Works classification

Information on how to classify your works

Water General Regulation 2025

The NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water has amended the Water Management (General) Regulation 2025. This change requires each water supply work to have a work classification recorded. The work classifications have been introduced to provide a clear record of when a work is not taking licensed water and so is exempt from metering. Amending your work classification is free until 30 September 2026.

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Why works classification matters

Under the non-urban metering framework, all water supply works are required to have metering equipment unless an exemption applies. The good news is that an exemption exists for works that are of a certain size or do not take licensed water from a water source.

NSW DCCEEW has amended the Water Management (General) Regulation 2025. This change requires each water supply work to have a work classification recorded. The work classifications have been introduced to provide a clear record of when a work is not taking licensed water and so is exempt from metering.

It’s important to classify works correctly because if your work does not take licensed water, and the work’s classification does not reflect this, you’ll need to install compliant metering equipment (unless another metering exemption applies, such as a work size exemption). To understand the different work classifications, please refer to the fact sheet (PDF, 189 KB).

As part of the regulation, all water approval holders are required to classify their works in the Customer Portal. Please note: There may already be a pre-populated status for your work in the Customer Portal based on our records, it is important you ensure you still confirm your classification.

Understanding your letter

You would have received a letter from WaterNSW/NSW DCCEEW about classifying your works on your approval. This includes a list of individual works against an approval and what they are currently classified as.

Please note: These classifications may be pre‑populated and will require your review to confirm they are correct. In the past, not all construction details were collected, and in some cases, we may be missing information such as drilling reports for groundwater approvals. Since the regulation change, we are now required to collect this information to ensure all works are classified accurately and in line with current regulatory requirements.

Works classification letter explainer

Ways to classify your works

The available options to amend the classification of your work status

1. Login or register for the Customer Portal

You can log in or register for the Customer Portal and to complete the classification.

Log into the portal, under the Licence and Approvals section select 'make changes' against the approval you wish to classify, then select 'to change the classification of work(s)'. For more information, you can view the Amend the classification of your work status in the Customer Portal guide (PDF, 507.85 KB).

If you need to register, you can view our how-to register for the Customer Portal guide (PDF, 877.92 KB) for a step-by-step process. If you already hold a licence or approval with us, make sure you identify it during the registration stage so it can be linked to your profile.

Please note: Once your profile has been registered, you will receive an email confirmation. After this, if you have confirmed that you have a licence or approval that needs to be added to your portal, you’ll receive a second email asking you to review and either approve or reject your link case in the portal. This link case allows you to verify any approvals or licences that will be added to your portal. This process may take up to 5 days after your profile has been created.

If the details are correct, select Approve and agree to the declaration before clicking finish. Your approvals and licences will be added to your portal. If something is incorrect, select Reject and contact us immediately so we can resolve the issue.

Please note: When you reach the section where you can update the classification of your work, the information may be pre‑populated and may not always be correct. If no option is pre‑populated, select the appropriate classification from the list provided. If a classification is pre‑populated but you believe it is incorrect, simply choose the correct option from the list.

2. Complete the online form

If you are having trouble registering or logging in to the Customer Portal, you can use the amend the classification of your work status online form instead.

Please note: This form can only be used to complete one individual work at a time.

We recommend reviewing your approval in the NSW Public Water Register before starting the classification form to ensure all approval details are correct. If you need help using the register, refer to the NSW Public Water Register – Identifying Approval Details guide (PDF, 1776.75 KB).

3. Complete a paper form

If you are having trouble registering or logging in to the Customer Portal, you can use the Application to amend the classification of work status (PDF, 362.33 KB) form. Please note: This form can only be used for one approval and all work id’s must be completed under the approval. You must:

We recommend reviewing your approval on the NSW Public Water Register before starting the classification form to ensure all approval details are correct. If you need help using the register, refer to the NSW Public Water Register – Identifying Approval Details guide (PDF, 1776.75 KB). You can also use your current Statement of Approval (SOA) to identify all works listed on your approval.

For further assistance in completing this application form, view the Guide – Application to amend classification of work status (PDF, 310.21 KB).

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Floodplain harvesting

All water supply work approvals with a floodplain harvesting purpose are required to have metering equipment, unless an exemption applies. This ensures accurate, transparent measurement of take and supports effective water management across NSW.

There are two primary metering methods for measuring floodplain harvesting:

  • storage measurement, or
  • point-of-intake measurement.

Most works authorised for floodplain harvesting should have a default classification of constructed, based on the approved maps issued when these approvals were granted. While the approval confirms the work is authorised, in some cases the system does not hold the final construction details, as this information was not always required to be reported at the time.

With recent regulatory changes, we are now required to collect this information to ensure all works on an approval are accurately classified. This helps confirm the correct metering method, supports compliance, and ensures the floodplain harvesting framework is applied consistently across the state.

The works classification – floodplain harvesting fact sheet will be coming soon to assist floodplain harvesting approval holders in identifying the classification of each work. In the interim, approval holders can email WaterNSW for assistance at licensing@waternsw.com.au.

To identify your works on your approval without registering in the Customer Portal, you can view your approval on the NSW Public Water Register. If you need help using the register, refer to the NSW Public Water Register – Identifying Approval Details guide (PDF, 1776.75 KB).

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Fact sheets, guides and frequently asked questions

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Fact sheets and guides

Fact sheets and frequently asked questions

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Customer Portal

Non-urban metering

NSW Water Register

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