What the law requires, what alarms you must install, where they must go, and what happens if your home is not compliant before 1 January 2027.
Supporting Queensland Government Resource
This guide is consistent with Queensland Fire Department’s own smoke alarm fact sheet (May 2026). The legal and regulatory information in this guide has been checked against Queensland legislation and current Queensland Government guidance. Pricing and descriptions of our services are based on Queensland Smoke Alarms’ published service information — see the references list at the end.
Download the QFD fact sheet (PDF)In this guide
From 1 January 2027, Queensland’s final smoke alarm deadline will apply to owner-occupied homes that have not already been required to upgrade. Rental properties and homes being sold should already comply. Caravans and motorhomes are also subject to Queensland smoke alarm requirements, although their installation requirements differ from those applying to houses, townhouses and units.4
The legislation followed the 2011 Slacks Creek house fire in Logan, in which 11 people died, eight of them children.1 The coronial inquest found there was no working smoke alarm in the house at the time of the fire, and that had a working alarm been present, there was a reasonable prospect some or all of the victims could have escaped.1 The Coroner recommended legislation requiring approved photoelectric smoke alarms in every bedroom, in hallways serving bedrooms, and on storeys without bedrooms. Where more than one alarm was required, the Coroner recommended they be interconnected — by hardwiring where possible and wirelessly where hardwiring was impracticable.1 The staged reforms introduced from 2017 substantially implemented those recommendations.3
The legislation rolled out in three stages:4
| Property type | Deadline |
|---|---|
| New builds and substantially renovated dwellings where a building application was lodged on or after 1 January 2017 | 1 January 2017 |
| Properties being sold, and rental properties at the start of a new tenancy, lease renewal, or extension from 1 January 2022 | 1 January 2022 |
| All remaining Queensland residential dwellings | 1 January 2027 |
A common misconception: Many owner-occupiers believe the new laws only apply to rental properties or homes being sold. The 2022 phase did apply primarily to those categories. The 2027 deadline is different — it applies to all remaining Queensland domestic dwellings covered by the legislation that have not yet been upgraded, including owner-occupied properties where the owner has no current plans to sell or rent.
A compliant smoke alarm must meet all of the following requirements:
The alarm must contain a photoelectric sensor and must not also contain an ionisation sensor. Under section 55E of the Building Fire Safety Regulation 2008, an alarm combining photoelectric and ionisation sensing does not satisfy Queensland’s prescribed requirements, even if it otherwise complies with AS 3786-2014.5 Additional features do not make an alarm compliant unless the smoke alarm itself satisfies all Queensland requirements and the particular model is properly certified to AS 3786-2014.
The alarm must be certified to AS 3786-2014.5 Check the alarm and its packaging for reference to AS 3786-2014 and an appropriate certification mark. If you are uncertain, ask the supplier to confirm its certification — particularly with products purchased through online marketplaces, where certification information may be incomplete or difficult to verify.
The manufacture date is printed on a label on the side or back of the alarm. An alarm must be replaced no later than 10 years after its manufacture date, even if it still operates when tested.6 It is one of the problems our installers find most often — an alarm that beeps when you press the button but was manufactured eleven years ago. Working and compliant are not the same thing.
A compliant alarm must be either hardwired to the dwelling’s electricity supply or powered by a non-removable 10-year battery.6 Standard replaceable batteries — including 9V and AA batteries — do not meet this requirement as the primary power source.
An important qualification: if your home already has hardwired (240V) smoke alarms, those must generally be replaced with hardwired photoelectric alarms. Installing or replacing any mains-powered alarm is electrical work and must be carried out by a licensed electrician.
Queensland law specifies where alarms must be placed to ensure occupants are alerted regardless of where in the dwelling a fire starts.7
The number of alarms required depends on your home’s layout — bedrooms, levels, open-plan areas, and the paths between sleeping areas and exits all affect the count. There is no fixed number that applies to every property.
Queensland’s smoke alarm regulations include specific positioning and clearance requirements.8 Alarms must be positioned:
For sloping ceilings, the prescribed position is between 500mm and 1,500mm from the apex.8 The regulations contain additional provisions for exposed joists and beams.
Note: If it is impracticable to install an alarm in the required location, the owner may put the alarm at another location that will still provide a warning to occupants.9 An alarm regularly activated by steam from a bathroom or fumes from a kitchen may also be moved to another appropriate location. Where there is uncertainty, obtain advice from an experienced smoke alarm installer. Work involving a mains-powered alarm must be performed by a licensed electrician.
Ceiling mounting is required wherever practicable. The regulations contain alternative positioning rules for ceilings with exposed joists or beams. Where the applicable ceiling or beam mounting position is not available, an alarm may be installed on a wall between 100mm and 300mm below the ceiling and more than 300mm from the corner of two walls.8
All smoke alarms required under Queensland’s domestic dwelling provisions must be interconnected — when any one alarm activates, every alarm in the dwelling sounds simultaneously.7 When one alarm goes off, they all go off — kitchen, laundry, spare room, it doesn’t matter where the fire starts. That’s what gives people in other parts of the house time to get out.
Alarms are physically connected via electrical cable. Hardwired smoke alarms have been required for relevant new dwellings under building requirements since July 1997. Any work on mains-powered alarms must be carried out by a licensed electrician.
Alarms communicate via radio frequency signals. No new wiring is required, making this often a practical option for older homes. Available in both 240V mains-powered and 10-year battery variants.
A dwelling’s size, layout and construction materials can affect wireless communication. The complete interconnected system should be tested before the installer leaves — not just each alarm individually. A combination of hardwired and wireless interconnection is also permitted where the selected alarm system supports it.
The 2027 requirements apply to existing private homes, townhouses, units and manufactured homes throughout Queensland. The legislation affects Class 1a buildings (houses, townhouses, and manufactured homes) and Class 2 buildings (apartments — with the requirement applying to each individual dwelling within the building).10
Hotels, motels, and boarding houses sit under a different set of fire safety rules entirely. Caravans and motorhomes have their own staged requirements: newly registered or transferring caravans and motorhomes have needed a photoelectric alarm since 1 July 2024, extending to all Queensland registered caravans and motorhomes by January 2027.11 The requirements differ from houses — Queensland Fire Department’s FAQ covers them specifically.
Failing to install the required smoke alarms is an offence under Queensland’s Fire Services Act 1990. The legislation provides for a maximum penalty of five penalty units.12 As at July 2026, one Queensland penalty unit is $172.70, making five penalty units equivalent to a maximum of $863.50.13 Penalty unit values are adjusted periodically, so this dollar amount should be verified when relying on this guide.
Beyond the legislative penalty, non-compliance carries practical risks:
After a fire, an insurer may examine the condition and compliance of the property’s smoke alarms. Whether non-compliance affects a claim depends on the policy, the circumstances of the loss, and applicable insurance law. Check your Product Disclosure Statement, or ask your insurer directly how smoke alarm compliance is treated under your policy.
If smoke alarms are not compliant at settlement, a buyer under commonly used REIQ residential contracts may be entitled to an adjustment equal to 0.15% of the purchase price.14 The entitlement and precise mechanism depend on the contract and its terms — sellers and buyers should obtain advice from their conveyancer or solicitor.
Non-compliance may also become relevant in investigations following a serious fire. The consequences will depend on the circumstances.
If you are selling a Queensland property, smoke alarm compliance requirements have applied since 1 January 2022. A seller must give the buyer written notice stating whether compliant smoke alarms are installed. Smoke alarm information is also recorded on Form 24 as part of the property transfer process.15 Sellers should speak with their conveyancer or solicitor about the current notice and contract requirements.
On a $700,000 property, a 0.15% contract price adjustment amounts to $1,050. Under commonly used REIQ contracts, this adjustment is the buyer’s contractual remedy for this particular breach — it does not give the buyer a separate right to terminate solely because the smoke alarms are non-compliant.14 The adjustment must be claimed by the buyer in writing prior to settlement.
Keep whatever documentation your installer provides — a compliance report shows the buyer what was installed and where. If hardwired electrical work was done, you should also have a certificate of testing and compliance from the electrician. Your conveyancer will tell you what else is needed for settlement, but having the paperwork ready avoids last-minute stress. Existing hardwired alarms that require replacement must be replaced with hardwired photoelectric alarms — this cannot be substituted with battery-powered alarms where hardwired alarms were originally required. A seller must not knowingly include information in the required notice that is false or misleading in a material particular. The maximum penalty is five penalty units.15
Rental properties have been required to meet the upgraded requirements when a new tenancy, renewal, or extension commenced from 1 January 2022.16 A rental property to which one of those triggers has applied should already comply.
Many compliant alarms use a sealed, non-removable 10-year battery, which a tenant must not attempt to remove or replace. Some mains-powered alarms, however, have a user-replaceable backup battery — this is a recognised compliant configuration, not just an older or non-compliant one.17 During a tenancy, the tenant must replace a removable battery when it is spent or almost spent, and must test and clean each alarm at least once every 12 months.
The prices below are GST-inclusive and current as at July 2026. Difficult access, asbestos-containing materials, older electrical installations, and unusual layouts may affect the final price and should be confirmed before work starts.
| Service | Price (GST inc.) |
|---|---|
| Standard photoelectric alarm — supply and install. Includes compliance certificate, safety switch check, 10-year manufacturer warranty, 12-month service warranty. | $121 per alarm |
| RED Professional range — supply and install. Non-removable 10-year battery with no routine battery replacement required during the alarm’s service life. Dual mesh barrier system reducing false alarms. | $143 per alarm |
| Standalone replacement of an expired or faulty alarm — per alarm, plus a $121 service fee. The final total depends on the alarm model and work required. | From $121 per alarm |
| Annual maintenance — testing, cleaning, battery replacement where applicable, compliance report, safety switch test. Includes up to 7 alarms; additional alarms $11 each. | $121 per service |
For full compliance installations, there are no additional call-out charges or hourly labour rates beyond the quoted per-alarm price. Standalone replacement jobs may incur the separately disclosed $121 service fee.
During the lead-up to the 2022 rental-property deadline, our electricians attended properties where earlier installation work did not meet Queensland’s requirements — alarms had been placed in the wrong locations, interconnection had not been completed, or non-compliant alarm types had been installed. Some owners needed rectification work at additional cost.
Queensland’s Office of Fair Trading also warned homeowners about dodgy traders taking advantage of the new requirements to make false or misleading claims, and cautioned that supply could be limited and prices could rise as the cut-off dates approached.18 The 2027 phase applies to all remaining domestic dwellings, including owner-occupied homes that have not already been required to upgrade. If your property has asbestos-containing materials, difficult ceiling access, older electrical installations, or an unusual layout, those things take time to sort out properly. Organising the work during 2026 gives more choice of appointment times and time to resolve complications before the deadline.
Any item you cannot confirm is worth checking with an experienced installer before assuming your property is compliant.
Queensland Smoke Alarms installs RED and Clipsal photoelectric smoke alarms across Brisbane and South East Queensland. We are a licensed electrical contractor (Licence #83524) and registered warranty agent for both brands.
This guide was checked against the following primary and government sources as at August 2026. Where legislation or figures are subject to periodic change (such as penalty unit values), we recommend checking the current version at the source before relying on it.
This guide provides general information about Queensland smoke alarm requirements as at August 2026. It is not legal advice. Requirements can depend on the specific property, its existing alarms, and the work being performed. For advice on your specific circumstances, consult a licensed electrician, your conveyancer or solicitor, or Queensland Fire Department directly.
