RU5 Village zone in NSW

RU5 is a zone in the NSW Standard Instrument, and 100 of the 147 council Local Environmental Plans (LEPs) use it. This page shows what the zone is for and what those councils allow in it, counted from each council’s own land use table.

Used by: 100 of the 147 council LEPs
Dwelling houses: allowed in 100 of the 100
Uses the table doesn’t name: allowed with consent in 62 of the 100
Tables as at: 19 August 2026

What the zone is for

Almost every council that uses RU5 includes this objective, word for word. They come from the Standard Instrument, the template all NSW council plans are built on:

To provide for a range of land uses, services and facilities that are associated with a rural village. (99 of the 100)

77 of the 100 LEPs add objectives of their own, so the full list for a property depends on its council.

Can you build a house in RU5?

A dwelling house is allowed in 100 of the 100 LEPs that use RU5 (with consent in 100).

Whether a particular lot can take a house also depends on rules mapped to that lot, such as the minimum lot size, so check the address before relying on this.

Allowed in most councils (56)

Each number is a count of LEPs, not properties. No consent needed means the use itself doesn’t need a development application. With consent means it does. Can’t say is not a ban: either that council has no rule for the use, or it is a broad term whose types the table treats differently, so it depends on the type of project.

Use	No consent needed	With consent	Prohibited	Can’t say
Centre-based child care facilities	0	100	0	0
Community facilities	0	100	0	0
Dwelling houses	0	100	0	0
Home occupations	100	0	0	0
Neighbourhood shops	0	100	0	0
Oyster aquaculture	0	100	0	0
Places of public worship	0	100	0	0
Recreation areas	0	100	0	0
Recreation facilities (indoor)	0	100	0	0
Recreation facilities (outdoor)	0	100	0	0
Respite day care centres	0	100	0	0
Roads	46	54	0	0
Schools	0	100	0	0
Tank-based aquaculture	0	100	0	0
Bed and breakfast accommodation	0	99	1	0
Building identification signs	7	91	2	0
Business identification signs	2	96	2	0
Environmental protection works	69	29	2	0
Information and education facilities	0	98	2	0
Home businesses	12	85	3	0
Home-based child care	43	54	3	0
Food and drink premises	0	96	1	3
Home industries	4	92	4	0
Veterinary hospitals	0	96	4	0
Service stations	0	95	5	0
Business premises	0	94	3	3
Markets	1	93	6	0
Shop top housing	0	94	6	0
Environmental facilities	1	92	7	0
Dual occupancies	0	92	7	1
Entertainment facilities	0	91	9	0
Registered clubs	0	91	9	0
Secondary dwellings	0	91	9	0
Flood mitigation works	3	87	10	0
Plant nurseries	0	90	10	0
Vehicle repair stations	0	90	10	0
Public administration buildings	1	88	11	0
Function centres	0	87	13	0
Water reticulation systems	22	65	13	0
Caravan parks	0	85	15	0
Landscaping material supplies	0	85	15	0
Camping grounds	0	83	17	0
Car parks	0	83	17	0
Exhibition homes	0	80	20	0
Roadside stalls	1	79	20	0
Semi-detached dwellings	0	80	20	0
Amusement centres	0	79	21	0
Passenger transport facilities	0	79	21	0
Vehicle body repair workshops	0	79	21	0
Water recycling facilities	0	79	21	0
Light industries	0	78	8	14
Attached dwellings	0	77	23	0
Depots	0	77	23	0
Self-storage units	0	77	23	0
Local distribution premises	0	76	24	0
Wholesale supplies	0	75	25	0

Councils differ (54)

These uses are allowed by some councils that use RU5 and prohibited by others, so the answer depends on which council the land is in.

Use	No consent needed	With consent	Prohibited	Can’t say
Multi dwelling housing	0	74	26	0
Sewage treatment plants	0	74	26	0
Specialised retail premises	0	73	27	0
Transport depots	0	73	27	0
Cemeteries	0	72	28	0
Exhibition villages	0	72	28	0
Industrial retail outlets	0	72	28	0
Signage	0	71	4	25
Boat building and repair facilities	0	70	30	0
Truck depots	0	69	31	0
Water recreation structures	0	69	31	0
Residential flat buildings	0	68	32	0
Boarding houses	0	67	33	0
Boat sheds	0	67	33	0
Mortuaries	0	66	34	0
Storage premises	0	66	29	5
Warehouse or distribution centres	0	66	34	0
Biosolids treatment facilities	0	65	35	0
Water supply systems	2	63	13	22
Recreation facilities (major)	0	64	36	0
Research stations	0	64	36	0
Highway service centres	0	63	37	0
Jetties	0	62	38	0
Boat launching ramps	0	61	39	0
Helipads	0	61	39	0
Charter and tourism boating facilities	0	60	40	0
Freight transport facilities	0	60	40	0
Industrial training facilities	0	58	42	0
Sewerage systems	0	58	19	23
Restricted premises	0	52	48	0
Eco-tourist facilities	0	51	49	0
Home occupations (sex services)	2	49	49	0
Agricultural produce industries	0	50	50	0
Crematoria	0	50	50	0
Resource recovery facilities	0	49	51	0
Moorings	3	42	55	0
Tourist and visitor accommodation	0	45	1	54
Liquid fuel depots	0	44	56	0
Electricity generating works	0	41	59	0
Marinas	0	39	61	0
Mooring pens	0	38	62	0
Correctional centres	0	34	66	0
Sex services premises	0	34	66	0
Bee keeping	15	16	69	0
Farm stay accommodation	0	30	70	0
Extensive agriculture	15	12	70	3
Animal boarding or training establishments	0	26	74	0
Rural industries	0	26	60	14
Agritourism	0	23	68	9
Commercial premises	0	23	1	76
Residential accommodation	0	17	2	81
Waste or resource management facilities	0	17	39	44
Industries	0	6	28	66
Agriculture	0	2	51	47

Prohibited in most councils (15)

Most of the LEPs that use RU5 prohibit these, either by naming them or through the catch-all rule below.

Show all 15

Use	No consent needed	With consent	Prohibited	Can’t say
Heavy industries	0	1	99	0
Intensive livestock agriculture	0	2	98	0
Forestry	0	5	95	0
Rural workers’ dwellings	0	9	91	0
Air transport facilities	0	11	87	2
Heavy industrial storage establishments	0	4	86	10
Airstrips	0	18	82	0
Waste disposal facilities	0	18	82	0
Dairies (pasture-based)	8	11	81	0
Extractive industries	0	21	79	0
Open cut mining	0	21	79	0
Farm buildings	0	24	76	0
Wharf or boating facilities	0	24	76	0
Cellar door premises	0	25	75	0
Horticulture	1	24	75	0

Uses the table doesn’t name

Every council’s table ends with a rule for anything it hasn’t listed. 38 of the 100 LEPs prohibit any use their RU5 table doesn’t name. The other 62 allow such uses with consent.

That is why a use can be counted as prohibited above in more councils than actually name it.

What the zone doesn’t tell you

Lot size, height and floor space are set on the LEP maps for each property, so they vary within the same zone.
Heritage, flood and bushfire mapping can limit what is possible on a lot even where the zone allows it.
State policies can apply as well as the council’s table. Granny flats are dealt with under the Housing SEPP, and small works such as sheds can be exempt development under the Codes SEPP. See the NSW granny flat rules and NSW shed rules.

An address search shows all of this for one property.

Council LEPs that use RU5 (100)

Some councils have more than one LEP, each covering part of the area.

Land zoned under a State Environmental Planning Policy rather than a council LEP, such as some growth precincts, isn’t included in these counts.

Frequently asked questions

What is RU5 Village zoning in NSW?

RU5 Village is one of the zones in the NSW Standard Instrument, used by 100 of the 147 council Local Environmental Plans. Its first standard objective is: “To provide for a range of land uses, services and facilities that are associated with a rural village.”

Can you build a house in RU5 zoning?

A dwelling house is allowed in 100 of the 100 LEPs that use RU5 (with consent in 100). Whether a particular lot can take a house also depends on rules mapped to that lot, such as minimum lot size, so check the address.

What happens to uses the RU5 table doesn’t list?

38 of the 100 LEPs prohibit any use their RU5 table doesn’t name. The other 62 allow such uses with consent. That catch-all rule is part of each council’s table, so a use can be prohibited in RU5 without being named.

How do I check if my property is zoned RU5?

Search the address on ZoneScout. It reads the zone from NSW Government planning data and shows that council’s own land use table, along with the lot size and any heritage, flood or bushfire mapping.

Sources

Land use tables as at 19 August 2026. Councils amend their LEPs, so confirm against the current plan for your land.

General information only, not planning advice. Whether a project counts as a particular defined use is a planning judgement for your council or a planner.

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