Summary
Australia's model building code clauses on where hearing augmentation is required, how much of the floor it must reach, how many receivers to provide and what the signs must say.
Key findings
- Requires hearing augmentation where an inbuilt amplification system (other than one used only for emergency warning) is installed in a room in a Class 9b building, in an auditorium, conference room, meeting room or judicatory room, or at a ticket office, teller's booth or reception area where the public is screened from the service provider.
- Sets different coverage for the two kinds of system it names: an induction loop must serve at least 80% of the floor area served by the amplification system, while a system that needs "receivers or the like" must be available to at least 95% of that area.
- For receiver-based systems, sets minimum receiver numbers by persons accommodated: up to 500 persons, 1 per 25 persons or 2, whichever is greater; then 20 plus 1 per 33 over 500, 35 plus 1 per 50 over 1,000, and 55 plus 1 per 100 over 2,000. The clause sets no receiver count for loops and no hearing-aid-compatible share.
- D4D8(2)(b)(i)–(iv) counts any part of each 25-, 33-, 50- or 100-person increment towards another receiver, so fractional increments round up. D4D8(3) requires the persons accommodated to be calculated under D2D18.
- Inside a room with hearing augmentation, a sign with the international symbol for deafness must state the type of hearing augmentation, the area covered and, if receivers are used, where to get them; braille and tactile signs must identify each space that has a system.
- Neither clause mentions Bluetooth or Auracast.
- D4D7(1) applies to buildings required to be accessible and identifies spaces with hearing augmentation. Its signage duty does not repeat D4D8(1)’s inbuilt-amplification condition.
Limits
Deemed-to-satisfy provisions of a model code. NCC 2025 was published on 1 May 2026, and states and territories adopt it on their own dates (several from 1 May 2027), so NCC 2022 may still apply. Counts persons accommodated (calculated under D2D18), not seats.
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Cited in
- Which systems satisfy the ADA and building codes, and does a listener's own phone count?Disputed
- Auracast, hearing loop, infrared, RF or Wi-Fi: which suits which room?Disputed
- How many receivers and neckloops does each code require, and how should a loan pool be run?Partly answered
- What commissioning tests and pass limits will the standards require?Open
- How do listeners find and join the right broadcast?Open
- Can Auracast serve ticket windows, service counters and reception desks?Open
- How is an installed hearing loop checked against IEC 60118-4, and how often does it pass?Partly answered
- How do listeners learn that a venue has assistive listening, and which signs and symbols do the rules ask for?Partly answered
- What works in places of worship, and what do the rules ask of them?Partly answered
- What works in theatres and cinemas, and what do the rules ask of them?Partly answered
- What works in stadiums and arenas, and what do the rules ask of them?Partly answered
- What works in hotel meeting rooms and conference centres, and what do the rules ask of them?Partly answered
- What works in university lecture halls and large teaching rooms?Partly answered
- What works in school auditoriums, gyms and assembly halls?Partly answered
- Can assistive listening carry emergency and evacuation announcements?Partly answered
Cite this source
Australian Building Codes Board. National Construction Code 2025, Volume One, Part D4: D4D7 Signage and D4D8 Hearing augmentation. Australian Building Codes Board (NCC online). 1 May 2026. https://ncc.abcb.gov.au/editions/ncc-2025/adopted/volume-one/d-access-and-egress/part-d4-access-people-disability (accessed 13 October 2026).
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