EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Building Industry Fairness (Security of Payment) Act 2017 (Qld) (BIF Act) establishes a trust account regime with the objective of securing payments to subcontractors in the Queensland building industry by requiring the establishment of a project trust account for each eligible project alongside a retention trust account to hold any retention monies.
As discussed in a previous article in late 2024,1 the scope of the trust account regime was due to broaden this year with the regime’s final rollout applying to eligible contracts greater than $3 million on 1 March 2025, and those greater than $1 million on 1 October 2025.
In February this year, the new Queensland Government paused this further rollout and flagged a review of the scheme.
What has previously happened?
Since 1 March 2021, Queensland’s statutory trust regime has been progressively rolled out to a broader range of government and privately funded projects as demonstrated in the table below:
| Commencement | Phase |
|---|---|
| 1 March 2021 | Project and retention trust accounts required for all new State Government building contracts valued between $1 million and $10 million, with State authorities having the option of adopting the requirements. These projects are currently subject to the project bank accounts regime. |
| 1 July 2021 | Expansion to eligible State Government and Health and Hospital Services building contracts of $1 million or more. |
| 1 January 2022 | Extended to the private sector, local government, statutory authorities and government owned corporations for eligible building contracts valued at $10 million or more. |
The Proclamation pausing the previously announced rollout of the regime identified the following potential barriers to the successful rollout of the remaining two phases which had been identified by the Department of Housing and Public Works:
- the vulnerability of the industry to tougher financial conditions;
- an ongoing risk of insolvency;
- the availability of software to support trustees to comply with their obligations under the framework; and
- the potential to improve awareness and understanding of the framework and its requirements by small contractors (who are likely to be captured in the next phases).
What’s next?
The trust account regime continues to apply to eligible Queensland Government contracts of $1 million or more and private sector, local government, statutory authority and government-owned corporation contracts of $10 million or more.
The Government has announced that Queensland’s security of payment regime will be considered by soon to be re-established Queensland Productivity Commission, as part of a broader review of the building and construction sector. The Bill to establish that Commission was introduced in March 2025.
Further updates will be provided as the outcomes of the Queensland Productivity Commission’s review are known.
This article has been written by Colin Harris, Partner, and Kelly Brook, Senior Associate.
1 Broader Net Cast in 2025 for Queensland Project Trust Accounts
