WHS Regulation 2025, Reg 299

Regulation

Any of 19 HRCW categories

Trigger

All construction PCBUs

Applies To

Before work commences

Must Be Prepared

Yes — with workers

Consultation Required

From 1 July 2026

Section 26A Impact

You need a SWMS whenever your work involves any of the 19 categories of high risk construction work defined in Regulation 291 of the WHS Regulation 2025. These include work with a risk of falling more than two metres, work on or near energised electrical installations, work involving powered mobile plant movement, work in a shaft or trench deeper than 1.5 metres, work on or near chemical or fuel lines, work in or near a confined space, tilt-up or precast concrete work, work on pressurised gas mains, work on or adjacent to a trafficked road or railway, work in a potentially contaminated or flammable atmosphere, disturbance of asbestos, structural alterations requiring temporary support, work near water with a drowning risk, diving work, work on telecommunications towers, demolition of load-bearing structures, work involving explosives, and work near an area with inundation risk. If any part of your construction activity involves any of these hazards, the entire scope of that high risk work requires a SWMS.

You do not need a SWMS for construction work that does not involve any of the 19 high risk construction work categories. Routine construction tasks such as painting interior walls at ground level, installing cabinetry, laying floor coverings, and performing minor carpentry repairs at ground level do not trigger the SWMS requirement unless another HRCW category is present. You also do not need a SWMS for non-construction work in any industry. A JSEA or other risk assessment may be appropriate for these tasks but it is not a legal substitute for a SWMS when high risk construction work is involved. Even when a SWMS is not legally required, best practice is to prepare task-specific risk assessments for any work that involves significant hazards. If you are unsure whether your work involves a HRCW category, err on the side of preparing a SWMS rather than risking non-compliance.

The SWMS requirement is established by Regulation 299 of the WHS Regulation 2025, which specifies the mandatory content of a SWMS. Regulation 291 defines the 19 categories of high risk construction work that trigger the requirement. The principal contractor obligation to ensure SWMS are prepared is set out in Regulation 309. Failure to prepare a SWMS for high risk construction work is a breach of the WHS Regulation that can result in improvement notices, prohibition notices, infringement notices, and prosecution. A prohibition notice stops work immediately until the breach is rectified, causing project delays and associated costs. Prosecution can result in significant fines for both the business and individual officers. From 1 July 2026 under Section 26A, the approved Code of Practice for Construction Work becomes a compliance benchmark, and the code requires SWMS for all HRCW categories. Failing to follow the code shifts the evidentiary burden to the PCBU to prove their alternative approach was equally effective.

A compliant SWMS must identify the high risk construction work to which it relates, specify the hazards and associated risks, describe the control measures to be implemented, explain how controls will be monitored and reviewed, name the person who prepared the SWMS, and state the date of preparation. The document must be readily accessible and understandable to the workers who will use it. This means plain language, site-specific content, and a format that workers can read and apply on the job. A generic template downloaded from the internet and filed without adaptation does not meet the legal standard. The SWMS must be developed in consultation with the workers who will carry out the work. This consultation requirement is not optional and must be documented. The SWMS must be reviewed whenever conditions change, an incident occurs, or a worker identifies a gap in the controls. Every review must be dated and documented.