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Survey Audit Program

Surveyor-General Victoria undertakes a Survey Audit Program to monitor standards of surveys being lodged with Land Victoria and to gauge compliance by practitioners with regulations and directions. The key components of the Survey Audit Program are presented below including checklists and categories of non-conformances to guide surveyors in the preparation of plans and field records.

On this page:
Survey Audits Database
Selection of Surveyors to be Audited
Audit Processes
Survey Non-Conformances
Survey Audit Program Checklist
Survey Audit Program Categories of Non-Conformances
Further Information

Survey Audits Database

A database which interacts with the Victorian Online Titles System (VOTS) facilitates the selection of surveys for audit. from which surveyors are selected for audit. The database contains information on:

• plan number (subdivisions, applications, Crown surveys)
• date of lodgement
• municipality
• survey or non-survey
• statement of compliance
• surveyors.

Selection of Surveyors to be Audited

Current targets are for 150 surveys and 33% of practising surveyors to be audited per year. It is estimated that there are 350 to 400 practising surveyors who lodge surveys with Land Victoria. The criteria for selection of surveyors to be audited is based on the following 6 level priority system with the first 2 receiving highest priority.

• surveyors who continually perform below standard
• surveyors whose last audit was unsatisfactory
• surveyors from interstate who receive a licence under reciprocal arrangements
• surveyors who have never been audited
• newly licensed surveyors
• surveyors who have not been audited for 3 years.

As a general rule, four surveys, three metropolitan and one regional, are selected each week and audited immediately. This just in time approach is necessary if the audit is to be completed within Land Victoria’s tight turn-around times for registration of the plan once a statement of compliance has been lodged.

Audit Processes

The audit processes are:

• assembly of survey information
• desk-top examination of plan, abstract and report. This entails checking mathematics, text, re-establishment and compliance with regulations and directions
• field check of measurements, marking, re-establishment and practicability of connecting to MGA94
• preparation of an audit report by the auditing surveyor
• written advice to the surveyor being audited of the audit result with request to rectify any non-conformances
• written advice to the lodging party if registration of the plan is to be stopped pending rectification of any non-conformances
• consideration of the surveyor’s response and closure of the audit once all non-conformances are satisfied
• update of survey audits database.

The first three of the above processes are undertaken concurrently to minimise the elapsed time to determine the quality and acceptability of the survey. Examiners from Land Victoria perform the plan examination and written advice to the lodging party (if necessary) whilst SGV surveyors undertake all other aspects of the audit process.

Survey Non-Conformances

The auditing surveyor uses a checklist of 37 items covering the abstract of field records, re-establishment, MGA94, surveyor’s report and field survey. Refer to the Survey Audit Program Checklist available below. It is intended that the checklist will be utilised by industry and that improvements in the quality of lodged surveys will result. Any non-conformance to items on the checklists will result in non-registration of the dealing until rectified. In addition, the checklist items have been categorised into a listing of serious and non-serious non-conformances. Refer to Survey Audit Program Categories of Audit Non-Conformances available below.

An unsatisfactory survey audit result generally occurs where one or more serious non-conformances, or ten or more non-serious non-conformances are identified. Surveyors who receive two consecutive unsatisfactory survey audit results within a three year period are required to meet with the Deputy Surveyor-General to review their survey audit findings in order to achieve improved performance. The Surveyors Board receives monthly reports on the Survey Audit Program which includes the identities of surveyors audited and analysis of their audit outcomes. This information assists the Board in gauging the effectiveness of the Survey Audit Program. A complaint under section 18 of the Surveying Act 2004 is lodged with the Surveyors Registration Board of Victoria (SRBV) when a surveyor receives 3 consectutive unsatisfactory audits.

Survey Audit Program Checklist Version 4 (PDF - 51 Kb)

Survey Audit Program Categories of Non-Conformances (PDF - 29 Kb)


For further information contact:

David Boyle
Deputy Surveyor-General of Victoria
Level 17, 570 Bourke Street
Melbourne VIC 3000
Ph: (03) 8636 2541
Fax: (03) 8636 2588
Email: David.R.Boyle@dse.vic.gov.au