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Freehold title information for trustees and local government

Freehold allocation – open process

This guide describes the process for allocating freehold land in cases where there are no existing interest holders.

Prepare the land

You must ensure that:

  • the land has a lot/plan description
  • the land has dedicated road access
  • native title has been or will be resolved.

Advise the Queensland Government

You must tell us that you intend to allocate the land: once you start the allocation process this land will cease to be transferable land.

Appoint a probity advisor

You must appoint an appropriately qualified and independent person to ensure the integrity of the allocation process. This probity advisor will:

  • provide advice and help you prevent and deal with any integrity issue
  • monitor the allocation process
  • report any breaches of process.

Accounting and legal firms can usually supply a probity advisor, or you can contact the Department of Natural Resources and Mines for help (see contact details on the right).

Publish the allocation notice

You must publish an allocation notice in the government gazette and a newspaper or other publication for the local area. The notice must include details of:

  • eligibility criteria
  • allocation method
  • any conditions that apply to the land
  • how applications can be made
  • when applications close
  • purchase price and any deposit to be received
  • details of when and where the land will be allocated
  • the contact details of the probity advisor.

Decide on who can participate in the allocation process

Once you receive an application, you must decide whether the applicant meets the eligibility criteria and can participate in the allocation process. If they do not, you must notify them that they have been refused permission to participate.

Land Court appeals

Applicants who have been refused the right to participate in the allocation process have the right to appeal this decision to the Land Court.

They have 28 days to lodge their appeal. If, after this date, no appeal has been lodged, you can proceed to the next stage. If an appeal has been lodged, you must wait for the appeal to be decided before proceeding.

Notify eligible applicants

Once the appeal period has ended, provide a notice to each applicant participating in the allocation process. The notice must include information about:

  • how the allocation will be run
  • when the allocation process will be run
  • whether a deposit must be paid.

Run the allocation process

Run the allocation process using a method that is consistent with the freehold instrument, the allocation notice and any advice from the probity advisor (e.g. ballot, tender, auction).

Allocate the land

Allocate land to the winners and refund any deposits to unsuccessful applicants.

You can notify us that you’ve made the offer using one of these forms:

Apply for the grant of freehold

Once you have allocated the land, you can apply to the government to grant freehold. Use one of these forms:

In this guide:

  1. Freehold instrument
  2. Consultation and approval of freehold instrument
  3. Freehold allocation process – interest holders
  4. Freehold allocation – open process
  5. Templates, forms and other resources

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Last updated:
19 December 2016
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