In a recent communique, the Surveyors Board of Queensland has outlined how, since early 2023, it has been liaising with local governments and utilities regarding who can legally provide a ‘Registered Surveyors Certification’ for an ‘as-constructed’ plan.
The Board said that it has now notified all local governments and utility organisations of the four levels of surveyor registration in Queensland:
- Registered Surveyor with Endorsement
- Registered Surveyor
- Registered Surveying Graduate
- Registered Surveying Associate
According to the communique, the Board has been concerned that as-constructed plans “are being certified by Queensland registered surveyors who hold a lower level of registration than Registered Surveyor”.
“The Board considers it to be unprofessional conduct if a person who is not a Registered Surveyor signs a certification headed ‘Registered Surveyors Certification’.”
The Board has pointed out that for a Registered Surveyor to be registered in Queensland, that person must have a surveying qualification and must have passed a satisfactory assessment of their skills and knowledge by the Board.
“Importantly, an ‘As-Constructed’ plan may certify boundary offsets which raises the question how the offset was determined?” the Board says. “If the boundary has been identified in order to determine the offset then legislation requires a Registered Surveyor with a Cadastral Endorsement to identify the boundary and provide the certification.”
The Board noted that when a Queensland registered surveying corporation is providing the certification of an as-constructed plan, “then any Public Officer of the corporation (ie. Director or Company Secretary) can sign on behalf of a corporation. In addition, any Authorised Delegate can sign on behalf of a corporation.”
