type — contractor, nominee supervisor, site supervisor, and occupational licences each have their own fees, and the QBCC publishes separate schedules for occupational plumbers and drainers, building certifiers, and pool safety inspectors.
• Maximum revenue category — for contractor licences, fees scale with your allowable annual turnover, from the self-certification categories SC1 (up to $200,000) and SC2 (up to $800,000) through to categories 1-7.
• Application vs renewal — a new licence application costs more than an annual renewal for the same class.

The authoritative, current figures are on the QBCC licence fees page. Because amounts change each July, we deliberately don’t republish dollar figures here — check the schedule directly when you renew.

What licensees should do

1. Check the current fee schedule on the QBCC website before renewing or applying, especially if your last renewal was before 1 July.
2. Budget for indexation each July — small annual increases are the norm across Queensland government fees.
3. Review your licence class and revenue category to make sure you’re licensed (and paying) for the work and turnover you actually have.

Impact on homeowners

These changes don’t directly affect homeowners — but they’re a reminder that Queensland licensing is actively regulated and fee-funded. Before hiring a builder or contractor, confirm they hold a current, valid QBCC licence. You can start with our licence checker tools, and for background on how Queensland compares, see our guide to Australian builder licensing explained state by state.

Editor’s note: this article was substantially updated on 6 July 2026 to remove earlier fee-change figures we could not verify and to describe the QBCC’s actual annual indexation process.

Sources and further reading

• QBCC — licence fees — the current, authoritative QBCC fee schedule, updated each 1 July.
• QBCC — licences — licence classes, applications and renewals for Queensland builders and trade contractors.
• Queensland Government — how registration fees are calculated — states the 2026-27 Government Indexation Rate of 3.4%, applied 1 July 2026.
• Queensland Treasury — principles for fees and charges — the government’s fee-setting and indexation policy, including the fee unit model.
• Queensland Government Open Data portal — publishes QBCC licensee register data for public use.