SYDNEY — NSW apartment owners who fall behind on their strata levies have more room to catch up. Since 23 October 2026, a payment plan with the owners corporation can cover overdue levies, current levies and interest. Before that date, a plan could only cover levies already overdue.
The change is part of the fourth tranche of NSW strata reforms, which received assent on 23 October. NSW Fair Trading lists it among the reforms that started that day.
Why it matters
The old rule left a gap. An owner on a plan for last quarter’s arrears could still be chased for this quarter’s levy and the interest piling up on the debt. Fair Trading’s own guide to the earlier rules said plainly that “a payment plan cannot cover future contributions.” The new rule lets an owner and the owners corporation agree one plan that deals with the whole balance.
The rules that still apply
The framework introduced on 27 October 2025 remains in place. According to Fair Trading:
- Plans run for up to 12 months, and another plan can be agreed after one ends.
- The owners corporation or committee must consider every request. It cannot pass a resolution refusing all payment plans.
- It cannot charge a fee for a request or for running a plan.
- It must reply in writing within 28 days. A refusal must give written reasons.
- A refusal is reasonable if the plan would leave the capital works fund or administrative fund short, for example unable to pay for required repairs or to meet a Fair Trading compliance notice.
- Payments go first to the oldest overdue levies, then interest, then recovery costs, unless a court, the Tribunal or the owner directs otherwise.
- No recovery action can be taken on levies covered by a plan that is being followed, and an owner must get at least 30 days’ notice before any recovery action.
If an owner thinks a refusal was unreasonable, they can ask Fair Trading for mediation and then apply to the Tribunal. If the Tribunal agrees, the owners corporation must accept the plan.
The form is not ready yet
Fair Trading says the standard form for requesting a payment plan “is being updated to reflect these changes and will be available shortly.” Until then, owners should keep using the current form for overdue levies, and raise current levies or interest directly with their strata committee or strata managing agent.
What it means for owners and committees
Owners: ask early. A plan agreed before the debt grows is easier to approve and cheaper for you. Put the request in writing, use the current form, and add a short note asking for current levies and interest to be included. Levy notices must already come with a financial hardship information statement, which lists the free National Debt Helpline.
Committees: update your levy arrears procedure now. Check that whoever handles requests, often the strata manager, knows the 28-day deadline and the new scope. When you consider a request, look at your fund balances. A refusal has to be based on a real funding shortfall, and you need to give written reasons.
Rising levies are behind many of these requests. Our guides to what owners’ fees cover and special levies explain the drivers.
Related on HOA Strata News
- NSW Strata Reforms Become Law: What Changed on 23 October and What Comes in 2027
- NSW Owners Corporations Can Now Be Penalised for Skipping the AGM
Sources: NSW Fair Trading, Changes to strata laws; NSW Government guide to strata law changes, updated 26 October 2026. General information only, not legal or financial advice.
