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Forms and fees for Commercial Activity Permits
Coronavirus (COVID-19): Queensland tourism operators
Queensland tourism operators that conduct business on Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service-managed areas may be eligible for financial support. Find out more about commercial tourism operator support.
Contact the Department of Environment and Science to discuss how these changes may affect your business.
You will need to submit application forms and pay application fees if you wish to conduct activities requiring a Commercial Activity Permit (CAP) in Queensland national parks, conservation parks, recreation areas and state forests.
An activity using multiple tenures (e.g. using a national park and recreation area) only requires 1 application fee.
There are different fees for commercial filming and photography permits.
Applying for a CAP
You need to pay fees when you lodge your application form.
Fees for CAP applications (effective 1 July 2020)
| Fee | Amount ($) |
|---|---|
| Application fee for national parks, conservation parks, recreation areas and state forests | |
| Application fee (non-refundable) | 359.20 |
| Application fee to renew or reissue | 179.30 |
| Permit fee for national parks, conservation parks, recreation areas and state forests | |
| 3 months or less | 71.90 |
| More than 3 months but not more than 1 year | 287.00 |
| More than 1 year but not more than 2 years | 575.00 |
| More than 2 years but not more than 3 years | 812.00 |
| Other fees for joint Great Barrier Reef Marine Park permits/CAP | |
| For first 3 years of the term | 812.00 |
| For each year after 3 years up to a maximum of 15 years | 271.70 |
| Transfer fee | 178.90 |
| Daily site fees (per person per day) - less than 3 hours | |
| National and conservation parks | 2.11 |
| Recreation areas - Bribie Island, Cooloola, Minjerribah or Moreton Island | 2.11 |
| Recreation areas - Fraser Island, Inskip Peninsula | 4.00 |
| Recreation area - Green Island | 2.90 |
| State forest | 2.11 |
| Daily site fees (per person per day) - more than 3 hours | |
| National and conservation parks | 3.75 |
| Recreation areas - Bribie Island, Cooloola, Minjerribah or Moreton Island | 3.75 |
| Recreation area - Fraser Island, Inskip Peninsula | 8.50 |
| Recreation area - Green Island | 2.90 |
| State forest | 3.75 |
The full application fee applies to a CAP renewal with changes to locations and/or capacity. Fees increase by CPI in July each year.
Refunds policy
If your application is refused, your application fee will not be refunded. Your permit fee can be refunded.
Consider requesting a free pre-lodgement meeting to save time and money.
Complying with CAP conditions
Under conditions of your CAP, you may be required to submit a return of operations or to notify Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) before a visit.
Returns of operations
You must submit a return of operations within 20 business days of the end of each calendar month or quarterly period.
As part of the Queensland Government's immediate Industry Recovery Package, a fee relief has been applied to daily site (return) fees from 1 February 2020 to 31 March 2021.
During this period, continue to report on your tour operations as normal by submitting your quarterly returns. When completing the return of operations for this period, enter all paying people in the 'Exempt' column and zero (0) in the 'Paying' column.
To submit returns monthly, please select the quarter that your month falls into. Even if no activity occurred during the month or quarter, you are still required to submit a 'nil' return. Quarterly cycles end on the last day of March, June, September and December each year.
The new form will generate an invoice at the time of submission, appearing on the last page of the return and containing information required for you to pay any daily fees.
- Submit a return of operations form for July 2019 to June 2020
- Submit a return of operations form for July 2020 to June 2021
All invoices for daily site fees must be paid strictly within the allocated timeframe, including BPAY. Failure to do so may result in action to suspend or cancel your commercial activity permit or agreement.
Daily site fee
Commercial tour operators are now exempt from paying daily fees for each person (5 years or older) participating in an educational tour or a camp type approved by the Chief Executive. The number of people, school details and a contact person must be recorded on your return of operations. This exemption includes teachers and supervisors and applies to the following groups:
- Australian registered state or independent primary and secondary schools
- Centres offering the Duke of Edinburgh Award Program
- Scouts and Guides
- Home Education students.
Camping fees and bookings
You must pay camping fees if your commercial activity involves overnight camping.
Commercial tour operators are eligible for a reduced camping fee of $3.60 for each person (5 years or older) participating in an educational tour or camp type approved by the Chief Executive.
To make online camping bookings for educational groups, you must open an educational account in the Queensland National Parks online camping booking service. If you have an existing account for individual use, you will need to register a new account using a different email address. This will allow you to make bookings at the reduced rate for educational groups.
For all other camp bookings as a commercial tour operator, you must open a commercial account through the online camping booking service.
To open a new account, contact the QPWS Camping Support team at qpws@des.qld.gov.au.
Learn more about camping fees and bookings.
Commercial activity notification
You must submit a commercial activity notification if required under your permit. This may apply to operations conducted on a single site or across many CAP areas.
Filming and photography notification
If you have a CAP for filming and photography, you must notify the department 14 days prior to undertaking the filming, by submitting the filming and photography notification form.
Learn more about filming and photography permits and fees.
Changing an existing CAP
You must request changes to your CAP in writing to QPWS. Making a change to your CAP or agreement will incur a cost.
Also consider...
- Learn more about Commercial Activity Permits for national parks, recreation areas and state forests.
- Read about commercial filming and photography in national parks, conservation parks, recreation areas and state forests.
- Learn more about marine park permits and permits for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.
- Last reviewed: 1 Jul 2020
- Last updated: 6 Oct 2020