Question: Under what circumstances can a special levy be imposed? I see that section 81(4) of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 allows for special levies, but are there any other circumstances?
Answer: Other parts of the Act may indirectly require additional contributions.
Section 81(4) of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 provides that:
If the owners corporation is subsequently faced with other expenses it cannot at once meet from either fund, it must levy on each owner of a lot in the strata scheme a contribution to the administrative fund or capital works fund, determined at a general meeting of the owners corporation, in order to meet the expenses.
Under this section, a special levy must:
- Be determined by an ordinary resolution passed at a duly convened general meeting of the owners corporation.
- Be approved by a majority of owners present and entitled to vote.
- And is not imposed unilaterally by the strata committee or strata manager.
The agenda for the general meeting must include:
- The proposed motion to raise the special levy, including the amount and number of instalments and when to be paid.
- An explanation of the purpose and necessity of the levy.
The strata committee, with the assistance of the strata manager, should ensure they give owners clear reasons for the proposed levy in the meeting notice so they can make an informed decision when voting.
While Section 81(4) is the primary provision allowing for special levies, other parts of the Act may indirectly require additional contributions, for example, where orders from NCAT, court judgments, or statutory notices from government authorities require urgent or unbudgeted expenditure. In such cases, the funding mechanism still operates through a resolution under Section 81, but the trigger for the expense comes from these other obligations.
In practice, special levies are most commonly required when:
- The annual budget has underestimated the funds needed for day-to-day operations.
- Unexpected or urgent repairs or remedial works arise that exceed available funds.
For this reason, it is important that owners attend meetings, review the agenda carefully, and participate in voting to ensure the scheme’s financial obligations are met responsibly.
This post appears in the September 2025 edition of The NSW Strata Magazine.
Sean Bermingham
The Strata Collective
E: info@thestratacollective.com.au
P: 02 9137 2320
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