Surrender an aquaculture lease

You can submit an application to surrender a lease at any time while the lease is current. Before you submit an application to surrender a lease, all improvements (including cultivation materials, lease markings and structures) must be removed from the area. This includes all boundary posts and lease signs.

A duly made lease surrender application must consist of the following:

• A completed lease surrender application form, which can be either the paper version or the online version. For the paper version, every section of the form must be completed and all lessees must sign the declaration.
• Payment of the application fee (refer to the aquaculture fee schedule).
• A part-surrender application must include a copy of the lease plan that shows the part of the lease being surrendered.

An application that is not duly made will be rejected and returned to you.

The lease area (either full or part) that is being surrender must be clear of all improvements (including cultivation materials, lease markings and structures) to be suitable for return to public water land.

If a structure on the lease area is held under a Crown land lease or other form of tenure, you will need to submit evidence of the approval, in order for that structure to remain on public water land.

When you submit your surrender application, the local Fisheries Officers will inspect the lease area to ensure that it has been remediated. If the lease is found to be unsuitable for surrender, the application may be refused.

When the department receives your surrender application, it will send you an invoice for the application fee. Payment options will be provided on the invoice.

If a lease application is withdrawn or refused, the department is not required to refund the application fee. The department may refund the fee, or a portion of it, if the circumstances are appropriate.

The department will check that the application is duly made and there are no issues that may hold up its progression (for example, overdue debt on your aquaculture account).

If the application can be progressed, the lease will be inspected by local Fisheries Officers to confirm that the lease area being surrendered is clear of all improvements.

For full surrenders:

If the lease is found to be clear of all improvements, the department will finalise the surrender. The permit holder will be given an updated copy of their aquaculture permit. If required, the lessee’s account will be adjusted for pro-rata lease rent.

For part surrenders:

If the lease is found to be clear of all improvements, you will be asked to engage the services of a registered surveyor to undertake a survey of the lease area (the portion being retained). The surveyor will need to generate new lease plans, and you will be given a new lease number for these lease plans.

When a new lease plan has been submitted and accepted by the department, new lease documents will be generated and sent to you for signing. The original and duplicate lease documents must be signed, witnessed and returned to the department within 60 days.

Once the signed lease documents have been returned, the department will finalise the part-surrender. The original lease documents will be returned to you for safekeeping. The permit holder of the lease will be given an updated copy of their aquaculture permit.

See the aquaculture transactions factsheet for more information on processing times.

Yes, all existing lease and permit fees remain due and payable while the department progresses the surrender application. When the surrender application is finalised, your account may be adjusted for pro-rata lease rent.

An lease surrender application may be refused if:

• the lessee is disqualified from holding an aquaculture permit.
• the lessee fails to complete any requirements of the transaction within a specified timeframe.
• the lessee has failed to remove all improvements from the lease area being surrendered.
• the lessee debt on their aquaculture account that is more than 90 days overdue.
• the lessee has failed to clean up a previously terminated lease.
• the surrender of the lease is not in the public interest.

Before an application is refused, the department will give the lessee an opportunity to resolve any issues or to lodge objections to the refusal of the application.

See the aquaculture lease and permit holder responsibilities factsheet for information about your responsibilities as a lessee (and where relevant, a permit holder).

For more information, contact aquaculture administration via email at aquaculture.administration@dpird.nsw.gov.au

This checklist will help you to lodge a successful application.

• Have you completed every section of the application form and have all lessees signed the declaration?
• Have you attached a copy of the lease plan that shows the portion of the lease being surrendered? (part surrender only)
• Do you have any overdue debt on your aquaculture account? If so, please pay this debt prior to submitting your application?
• Do you have any outstanding clean up issues on a terminated lease? If so, please speak to someone in aquaculture administration about your options to resolve these issues.
• Is the lease area being surrendered clear of all improvements (including cultivation materials, lease markings and structures)?
• If relevant, have you attached a copy of the relevant approval for a structure on the lease?
• If there is a mortgage or other interest over the lease, have you got the written consent of the mortgagee or other party?