Medical, Allied Health & Dental Fit-Outs:Do you actually need a Planning Permit?
Every few weeks, a physiotherapist, GP, dentist or psychologist signs a lease in a commercial strip or business park in Casey, Cardinia, Kingston, Frankston, Dandenong or the Mornington Peninsula, books a fit-out contractor, and only then finds out the use itself needs council approval — sometimes weeks before opening day.
Why "medical" gets treated differently to "office"
Councils don't assess a medical centre, allied health clinic or dental surgery the same way they assess a general office tenancy, even when the two sit in the same building. Health services bring more visitors per square metre, more parking turnover through the day, and — depending on the specific service — accessibility and hours-of-operation considerations that a standard office doesn't raise. That's reflected directly in the car parking rate set out in Clause 52.06 of every Victorian planning scheme.
| Land use | Typical statutory car parking rate |
|---|---|
| Office (general) | 3.5 spaces per 100 m² of net floor area |
| Medical centre | 5 spaces per 100 m² of leasable floor area |
| Shop / retail premises | Rate varies by floor area and location |
If the tenancy doesn't have enough on-title parking to meet that higher medical centre rate, a permit is required to reduce the standard requirement — even if the use itself is otherwise permitted in that zone. This is the single most common reason a straightforward-looking fit-out for a physio, dentist or GP clinic ends up needing a full application.
General Residential Zone tenancies
A large share of Melbourne's medical centres — particularly established GP clinics and dental practices — actually operate out of converted dwellings on residential-zoned land, usually on a main road. It's easy to assume that puts the assessment in "residential planning" territory, but it doesn't: a medical centre is a commercial use regardless of which zone it happens to sit in. The zone changes the process — residential interface, hours, signage and neighbourhood character carry more weight than they would in a commercial zone — but the use itself, and the assessment it needs, is still commercial land use work. That's exactly what we handle at Eland, whether the site is zoned Commercial 1, Industrial, or General Residential.
Commercial 1 Zone tenancies
Strip shopping centres and commercial precincts zoned Commercial 1 generally support health uses in principle, but whether a medical centre needs a permit — and what conditions attach to it, such as parking or hours — depends on the specific floor area, the existing approved use of the tenancy, and any overlays on the site (heritage, design and development, or environmental). A tenancy that was last approved as a shop doesn't automatically extend to a medical use.
Industrial 1 and Industrial 3 Zone tenancies: proceed with real caution
We'd steer most health practices away from an industrial-zoned tenancy rather than toward one. Industrial zones exist to protect industrial land for industrial purposes, and a medical centre sits awkwardly against that purpose — it's frequently restricted, floor-area capped, or effectively discouraged by the responsible authority regardless of what a permit application might technically achieve. Cheaper rent in a business park is rarely worth the uncertainty, the buffer-distance and amenity issues that can come with a health use sitting next to heavier industry, and the risk of a permit application landing on a use council doesn't want to encourage in that location. If a site you're considering is zoned Industrial 1 or Industrial 3, get it checked before you get attached to it — the honest answer is often "look elsewhere," not "here's how to make it work."
Mixed Use and Business Zone tenancies
These zones are generally the most accommodating of medical and allied health uses, but "generally accommodating" still isn't "permit-free" — schedule-specific conditions and car parking still apply, and it's worth confirming in writing rather than assuming.
A physiotherapist buys a weatherboard cottage on a main road in Carrum Downs, zoned General Residential, planning to run a two-practitioner clinic out of the front rooms. The naturopath who used to see clients from a similar house two doors down never needed a permit, so the physio assumes the same applies — it's a small business run from a house, not a commercial development. What that comparison misses is scale: the naturopath was operating as a home occupation, which has its own generous but limited allowances under the planning scheme. Two practitioners, a shared waiting room, patient signage and dedicated car spaces on a residential street push the proposal past those thresholds and into medical centre territory — a different, and more involved, assessment altogether, with neighbourhood character and residential interface carrying real weight in a General Residential Zone in a way they wouldn't in a commercial strip. The fit-out is quoted, the equipment is ordered, and the opening date assumed no approval was needed at all. A zoning and use-class check before settlement would have caught the home occupation vs. medical centre distinction in a single conversation.
Before you sign: the checklist
- Confirm the zone and schedule. Pull the planning scheme map and the specific zone schedule for the property — don't rely on what the agent or landlord tells you.
- Check the tenancy's existing use rights. What was the site last approved for? A gap between "last approved use" and "proposed use" is a change-of-use trigger.
- Run the car parking numbers. Compare on-title spaces against the Clause 52.06 rate for a medical centre, not the general office rate.
- Check for overlays. Heritage, Design and Development, and Environmental Audit overlays can each add their own permit requirement.
- Confirm signage entitlements separately. Business identification signage for a health service often needs its own permit, distinct from the use permit.
- If it's an industrial-zoned site, treat that as a red flag, not a formality — get it checked before you get attached to the lease terms, and be prepared for the answer to be "find a different site."
- Build permit lead time into your lease start date and fit-out budget — not after the fact.
Not sure where your tenancy stands?
A Pulse Check™ gives you a written planning assessment of a specific address — zoning, existing use rights, permit triggers and next steps — within 48 hours, before you commit to a lease or a fit-out budget.
Get a Pulse Check — $347Frequently asked questions
Do I need a planning permit to open a medical centre in a shopping strip?
Often yes, even in Commercial 1 zoned strips — most commonly because the site's on-title car parking doesn't meet the higher statutory rate for a medical centre, or because the tenancy's existing use approval doesn't already cover a health use.
Are allied health practices — physio, chiro, psychology — treated the same as a medical centre?
Yes. The VPP definition of medical centre covers land used to provide health services — including treatment, diagnosis, preventative care and counselling — to outpatients, and that captures physiotherapy, chiropractic and psychology practices along with GP and dental clinics. They're all assessed as the same use class, so the same permit triggers (car parking rate, zone provisions, existing use rights) apply across the board.
Can I run a medical or dental practice from an industrial unit?
We'd generally advise against it. Industrial zones exist to protect industrial land, so health and office-style uses are commonly floor-area capped, restricted, or discouraged by council regardless of what a permit application could technically achieve. Cheaper rent rarely outweighs the risk. Get the site checked before signing — the right answer is often to look elsewhere.
What happens if I start operating before a required permit is issued?
Operating an unapproved use exposes you to council enforcement action, which can include stop-use directions — a significant risk once you've committed to a fit-out and a lease. It's far cheaper to confirm the position before opening than to resolve it afterwards.
How long does a change-of-use planning permit take?
Timeframes vary by council and by whether the application needs public notification, but it is measured in weeks to months, not days — which is why it needs to sit inside your lease and fit-out timeline from the start, not run in parallel with an opening date that's already been announced.
