Place of Public Entertainment Occupancy Permit (POPE-OP)

A Place of Public Entertainment (POPE) includes:

• An area (including an area forming part of a building) greater than 500m2 that is used for the purpose of providing public entertainment, which is defined as:
  • Entertainment, or a meeting, to which admission may ordinarily be gained by members of the public.

In such situations, an Occupancy Permit to permit the building or the area to be used for public entertainment must be issued by the City of Melbourne’s Municipal Building Surveyor.

We strongly encourage you to lodge a free pre-application enquiry if you wish to discuss your event or if you are unclear as to whether your proposed event triggers the requirement to obtain an Occupancy Permit for a Place of Public Entertainment. Please call 9658 9658 and ask to speak to any officer in the Building Control POPE Team.

In addition to a POPE Occupancy Permit, it is more than likely that separate approvals from City of Melbourne’s Event Operations Team and other government agencies will be required. Further details including an Event Planning Guide and the Government Guided Planning Tool can be on Event permits.

Note: In addition to an event or meeting being stopped by the Municipal Building Surveyor, significant financial penalties may apply for those involved in holding an event or meeting without the required approvals in place.
 

There are some limited circumstances where an event or meeting may be exempt from the requirement to obtain a POPE Occupancy Permit from the Municipal Building Surveyor, including events or meetings for community based organisations in specific circumstances.

If you are unsure as to whether your event requires a POPE Occupancy Permit, or if you wish to seek an exemption under the community based organisation provisions, please email building@melbourne.vic.gov.au with the following information as a minimum:

• Brief event overview including:
  • Maximum occupants proposed at any one time during the event
  • Date of the event
  • Name of the event.
• A detailed site plan including:
  • The event area boundaries
  • Size of the event area in metres squared
  • Location of any proposed structures forming part of the event.
• A list of structures proposed at the event, including the following details:
  • Structure names / numbers matching the site plan
  • Type of structure
  • Floor area of structure.

Pre-application and exemption enquiries do not attract a fee, and must be submitted at least 45 working days prior to the event date. This allows at least 4 weeks to collate supporting documentation for a POPE Occupancy Permit application, should one be required after our review of your pre-application submission.

Submit your application and supporting documentation to building@melbourne.vic.gov.au or alternatively see the application form for details on how to submit in person or via the post.

Download the POPE Occupancy Permit application form and documentation checklist here:

Prior to erection, the City of Melbourne’s Municipal Building Surveyor must provide approval for the siting of any of the following temporary structures used for the purpose of providing public entertainment, providing those structures do not form part of another permanent building:

• Tents, marquees or booths with a floor area greater than 100m2, or
• Stages or platforms (including sky borders and stage wings) exceeding 150m2 in floor area, or
• Seating stands for more than 20 persons, oR
• Prefabricated buildings exceeding 100m2 other than ones placed directly on the ground surface.

Note: In addition to being ordered to cease occupation and remove the structure, significant financial penalties may apply for those involved in erecting a prescribed temporary structure without the required approvals in place.

Submit your application and supporting documentation to building@melbourne.vic.gov.au or alternatively see the application form for details on how to submit in person or via the post.

Download the Prescribed Temporary Structure Siting Approval form here:

If an event is proposed in a building or part of a building that is less than 500m2, a Place of Public Entertainment (POPE) Occupancy Permit may not be required, however a Temporary Approval under Section 64 of the Building Act 1993 may still be required depending on the existing use of the building. A Temporary Approval can be issued by a Private Building Surveyor appointed under Part 6 of the Building Act 1993, or the Municipal Building Surveyor, and allows a building to be used on a temporary basis for which there is not or could not be issued an Occupancy Permit appropriate to the use of the building.

One example of where a Temporary Approval under Section 64 of the Act could be issued by a private building surveyor or the Municipal Building Surveyor, is for the temporary use of an existing Class 9b church as a refuge for displaced persons during winter.  
For avoidance of doubt, a Temporary Approval under Section 64 cannot be issued by a private building surveyor to permit public entertainment to be conducted if that public entertainment requires an occupancy permit.

It is strongly recommended that you lodge a pre-application enquiry at building@melbourne.vic.gov.au so that we can advise what approvals are required for your event.  

A payment link will be sent to you following your application lodgement and our assessment of the application. 

Failure to lodge a fully completed application in accordance with the timeframes in the table below may lead to a late fee being charged and/or your application being refused. 

An application will not be considered a fully completed application if it lacks substantial key documents or information – refer to the Preliminary Document Checklist (above) for an outline of documentation required to be submitted.

You are strongly encouraged to lodge your application in advance of the below listed timeframes where possible. Ideally, a completed submission 3 months prior to the event will be provided to ensure sufficient time to process your application, and for any further documentation and/or reports arising out of the assessment process to be obtained. 

There are no exemptions from the requirement to pay an application fee. If you seek funding from the City of Melbourne for your event, you should include the POPE and/or temporary structure application fees as part of your budget estimates.  

Coming soon

• Industry Guidance Booklet
• Industry Guidance Technical Notes