Which reference materials can you use in the Victorian builder exam?

Only the references on the Commission's permitted list, and in an online exam only through the approved websites. Printed copies and PDFs saved to your computer are not permitted for online exams. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, What are permitted assessment reference materials?; Note.

On this page, "the Commission" is the Building and Plumbing Commission. Read on 11 October 2026.

How you reach them during the exam

• You open the references from a book icon at the top right of the exam screen. An untimed introduction at the start shows you how. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, What are permitted assessment reference materials?
• The only web pages you may use are the Australian Building Codes Board website, the Standards Australia website or one of its authorised distributors, the Victorian legislation website and the Commission's own website. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, What are permitted assessment reference materials?
• Search engines, artificial intelligence tools and any other web page are not allowed. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, What are permitted assessment reference materials?; Commission: Building exams, Not permitted.

Australian Standards are at your own cost

• To open an Australian Standard during an online exam you need your own active subscription or an online version you have bought. Paying for that access is up to the person sitting the exam. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, Australian Standards; Commission: Building exams, Instructions, Step 2.
• Know your login before the day. You will be asked for your user name and password when you open a standard during the exam. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, Australian Standards.
• If you only have standards in hard copy, the Commission is letting applicants sit in person at one of its locations for a transitional period. You have to email the Commission to arrange it, and places are limited. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, Note; Commission: Building exams, Transitional period.

The list for Domestic Builder (Unlimited)

• Acts and regulations: the Building Act 1993, the Building Regulations 2018, the Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995, the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004, the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017 and the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2002. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, Domestic builder (unlimited).
• The National Construction Code and its housing provisions. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, Domestic builder (unlimited).
• The Commission's guide to standards and tolerances. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, Domestic builder (unlimited).
• Australian Standards on timber framing, slabs and footings, masonry in small buildings, swimming pool safety, wet area waterproofing, glass in buildings, and plumbing and drainage. The page gives the number of each one. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, Domestic builder (unlimited).
• The Limited classes have their own lists, many of them shorter. Look up your own class on the same page. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, Recommended reference materials for each class.

Check the editions before you sit

• When this page was read, the Commission's list named the 2015 edition of the guide to standards and tolerances, described as the 'under review' version, and the 2022 housing provisions, while the same page said to use the current version of the National Construction Code. Read the list yourself close to your exam date, and ask the Commission if it is not clear which edition applies. Source: Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials, What are permitted assessment reference materials?; Which NCC version?; Domestic builder (unlimited).
• Speed at finding a clause is what an open-book exam rewards. Every practice question on this site names the Act, regulation or code clause it comes from, so you practise the looking up as well as the answer.

More on the exam and registration

• What is in the Victorian builder registration exam, and how is it sat?
• Domestic Builder Unlimited vs Limited: what is the difference?
• How do you become a registered builder in Victoria?
• How much does builder registration cost in Victoria?
• What happens if you fail the Victorian builder registration exam?
• Free practice questions for the Victorian builder registration exam

Sources for this page

• Building and Plumbing Commission: Permitted assessment reference materials page last updated 1 October 2026, read 11 October 2026. https://www.bpc.vic.gov.au/builders/building-exams/permitted-assessment-reference-materials
• Building and Plumbing Commission: Building exams page last updated 28 August 2026, read 11 October 2026. https://www.bpc.vic.gov.au/builders/building-exams