Leases, licences and permits to occupy

Leasing state land

Leases over state land are issued for a specified purpose (e.g. grazing, agriculture, sporting, tourism, telecommunication), generally for terms of up to 30 years.

An annual rent is charged, which is usually calculated at a percentage of the land valuation.

You must be over 18 to apply for a lease. Applications may be made at any time.

A trustee permit or trustee lease is the preferred tenure for secondary use of reserve land. If you are interested in leasing a reserve on state land, before applying to lease the reserve you must first contact the trustee of the reserve to discuss authorising the use by a trustee permit or trustee lease.

How to apply

To apply to lease state land, your application should include:

To avoid processing delays, read the forms carefully and include all required information.

Lodging your application

If you can't lodge your application online, apply through the PDF applications and lodge by emailing SLAMlodgement@resources.qld.gov.au or by posting it to Department of Resources, PO Box 5318, Townsville QLD 4810.

Payment options

If a fee applies to your application, payment options are cheque (by post) or credit card.

Cheques should be made out to the 'Department Resources' and marked 'not negotiable'.

Credit card payments are accepted over the phone.

We will send you a receipt once we have established that your application meets all requirements and has been properly made.

Contact us

If you have any questions about lodging your application or payment, contact:

How your application is assessed

We will assess your application against legislative requirements. We will seek the views of other stakeholders (e.g. state, regional and local agencies) and inspect the land if required.

Policies and legislation

Native title

Our review will also include an assessment of whether native title issues need to be addressed, and how this should be done. Depending on the outcome, you may be required to address native title issues as a condition of the offer.

Granting of lease without competition

During the assessment, we will consider the most appropriate use and tenure for the land and whether the land may be offered with or without competition.

The lease may be granted without competition if the land is needed for a public purpose.

If the land is not needed for a public purpose, and the intended use is the most appropriate use of the land, a lease may be granted without competition if one or more of the following apply:

  • the applicant is an adjoining landholder and selling or leasing to anyone else would be considered inequitable
  • no other parties are likely to be interested in obtaining the land
  • the applicant held a significant interest in the land before it became unallocated state land
  • there is no dedicated access and the only practical access is through the applicant’s land.

What happens next?

Once we have received the advice of other stakeholders and all issues, including native title, have been investigated, we will send you a written notice.

If your application is successful, a written offer will set out the various conditions and requirements. You must complete the acceptance form and return it to us by the date specified or the offer will lapse.

The conditions may include:

  • acceptance of the terms and conditions of the lease
  • payment of the first year's rent
  • payment of the value of any improvements
  • lodgement of a plan of survey, if needed
  • payment of all regulatory fees and charges.

The Minister for Resources grants the new tenure. Once you have accepted the offer and satisfied all conditions, we will seek approval to issue the tenure in your name.

Related information

In this guide:

  1. Leasing state land
  2. Applying for a permit to occupy
  3. Renewing a lease
  4. Transferring a lease or licence
  5. Surrendering a lease, licence or permit to occupy
  6. Converting/purchasing a lease
  7. Subdividing a lease
  8. Amalgamating leases
  9. Amending the description of a lease
  10. Amending the purpose or conditions
  11. Obtaining approval for a sublease

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