Form 4A guide: Application for approval of an agreement

It is important to ensure you have provided all information required on the application form.

To help you with this, we have included a checklist located at the back of the application form. There is also a section detailing the attachments you may need and any other documentation you may be required to submit in support of your application.

Supporting documents provided as part of the application may be required under legislation to be made available through Freedom of Information or as part of a parliamentary inquiry. Applicants should note in their applications which documents or information contained in documents are confidential and for what reasons.

Applications deemed incomplete will be returned. Delays caused by the return of an application may result in water not being available when the completed application is re-submitted.

All fields on this application form must be completed.

Certain sections are to be completed by the licence holder and certain sections to be completed by the third party seeking to take water.

What is my application type?

Select 'Agreement for part of an entitlement' on the application form when you are temporarily leasing part of your water entitlement to another person(s).

Select 'Agreement for all of an entitlement' on the application form if you are temporarily leasing all of your existing licensed entitlement to another person(s).

What are current licence details?

To assist us in processing your application, please provide your current licence number, current licensed entitlement and the name under which the current licence is held in the boxes provided on the application form. Your licence number will begin with the letters GWL or SWL.

Please note: You must list all relevant third parties and security interests and attach copies of their written consent to the agreement.

It is important that we have the Third Party's correct details to ensure your agreement application can be assessed.

We may also need to contact you or the Third Party during the assessment process. If we have your phone number and email we can avoid unnecessary delays.

The Third Party must complete this section of the application.

What name do I put on the application form?

The Third Party's full name is to be entered into the box on the application form.  

Do not use initials unless they form part of a legal entity's name.

Do I need to provide an ABN or ACN?

Business owners must provide a valid Australian Business Number or Australian Company Number.

If you are a company you must have an associated Australian Company Number (ACN) or Australian Business Number (ABN).

If you are a partnership you will have an associated ABN.

If you are an association or incorporated body you must supply an association registration number (ARN).

If you are a strata company that falls within an incorporated body then you must have a valid ARN or ABN.

If you an individual, do not provide a number.

What address do I provide?

You must provide us with your postal address as all correspondence related to your application and/or licence will be sent here.

You must also provide a physical address if you have entered a PO Box address in the postal address section.

Why does the department need my phone number?

We may need to contact you or the third party to verify or confirm information in your application.  

To avoid unnecessary delays in processing your application, please provide a contact phone number and email address for both yourself and the Third Party.

Please fill in the property details where the water is to be taken.

Legal land descriptions for properties should be provided as they appear on the Certificate of Title.

Onsite agreement

An onsite agreement is where the water is being taken from a drawpoint (bore, stream or dam) on the same property as the parent licence. The water can then either be used on-site (on that property) or be used off-site on another property (e.g. piped).

Offsite agreement

An offsite agreement is where the water is being taken from a drawpoint (bore, stream or dam) located on a different property (but same water resource area) to that of the parent licence and is being used on that other property

In the event that you are using the water on a different property to which the water is being taken you must indicate this on the form in the space provided. This would occur when the agreement is for both the take and use of the water offsite to the licence holder's property.

This section is to be completed by the Third Party(s) and copies of relevant legal access information must be provided.

What do I need to provide with my application to demonstrate legal access to the property?

I am the owner of the land

If you are the owner of the land, you do not need to provide any further documentation to demonstrate legal access.

Where an individual owns the land but a company applies for an agreement or vice versa, then copies of documentation to demonstrate legal access is required.

I am leasing the land from the Crown

If you are leasing the land from the Crown (e.g. pastoral lease), you must provide a copy of the lease document registered against a Crown land title under the Land Act 1933 from the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage.

I am using a crown reserve

If you are a using a crown reserve to access the land to which the agreement relates, you must provide a crown reserve register extract or a copy of the management order from the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage.  

It must be made clear from each of these documents that the agreement application type is compatible with the purpose of the reserve.

I am using a road reserve

If you are using road reserves on crown land, you must provide a letter from the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage granting access to the road reserve(s) for the purposes of the agreement.  

You must also provide a letter from the local government authority granting access to the road reserve(s) for the purposes of the agreement.

When seeking permission from the Department of Planning Lands and Heritage, you should refer to the road reserve number and the plan on which the road reserve is drawn. Where the road reserve is very long and only a specific portion is relevant to the agreement, this portion should be described by reference to the land adjacent to that section of the road reserve.

I have approval from the landowner

If you have the approval of the landholder to use the land to which the licence agreement relates (e.g. you are leasing the property), you must provide a lease contract or the landowner's written authorisation to land use arrangement (i.e. letter of authorisation) to demonstrate you have legal access to the land.  

The lease contract or agreement must include as a minimum:

• details of the parties to the lease/agreement
• permission to be on the land
• permission to do things authorised by the licence
• term of the lease or agreement.

I am negotiating to purchase or lease the land

If you are negotiating to purchase or lease the land, you must provide copy of contract of sale/lease or the owner's name and anticipated date of completion of sale/lease.

I am undertaking non-pastoral activities on a pastoral lease

If you are undertaking activities on a pastoral lease that differ from the approved uses, such as intensive feedlots or irrigation, you are required to provide a diversification permit issued by the Pastoral Lands Board stating that these activities are permitted.

The Third Party needs to supply information for Part 5 of the application form.

Please fill in the tables provided on the form to tell us how much water you need and what the water will be used for.  

Please provide us with as much detail as possible, using attachments if necessary. If you have any queries about the information required please contact your nearest department regional office.

Please read the notes provided on the Part 5 page of the application form.

How do I estimate annual water quantity?

For irrigation purposes the department uses standard water application rates. The standard rates are based on cropping area and crop type.

You can estimate your annual water quantity for crops using the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development's Crop Irrigation Calculator.

If you are unsure as to how much water you require, please leave the "Estimated annual quantity" column blank and provide as much detail as possible in the other columns in the application form.

Please note that 1 kilolitre = 1,000 litres.

To ensure equitable water use for all, we need to know if you have the resources and the status of the infrastructure to utilise the full water entitlement proposed by this agreement.

If you do not currently have all your infrastructure in place to fully utilise the water entitlement covered by this agreement, please outline the steps or actions you plan to take to be able to utilise the full water entitlement.  

Details should include proposed timeframes for those steps or actions to be completed.  

Step or actions would typically include those related to the water use development of the property (e.g. installation of irrigation) or development of the project (e.g. securing financial support or planning approval).

If you cannot demonstrate you have sufficient resources to undertake the proposed activities, your application may be refused.

This plan should provide the position of the drawpoint (bore, stream or dam) and show the property on which the water will be used in relation to the property to which the licence applies. We use this information to verify the property description (s) provided above.

Please provide a location plan of the property in the box provided or on a separate piece of paper attached with your application form.

You plan should include:

• property boundaries
• location of all wetlands/watercourses/wells/soaks/dams/pipelines/direct pumping (existing and proposed)
• major improvements (house, large sheds, etc.)
• roads or landmarks
• shaded areas to indicate areas proposed for water use development.

If you are unsure how much water you require, please leave the 'Estimated annual quantity' column blank and provide details in the other columns in the application form.

Please note that 1 kilolitre = 1,000 litres.

Please tell us how much you have agreed to pay to the licence holder for the agreement;

The total should not include the $200 application fee.

The Licence Holder needs to supply information for Part 9 of the application form.

If you are transferring all of your water entitlement to the third party under this agreement you do not need to complete Part 9 of the application form.

If you are only leasing part of your water entitlement you need to complete the relevant sections of Part 9 of the application form. You will still have a water entitlement and therefore you need to tell us your new water use details in the tables provided.

Please read the notes provided in Part 9 of the application form.

How do I estimate annual water quantity?

For irrigation purposes we use standard water application rates. The standard rates are based on cropping area and crop type.

You can estimate your annual water quantity for crops using the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development's Irrigation calculator.

If you are unsure as to how much water you require, please leave the 'Estimated annual quantity' column blank and provide as much detail as possible in the other columns in the application form.

Please note that 1 kilolitre = 1,000 litres.

The Department of Water and Environmental Regulation was established by the Government of Western Australia on 1 July 2017. It is a result of the amalgamation of the Department of Environment Regulation, Department of Water and the Office of the Environmental Protection Authority.

Please indicate if you have also applied or intend to apply for any approvals under Part V of the Environmental Protection Act 1986, so that we can consider a coordinated approach to your applications.

Registration of premises

It is an offence to perform any action that would cause a premises to become a prescribed premises of a type listed in Schedule 1 of the Environmental Protection Regulations 1987, unless that action is done in accordance with a works approval, licence, or registration

Works Approval

Part V Division 3 of the Environmental Protection Act 1986 requires a works approval to be obtained before constructing a prescribed premises.

Licence to discharge to the environment

It is an offence to cause an emission or discharge onto land, into air or into waters unless a licence or registration is held for the premises. Emissions include but are not limited to gases and particulates, wastewater, noise, contaminates stormwater, dust, leachate, odour and electromagnetic radiation.

Permit to clear native vegetation Under Part V, Division 2 of the Environmental Protection Act 1986

Clearing native vegetation is an offence, unless done under a clearing permit, or if the clearing is for an exempt purpose. Flooding vegetation is considered clearing.

Both parties to the agreement are required to sign the application form, the licence holder and the person receiving the water entitlement through the agreement (Third Party).  

You must tell us how many kilolitres are being taken by the Third Party and the duration of the agreement licence. Upon expiry of the agreement the water will be returned to the licence holder.  

If you wish to continue with the agreement another agreement application must be submitted. Changes to the licence of the licence holder might impact water availability for the Third Party (e.g. property is sold and licence transferred to new owner which terminates Agreement).

By signing the application form you are confirming that all information in the application form is true and correct. Signatures of all applicants must be provided on the application form before it can be accepted.

What if there is more than one applicant for a licence?

If you require multiple names on your licence, a signature is required from each applicant. Check to ensure you have provided details of all applicants at Part 2.

What if I am applying on behalf of a company?

If you are applying on behalf of a company you must provide written evidence that you are authorised to do so. A statutory declaration can also be used for giving this authority.

We charge an application fee of $200 for an agreement application.

We accept payment by cheque, credit card or postal order. Cash cannot be accepted.