ServiceM8 form
ServiceM8 plumbing compliance certificate form for Victoria
This is a ServiceM8 Form for Victorian plumbing compliance certificates. It totals the job's value (materials, appliances, labour and GST) against the $750 threshold, flags work types that need a certificate regardless of value, and checks off the details a licensed plumber must issue to the customer and lodge with the regulator within 5 days, under Part 12A of the Building Act 1993.
Last checked 25 Sep 2026 against the sources listed at the end of this page.
Free form
Plumbing compliance certificate form for plumbing
A pre lodgement checklist matching what a Victorian compliance certificate must show, plus a threshold and work type check so the office knows before the job is invoiced whether one is required.
The form: 17 questions
| Section | Question | Type | Req. | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Job | Property address | Text | Yes | |
| Job | Total value of work (materials, appliances, labour, GST) | Number | Yes | Include materials or appliances supplied by anyone else, not only what you charged for. |
| Job | Value exceeds $750 | Choice Yes / No | Yes | Auto flag: if yes, a certificate is required regardless of work type. |
| Job | Work type requiring a certificate regardless of value | Multiple choice Type A gas appliance install, relocation or replacement / Gas appliance fuel conversion / Consumer gas piping install, modification or relocation / Below ground sanitary drain or gullies / Cooling tower work / None of these | Yes | |
| Job | Certificate required for this job | Choice Yes / No | Yes | Yes if either the threshold or a work type box above is triggered. |
| Plumber | Licensed plumber name and licence number | Text | Yes | |
| Plumber | Basis for issuing | Choice Carried out personally / Supervised a registered plumber or apprentice / Engaged another licensed plumber / Completed work started by another licensed plumber (inspected and tested first) | Yes | |
| Detail | 11 digit consent number (if applicable) | Text | ||
| Detail | As laid plan lodged with water authority (if applicable) | Choice Yes / No / Not applicable | ||
| Detail | Appliances and fixtures installed | Text (Multi-line) | Yes | |
| Detail | Work completed in full | Choice Yes / No | Yes | |
| Detail | If not completed, stage reached and reason | Text (Multi-line) | ||
| Detail | Photo of completed work | Photo | ||
| Lodgement | Certificate purchase date (VBA360) | Date | Purchased certificates expire 12 months from this date if not allocated or lodged. | |
| Lodgement | Certificate issued to customer (within 5 days) | Date | Yes | |
| Lodgement | Certificate lodged with regulator via VBA360 (within 5 days) | Date | Yes | |
| Sign off | Licensed plumber signature | Signature | Yes |
Set it up in ServiceM8
- In ServiceM8 open Settings > Forms > Add Form and name it Plumbing compliance certificate (VIC).
- Add each question above, matching the type (Choice means Multiple Choice) and ticking Mandatory where required is true.
- Set the value field as Number and the threshold flag as a manual Choice rather than a calculation, since ServiceM8 Forms cannot compare one field to another automatically.
- Use Automation to remind the office 3 to 4 days after job completion if the two lodgement date fields are still blank, ahead of the 5 day deadline.
- Keep the purchase date field visible on jobs quoted well ahead of the work date, so a certificate bought early does not sit past its 12 month expiry before it is lodged.
The threshold check, and what bypasses it
A compliance certificate must be issued where the total value of the work, including materials, appliances, labour and GST, exceeds $750, and that total includes materials or appliances supplied by someone else, not just what the plumber charged for. Separately, some work types need a certificate no matter how small the job is: installing, relocating or replacing a Type A gas appliance, converting a gas appliance to a different fuel, installing, modifying or relocating consumer gas piping, any below ground sanitary drain or its gullies, and any cooling tower work. Complex gas installations and Type B appliances sit outside this scheme entirely and are overseen by Energy Safe Victoria instead. The form asks for both the dollar total and the work type list so a $400 job that happens to touch consumer gas piping still gets flagged.
Who can issue it, and when it is due
Only a licensed plumber can issue a compliance certificate. A licensed plumber can issue one for work they carried out themselves, work they supervised a registered plumber or apprentice doing, work they engaged another licensed plumber to carry out, or work they completed after inspecting and testing what an earlier licensed plumber had done. Issuing a certificate for work you did not do or supervise is an offence, and it can leave both the plumber and the customer without the mandatory plumbing insurance that comes with a properly issued certificate. Once due, the certificate must reach the customer, and be lodged with the regulator through VBA360, within 5 days of completing the work or of the contract ending.
What has to be on it, and the expiry rule to watch
A compliance certificate needs the 11 digit consent number where one applies, confirmation an as laid plan was lodged with the relevant water authority where relevant, details of the appliances and fixtures installed, and, for incomplete work, a note of what stage it reached and why. A licensed plumber must still issue a certificate for incomplete work that would otherwise need one. Since 13 August 2025, purchased compliance certificates also carry a 12 month expiry date under section 221ZN(1A) of the Building Act 1993: if a certificate bought through VBA360 is not allocated to a job or lodged within that window, it cannot be used, which the form's purchase date field is there to catch before it becomes a surprise.
What this form will not do
- ServiceM8 Forms cannot compare the value field to $750 automatically. The Yes or No threshold question is filled in by the tradie, not calculated.
- This form does not cover complex gas installations or Type B appliances, which are overseen by Energy Safe Victoria rather than the compliance certificate scheme.
- Fees for purchasing a compliance certificate through VBA360 change from time to time and are not reproduced here. Check the current fee before quoting the job.
- The 12 month certificate expiry rule started 13 August 2025 with a transition period for certificates bought before 22 September 2025. A certificate bought in that transition window may have a different expiry date to the standard 12 month rule.
Sources
- A compliance certificate must be issued where the total value of plumbing work, including materials, appliances, labour and GST, exceeds $750 (materials and appliances count even if supplied by someone else); and for certain work types regardless of value: installing, relocating or replacing a Type A gas appliance, converting a gas appliance for a different fuel, installing, modifying or relocating consumer gas piping, constructing, installing or altering a below ground sanitary drain or gullies, and cooling tower work. Building and Plumbing Commission (Vic), checked 25 Sep 2026.
- A licensed plumber issuing a compliance certificate must issue it to the customer within 5 days of completing the plumbing work, or within 5 days of the termination of a plumbing work contract, and must also lodge the compliance certificate with the regulator through VBA360 within 5 days of completion. Building and Plumbing Commission (Vic), checked 25 Sep 2026.
- A licensed plumber can only issue a compliance certificate for work they carried out themselves, supervised a registered plumber or apprentice doing, engaged another licensed plumber to carry out, or completed after inspecting and testing an earlier licensed plumber's work; issuing one for work not completed or supervised is an offence that can leave the plumber and customer without mandatory plumbing insurance. Building and Plumbing Commission (Vic), checked 25 Sep 2026.
- A compliance certificate must contain, where applicable, the 11 digit consent number and confirmation an as laid plan was lodged with the relevant water authority, details of appliances and fixtures installed, and, for incomplete work, a note that the work was not completed, why, and to what stage; a certificate must still be issued for incomplete work that would otherwise require one. Building and Plumbing Commission (Vic), checked 25 Sep 2026.
- On 13 August 2025, a 12 month expiry date for purchased compliance certificates was introduced under section 221ZN(1A) of the Building Act 1993 (Vic); a certificate not allocated or lodged within its expiry period cannot be used. Building and Plumbing Commission (Vic), checked 25 Sep 2026.
- ServiceM8 Forms question types are Text, Text (Multi-line), Number, Date, Multiple Choice, Multiple Choice (Multi-answer), Signature and Photo; a question can be made compulsory; completed forms are converted to PDF and saved to the job diary. ServiceM8 Help Center, checked 25 Sep 2026.