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Following recent changes to departmental responsibilities, functions of the former Department of Housing and Public Works have been transferred to new departments. Work is underway to develop and update departments' websites.

Trust account framework

Security of payment in the building and construction industry is a priority for the Queensland Government. A review of the first phase of Project Bank Accounts (PBA) by the independent Building Industry Fairness Reforms Implementation and Evaluation Panel recommended a simplified model.

The new framework will reduce the number of trust accounts. Currently, 3 trust accounts must be established:

  • general account
  • retention account
  • disputed funds account.

Under the new framework:

  • a trust account will need to be established for each eligible contract
  • a retention trust account will only be needed if cash retentions are held
  • only 1 retention trust account will be needed per contractor to hold all of the retentions on project trust projects.

Other changes include:

  • The disputed funds account will no longer exist, but subcontractors will be better protected because the project trust account will cover a larger range of work.
  • There will be a statutory charge over retention amounts held in trust. This charge will make the subcontractor a secured creditor in the event of bankruptcy or insolvency.
  • There will no longer be a requirement for the principal to have viewing access of the trust accounts.

Once full implementation is reached, all subcontractors down the chain in a trust account project will have the benefit of a retention trust.

The Queensland Building and Construction Commission will take a greater role in making sure the industry complies with the trust account framework. They will be able to:

  • undertake audits
  • require independent audits of accounts
  • receive notifications about trust accounts
  • freeze trust accounts
  • appoint a special investigator.

Phased implementation

The new project and retention trust account framework will be phased in gradually to all eligible building and construction contracts valued at $1 million or more. This will make sure that the industry has time to adapt and get ready for the changes.

From 1 March 2021, the new trust account framework will apply to eligible state government contracts valued between $1 million and $10 million. These kinds of contracts already use project bank accounts.

The trust account framework will apply to other eligible building and construction contracts in four phases:

  • 1 July 2021—government and Hospital and Health Services contracts valued at $1 million or more.
  • 1 January 2022—private sector, local government, statutory authorities’ and government-owned corporations’ contracts valued at $10 million or more.
  • 1 July 2022—private sector, local government, statutory authorities’ and government-owned corporations’ contracts valued at $3 million or more.
  • 1 January 2023—all eligible contracts valued at $1 million or more.
Last updated: 
16 December 2020