NSW Passes Landmark Right to Charge Law for Apartment Dwellers

Apartment residents looking to make the leap into an electric vehicle have long faced a stubborn obstacle: getting permission from their body corporate to plug in at home. In New South Wales, that roadblock has finally been cleared after state parliament passed landmark legislation introducing a statutory right to charge.

The amendments to the Strata Schemes Management Act establish clear legal rights for lot owners wanting to install EV charging infrastructure on their lot. Under the reform, strata committees can no longer unreasonably refuse an owner's application to set up a charger, even if the work requires connection to or alteration of common property.

To keep bodies corporate from dragging their feet, the legislation introduces a deemed approval mechanism. An owner formally submits an installation request, and if the committee fails to provide a reasonable, written objection within three months, the application is legally treated as approved. Blanket bans or strata by-laws that unreasonably prohibit EV equipment are void.

While this strips away red tape, it does not mean individual owners can simply run an unmonitored lead from a standard power socket. Owners corporations maintain authority over building-wide energy strategies. In practice, installations must fit into scalable load-management systems to protect overall building power supply, and the resident remains responsible for installation and electricity costs.

What this means for your novated lease

For Sydney and regional NSW employees weighing up a novated lease, this legislative change shifts the dial significantly on electric vehicle feasibility:

• Unlocking home charging economics: Running an EV on a novated lease is already tax-effective thanks to the federal Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) exemption, but charging on residential power tariffs makes it drastically cheaper per kilometre than relying entirely on public fast chargers.
• Clearer path to packaging your charger: Many novated lease providers allow bundled home charging units and installation costs into your salary packaging arrangements. Having a legally protected pathway to install equipment removes uncertainty before you commit to lease paperwork.
• Action before April 2027 deadlines: Under current federal policy, zero-emission vehicles priced under the luxury car tax threshold of $91,661 enjoy a 100% FBT exemption. With transitional rules planned to start tapering concessions for vehicles over $75,000 from April 2027, apartment dwellers now have time to lock in a fully exempt lease and sort their parking space charging at the same time.
• Talk to your strata early: Because systems must support building electrical capacity, check your scheme's current EV readiness plan before placing your car order so you can align hardware requirements with your building manager.