Water Stewardship


Water Application Fees

Refund Information

Water applications will be returned with the received application fee in the following circumstances:

  • the application is incomplete; or
  • the proposal does not comply with legislation, for example the Water Act; or
  • if some other aspect of the application make it inadmissible.

Refunds are not available for applications to amend a water licence.

If the water application is accepted, refunds are provided as shown in Table 1

Table 1: Application Fee Refund Matrix

Fee Level and Phase Refund Amount
Application fee $250 or less No refund
Application is abandoned by the applicant prior to the issuance of a Water Licence Refund 50 percent of the application fee
Application is abandoned by the applicant prior to the issuance of a Approval for short-term use (fee is comprised of a water use fee plus one year of annual rent) Refund 50 percent of the application fee
Where the Water Licence application has been refused No refund
Where the application for short-term use Approval has been refused (fee is comprised of a water use fee plus one year of annual rent) No refund
Where a Water Licence is issued No refund
Where an Approval for short-term use is issued (fee is comprised of a water use fee plus one year of annual rent) No refund