The release of the Federal Government’s March 2015 policy on new developments changes the way telecommunications infrastructure is provided to new developments and expands the role developers will need to undertake. Review the Federal Government Policy section below for further information.

A major objective of the new policy is to promote the competitive provision of infrastructure to new developments that will increase choice for developers. The policy requires developers to make a financial contribution for the provision of telecommunications infrastructure related to their development and will allow developers to pick and choose providers based on price and service delivery.

Based on the policy changes, Telstra may charge the developer for the provision of infrastructure for an Application for Reticulation (AFR) received on or after 1 July 2015.

Telstra has produced a New Developments Policy to communicate and explain how Telstra will implement the new policy and work with developers.

Telstra's New Developments Policy

Updated 17/07/2015: Revised transitional agreements.

When you are ready to proceed with your AFR, register here.

The Federal Government has released a new policy on the provision of telecommunications infrastructure in new developments.

Telstra recommends that you read the new policy document which is available on the Australian Government Department of Communications’ website:

Federal Government Policy

Previous policy information

For information relating to the Federal Government’s previous policy for the provision of telecommunications infrastructure and the guidelines for Telstra and nbn™:

Fibre in New Developments: Policy Update 09/12/2010

Fibre in New Developments: Policy Update 22/06/2011

A Developer can engage Telstra by registering an Application for Reticulation (AFR) on the Telstra Smart Community website.

New development types can be:

• Residential subdivision(s) – 2 or more lots in a new estate development.
• Residential building(s) – 2 or more units in a residential building, including Group Housing (e.g. townhouses or villas).
• Commercial/Industrial building(s) – Retail, Office, Industrial or Commercial building(s).
• Mixed Use Building(s) – Buildings that contain a mixture of Residential Building(s) and Commercial/Industrial Building(s). 

For any development 100 or greater for lots, units or premises, you will need to apply to nbn™.

When registering your development, Telstra requests that you provide all relevant information on the AFR registration form regarding your development so an assessment can be made. This is to determine if Telstra is able to offer service to your development, or if nbn™ or another provider has the responsibility to service your development. In some instances, Telstra may not be able to provide infrastructure for your development.

Developer Infrastructure Obligations

The Developer is responsible for providing fibre-ready pit and pipe to service new developments and will also be responsible for contributing to the cost of other infrastructure such as cable reticulation, head-works and backhaul infrastructure.

You can choose to install your own fibre-ready pit and pipe, and Telstra would expect to acquire the installed network as part of a commercial agreement. Alternatively, Telstra may include the pit and pipe quote for consideration as part of a commercial offer to provide infrastructure for your development. Note that it is Telstra’s policy to use its own network cabling when reticulating a development.  Refer to Telstra New Developments Policy for further information.

IMPORTANT: Who may complete an Application for Reticulation?

You may only complete an AFR if you are the Developer or are authorised to enter into the AFR Terms and Conditions on behalf of the Developer. Telstra may require you to provide written evidence that you are authorised to act on the Developer’s behalf.  Where you fail to comply with any of these requirements you are in breach of the AFR Terms and Conditions and Telstra reserves the right to reject your application without further consideration.

When to register?

If you are seeking Telstra to consider quoting on pit and pipe installation, you need to lodge an AFR for each stage of your development at least 3 months prior to the commencement of any subdivision road works or building civil works associated with the development.

If you are making alternative arrangements for the provision of pit and pipe, an AFR should be lodged 6 months prior to your expected project completion date:

• for building developments this is the expected first service date (including lift lines and fire alarms).
• otherwise it is the expected subdivision completion date.

If sufficient notice is not provided and Telstra offers to provide infrastructure, the developer can be financially responsible for costs Telstra incurs to provide interim wireless services to end users due to the late AFR lodgement.

Note: In cases where an AFR is submitted with greater than 6 months lead time to your estimated project completion, Telstra may defer any offer to act as the Infrastructure Provider until approximately 6 months before the expected completion date. This is due to the uncertainty of the NBN™ rollout and ownership of the communications network at the time of your development completion. Any required transfer of Telstra’s network (or part of Telstra’s network) prior to, or part way through Telstra’s provision of infrastructure, would create complexities for all parties involved.

What you need to do?

• Lodge your development by registering a new Application for Reticulation (AFR) by selecting ‘Register’.
• Populate the information requested in the AFR forms regarding your development.
• Attach required electrical/communications plans to scale.
• Submit your application and record the AFR number provided for your reference. An email will also be sent to your nominated email address.
• Your registration will be assessed and Telstra will determine if we can offer to be the Infrastructure Provider under agreed terms.
• A Telstra Representative will contact you to discuss your registration and answer any queries.

More information is available in the Additional Information for New Developments section below.

Contact us

If you have questions regarding your development, please email us

Please include in the Subject header of your email – State, AFR Number (if applicable), the development address and someone will contact you.

When you are ready to proceed with your AFR, register here.

Infrastructure Provisioning Agreement

Through the AFR process, Developers may request Telstra to provide telecommunications infrastructure to, and throughout their development.

In accordance with Federal Government Policy and to promote a level playing field in the provision of telecommunications infrastructure to new developments, the policy requires providers to operate on a commercial basis. As a result, Telstra will charge developers for the provision of infrastructure and will no longer be providing infrastructure for free.

You will be contacted by a Telstra representative who will discuss your requirements.

Telstra is only required to make a commercial offer to provide infrastructure when the development is located in an area that would make Telstra the Infrastructure Provider of Last Resort (IPOLR) and Telstra will generally decline in other areas.  If the commercial terms of Telstra’s offer of infrastructure are unacceptable to you, you may choose to approach either nbn™ or another carrier for infrastructure.

Over time, as the nbn™ fixed rollout expands and Telstra Structurally Separates in accordance with government agreements, Telstra’s IPOLR responsibilities will reduce to only cover developments in the nbn™ wireless and satellite areas.

Process for completion of Telstra commercial provisioning agreement

The key steps in the process are as follows:

• Register the development on the Telstra Smart Community website - preferably with a copy of the development’s scaled electrical and/or communications plan.
• One of our representatives will contact you to discuss your development and Telstra’s obligations.
• Where appropriate Telstra will make a commercial offer to you via a contract.
• If accepted and paid, Telstra will produce a detailed design for the installation.
• Telstra will not undertake any design or construction activities until payment is received.
• At least 8 weeks is required between receipt of payment and commencement of the infrastructure installation.
• A provisioning letter can be issued to you if required, once the infrastructure has been installed and the project is complete.
• Where Telstra installs infrastructure it retains ownership – including pit and pipe. This means that you cannot enter into other agreements to transfer ownership to other carriers.

Our commercial pit and pipe offering

• As part of a Telstra infrastructure provisioning agreement Telstra may include the installation of fibre ready pit and pipe.
• There's no obligation for you to use Telstra to supply pit and pipe infrastructure in a new development.
• Telstra's commercial pit and pipe service is for the design and construction of the pit and pipe network in a trench supplied by a developer.
• This means that the trench open date of the developer supplied trench, is an important factor Telstra considers before offering to install pit and pipe as part of a provisioning agreement.
• We require developers to lodge an application for commercial pit and pipe 3 months before trenches or road crossings are open to allow designs to be prepared. 
• It’s important that accurate trench and crossing open dates and electrical plans are supplied with the application for reticulation.  Shorter notification periods might mean we can’t meet your construction time frames; therefore Telstra will not generally make a pit and pipe offer.
• Telstra's commercial pit and pipe service will not be offered in developments where it is possible for nbn™ to be IPOLR for the development stage.

Provisioning Letters

An Infrastructure Provisioning letter can only be issued once the following conditions are met: 

• Commercial agreement signed.
• Payment Received.
• Infrastructure is installed and any 3rd party pit and pipe has been inspected and confirmed as fibre-ready.

Provisioning letters will not be provided for nbn™ or other sites where Telstra has not provided infrastructure.
 

Dial before you dig

Dial Before You Dig is a referral service for information on locating underground utilities anywhere in Australia.

Please ensure you have identified any existing infrastructure prior to the clearing of any land, excavation, drilling or boring. 

Dial 1100 during business hours or visit website www.1100.com.au

Relocation of Telecommunications Network

If Dial Before You Dig, or local inspection in the vicinity of your new development indicates Telstra may have existing infrastructure running through it, please engage Telstra’s Network Integrity team to arrange the relocation of assets prior to the development proceeding.

Contact 1800 810 443 or email us

Asset Relocation:

• Includes the removal, reconstruction, relocation and any other work deemed necessary (by Telstra) for the purposes of protecting Telstra’s plant and equipment from potential damage from another party, both on public and private property, e.g. Relocation of cable to permit road or public works.
• Lead-ins for refurbished or partially demolished buildings, e.g. where facade is retained.
• Recovery of a lead-in due to demolition of a premises.
• Customer request for relocation of Main Distribution Frame (MDF) and Telstra lead-in cable, where it is associated with building alteration/addition works.
• Relocation of lead-In due to refurbishment of a building.

Damage to Telstra Assets

To report any damage to Telstra infrastructure, call 13 22 03 or visit the Damage to Telstra Equipment website