Assessment and certification

Register your project with us to formally commit to the certification process. Only registered projects can say they are targeting a Green Star rating.

For a project to be assessed and certified it needs to first be registered, which involves providing us with the project details, agreeing to the Certification Agreement, and paying the Certification Fee.
Once the project is formally registered and the rating tool is confirmed, you can engage with a Technical Coordinator about your project and also publicly communicate (in line with Marketing rules) that you are aiming for Green Star Certification.

1. Decide which tool to use and ensure your project is eligible

Choose which tool is right for you by reading the rating tools section of this website. If in doubt, contact the Market Engagement team for advice.
Check that your project is eligible. See our Eligibility Criteria page.
It is your responsibility to ensure your project is eligible. If in doubt, you can submit a formal eligibility request to the Market Engagement team. 
Please note you will be required to confirm your project is eligible before executing the Certification Agreement.

2. Enter the project details and agree to the Certification Agreement online 

Registration is an online process. Before registering projects, you should have the following information available: 

• Details of the project applying for certification (project name, address, size, practical completion date, proposed submission date).
• Details of the applicant company and applicant contact (ACN, name, address, phone number, email address). Details of the project contact (name, phone number, email address).
• Details of the marketing contact from the applicant company. e.g. marketing/communications manager (name, email, phone number). 

• Review of certification fees (these vary depending on rating tool and project type).
• Review the Certification Agreement OR if you are registering for Green Star Homes, the Green Star Homes Certification Agreement
• Review the Trade Mark Rules and Marketing Rules to check how the Green Star trade mark can be used.        

Recent updates to Certification Agreement:

• A list of Data Objectives are included at Annexure A of the Certification Agreement to ensure that applicants understand how we will use and disclose their data; 
• An undertaking has been included to ensure that all parties will comply with all relevant laws, including the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth); Refinement of our statement on Intellectual Property Rights, without detracting from Applicants’ IP rights, to ensure we have the necessary IP permissions to pursue our objectives; and Refinement of the definition of Confidential Information to ensure it does not include information in the public domain or deidentified information;
• Inclusion of GBCA’s revised Green Star trade marks.

Please note the Certification Agreement has been developed in consultation with industry and its terms are not negotiable. Please see the FAQs on the Certification Agreement for more information. 

How to complete an online registration form

First, log on to the Green Star Project Manager.

If you are an Applicant contact:

Complete the online registration form. At the end you will be asked to accept the terms of the Certification Agreement.
If you are an Applicant agent:

Start completing the online registration form. Once you get to the section “Step 5: Agreement”, you will need to show us you have authority from the Applicant. To do this, click on “Request authority” which will trigger an email to the Applicant contact directing the contact to log in to our website and click the link to provide us with the authority needed. Once this has been done, you will be notified via email, and will then be able to accept the terms of the Certification Agreement.

3. Pay the Certification Fee to complete the registration

Once you have accepted the terms of the Certification Agreement online, you will be emailed an invoice for the Certification Fee. Payment is due within 28 days unless prior arrangements have been made with us.
Once this fee is paid, the project is formally registered and you will receive a formal email confirmation, with a Green Star Number and advice on next steps.

Please note that as stated in the Certification Agreement, the registration fee is non-refundable.

Green Star Buildings: Important dates for the Climate Positive Pathway requirements

In October 2020, we launched Green Star Buildings, our new rating tool for the design and construction of new buildings and major refurbishments. Green Star Buildings ensures the built environment delivers healthy, resilient and positive places for people and nature, whilst also responding to global megatrends and emerging challenges. 
Green Star Buildings aims to drive all buildings in Australia to be fossil fuel free, highly efficient, powered by renewables, built with low upfront carbon emissions, and offset with nature by 2030. 
To drive this change forward, the Climate Positive Pathway (CPP) was introduced into Green Star Buildings as a series of Minimum Expectations. These expectations change over time. 

Click here to find out more.

Is your project eligible for a Green Star rating?

If you're not sure whether you can register your project, submit a free Eligibility question. How to submit an Eligibility Query.

Once your project is registered, the project team need to prepare documentation (e.g. drawings and calculations) to satisfy the Green Star requirements outlined within the Submission Guidelines and Submission Templates. Once the submission is compiled by the project team, you need to upload it for assessment.

Tips for preparing a Green Star submission

• 'What do best practice Green Star Submissions look like?' - Green Building Day 2018 presentation
• 'Guide on how to prepare a Green Star Submission' - Document to accompany presentation'
• 'How to Upload a Green Star Submission' - Instruction Guide

Important deadlines

Want to be certified before end of year? financial year? or some other deadline?  We understand that many project teams have timelines set around major events, and to support this we’ve created guidelines, which specify the deadlines you’ll need to meet in order to have your project certified in time for key milestones. Check these out!

Resources

Remember to read the overview of Resources to understand what technical support and guidance we provide as you prepare your submission.

• Uploading documentation and troubleshooting
• Downloading documentation

Submission notification

Once you've uploaded the documentation, you need to tell us to assess this by going to the Green Star Project Manager and select 'New Request', then choose 'Submit documentation for assessment' and follow the prompts.
You only need to send this when you are ready to have your submission documentation assessed. No advanced notice is required. However, if you have pressing deadlines, let us know in advance as we will try and accommodate your project's circumstances as much as we can.

Pre-assessment review (Optional paid service) 

Project teams can purchase a pre-assessment review (PAR) for their Round 1 Submission. This service ensures that all required documentation is present and in the correct format before it is reviewed by our third-party assessors. Missing documentation or formatting issues can negatively affect the project’s score.
To purchase this service, please upload the Pre-Assessment checklist indicating you wish to engage GBCA to complete a pre-assessment review. Failure to upload this will mean no pre-assessment review is completed.
Note: This service is carried out by the GBCA at the cost of a Technical Question fee.

• Point(s) awarded – credit criteria achieved.
• Point(s) to be confirmed – credit criteria not achieved, more information required
• Point(s) not awarded – credit criteria not achieved, explanation provided. 

Please allow up to six weeks after we receive the submission to receive the Round 1 assessment results. We will provide the results of the Round 1 assessment to the Applicant contact and project contact by email when the results are ready. The results are also available to view within the project record on Green Star Project Manager in the request 'Submit documentation for assessment'. This allows all contacts easy access to the results at any time.

While some projects can achieve their desired certified rating at Round 1 assessment, a Round 2 assessment may be required to allow the project team to address the items listed as 'point(s) to be confirmed'. If the project receives their desired Green Star rating at the conclusion of the Round 1 assessment they will not be required to resubmit for a Round 2 assessment.

Upon receipt of the results of the Round 1 assessment, when there are 'point(s) to be confirmed', the project team is requested to resubmit documentation for these credits in the Round 2 submission. Additionally, the project team can claim new credits at Round 2.

The project team should:

• Review the certified assessor's comments from the Round 1 assessment and directly address them.
• Provide additional documentation for the credits to be confirmed, or new credits targeted, as required. The layout of each credit must be as follows: Round 2 documentation (to address Round 1 comments), followed by the original Round 1 submission for the credit. Credits that have already been awarded in Round 1 do not need to be re-submitted, unless changes have been made affecting these credits.
• Review the General Section and the Submission Templates to identify which new credits are being claimed, that were not claimed in Round 1.
• In the General Section, clearly identify any significant changes from the Round 1 submission to the Round 2 submission, such as changes to the design which should be considered in the Round 2 assessment (e.g. change in NLA or GFA).

Submission upload and notification process for Round 2 is the same as Round 1.

Clarification of assessment comments

If, after receiving the results, the project team are unsure about how to address the Round 1 comments, the project team have the option to seek 'Clarification of assessment comments'. This is done by simply going to Green Star Project Manager and selecting the request 'Clarification of assessment comments', and follow the prompts. We will then ensure that this is addressed promptly. 'Clarification of assessment comments' was previously known as 'Round 1 queries'.

Pre-assessment review (Optional paid service)

Upon receipt of the Round 2 submission, Project teams can purchase a pre-assessment review (PAR), similar to the round 1 process. As before, please upload the Pre-Assessment checklist indicating you wish to engage GBCA to complete a pre-assessment review, or not.

Assessment

The Assessment Panel will conduct an assessment of the documentation, and will provide one of the following responses for each credit claimed:

• Point(s) awarded – credit criteria achieved
• Point(s) not awarded – credit criteria not achieved, explanation provided.

Please allow up to four weeks after we receive the submission to receive the Round 2 assessment results. This will be done the same way as per round 1.

At the end of this assessment, the standard certification process concludes, and this normally results in a certified rating for the project.

Congratulations, you've achieved your Green Star rating! It's time to shout it from the roof tops!

Promote your certification!

A Green Star certified rating is awarded as a third-party verification of a project's sustainability.
When a certified rating is awarded, the project will receive a certificate and is granted the use of the Green Star certification trademark. 
Click here for advice on how to promote your rating and how we can support you further through promotions and case studies.