Before you sign a commercial or retail shop lease in Queensland: a tenant’s checklist

Before you sign a shop or office lease in Queensland, find out whether the Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 applies. Then check the real cost (rent, rent reviews and outgoings), the term and option dates, the permitted use and council approval, repairs and make good, security, and your right to assign the lease if you sell. For a retail shop lease, you must also give the landlord legal and financial advice reports before you sign, move in or pay rent, unless you lease 5 or more retail shops in Australia.

General information about Queensland law, not legal advice. See the note at the end.

Quick checklist

1. Is it a retail shop lease?
2. Did you get the draft lease and disclosure statement at least 7 days before you sign, move in or pay rent? (retail)
3. Have you given your own disclosure statement and the two advice reports? (retail)
4. What will you pay in total each year: rent, outgoings, GST, insurance and fit-out?
5. How and when can the rent go up?
6. Which outgoings do you pay, and how are they worked out?
7. Who pays the legal costs of the lease?
8. How long is the term, what options do you have, and when must you exercise them?
9. Does the permitted use match your business, and has the council approved that use?
10. Which repairs are yours, and what must you make good at the end?
11. What security is asked for: a bond, a bank guarantee or a personal guarantee?
12. Can you assign or sublet the lease if you sell or move?
13. Can the landlord relocate you or demolish the building? (retail)
14. Will the lease be registered?

Which laws apply to a commercial lease in Queensland?

Queensland’s commercial lease laws come mainly from three places. The first is the lease itself, which is a contract. The second is the Property Law Act 2023 (Qld), which has applied since 1 August 2025, including to many leases signed before then, and adds some rules a lease cannot override. The third applies only if the premises are a retail shop: the Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 (Qld), which adds disclosure, cost and rent-review protections for the tenant.

Does the Retail Shop Leases Act apply to my lease?

It applies if the premises are a “retail shop” under the Act’s definitions, whatever the agent calls the lease. If you are not sure, ask a lawyer before you sign. The Queensland Small Business Commissioner (QSBC) cannot tell you which type of lease you have. QCAT and the courts decide.

• A retail shop is premises in a retail shopping centre, or premises used wholly or mainly for a retail business (ss 5A(1), 5B).
• Retail businesses are those listed in schedule 1 of the Retail Shop Leases Regulation 2016, or that mainly supply goods or services on that list. They include cafes, restaurants, bakeries, butchers, clothing shops, florists, hairdressers, beauty salons and dry cleaners. Wholesale is not retail (Act s 5C; Regulation s 8).
• A retail shopping centre has at least 5 retail premises with one owner or lessor (or one community titles scheme). They are in one building, or in buildings that adjoin or are separated only by common areas or a road, and are promoted or seen as a shopping centre, mall, court or arcade (s 5D).
• Exclusions include shops over 1,000 square metres, flea market and theme park premises, and temporary stalls at shows and festivals (s 5A(2)). An office, gym or clinic in a centre is excluded if retail is 25% or less of the lettable area of that level, or of a single-level building (s 5A(3)).
• Most of the Act does not apply to a lease of 6 months or less, counting extension rights (s 20A). A clause that tries to exclude the Act is void, and naming another state’s law does not avoid it (ss 12, 16).

What changed on 1 August 2025

• Consent. If the lease needs the landlord’s consent to assign, sublet, change the use, mortgage the lease or make alterations, the landlord must not unreasonably withhold it. It must decide within 1 month after getting full details, unless you both agree to more time. If it refuses unreasonably or does not decide in time, you can apply to court. The lease cannot override this (s 142).
• Standard terms. Unless the lease says otherwise, it includes the standard terms in schedule 1 (s 139), such as the tenant’s duty to keep the premises, apart from structural parts, in good condition (clause 3).
• Breach notices. To re-enter for a breach, the landlord must first give a notice to remedy breach in the approved form, with a reasonable time to fix a breach that can be fixed (s 153).
• Older leases. The consent rules cover dealings after the Act started, and the breach notice and option rules cover leases whenever signed (ss 255(1), 256).

Retail shop lease or other commercial lease: the main differences

RSLA is the Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 (Qld). PLA is the Property Law Act 2023 (Qld). A major lessee is a tenant of 5 or more retail shops in Australia.

Topic	Retail shop lease (RSLA and PLA)	Other commercial lease (PLA and the lease)
Disclosure before signing	Landlord gives the draft lease and a disclosure statement, and the tenant gives its own statement, at least 7 days before (ss 21B, 22A)	No statutory disclosure statement
Advice reports	Legal and financial advice reports before entering the lease, unless a major lessee (s 22D)	Not required by law
Landlord’s legal costs of preparing the lease	Tenant is not liable (s 48(1))	As the lease says
Land tax	Cannot be recovered; a clause making the tenant pay it is void (ss 7(3)(a), 17, 24 and its example)	A standard term makes the tenant pay a share of taxes, rates and assessments, unless the lease says otherwise (PLA schedule 1, clause 2)
Outgoings paperwork	Annual estimate and audited annual statement (ss 38A, 38B)	As the lease says
Rent reviews	No more than once in each year of the lease after the first year; a single basis for each review; ratchet clauses void; major lessees can opt out (ss 27, 36A)	As the lease says
Key money	Banned (s 39)	Not banned by statute
Option date reminder	Landlord must remind you 2 to 6 months before the option date (s 46)	No statutory reminder
Consent to assign or sublet (where the lease needs consent)	Not to be unreasonably withheld; decision within 1 month (PLA s 142); plus assignment disclosure (ss 22B, 22C)	Not to be unreasonably withheld; decision within 1 month (PLA s 142)
Relocation or demolition	Notice periods, relocation costs and a 1-month right to end the lease on relocation (ss 46C to 46K)	As the lease says
Disputes	QSBC mediation, then QCAT (ss 55, 63, 64)	QSBC can mediate only if both sides agree; otherwise the courts decide. QCAT has no jurisdiction

Retail shop leases: the 7-day disclosure rule and the reports you must give

If the Retail Shop Leases Act applies, the landlord must give you a draft of the lease and a disclosure statement at least 7 days before you enter into the lease. You must give the landlord your own disclosure statement at least 7 days before. Unless you lease 5 or more retail shops in Australia, you must also give legal and financial advice reports before you enter into it. If the landlord’s statement is missing or materially wrong, you may be able to end the lease within 6 months.

• When you “enter into” the lease. It is the earliest of: the day everyone has signed it, the day you move in under it, or the day you first pay rent under it, other than a deposit to secure the premises (s 11). So moving in or paying rent early can start the clock.
• The reports are signed by a lawyer (legal advice report) and a qualified accountant (financial advice report), in the approved forms (schedule, Dictionary). Franchisees do not give the tenant’s statement or the reports (ss 22A, 22D(1)).
• A late statement still counts if, before you enter into the lease, you give the landlord a signed waiver notice and, unless you are a major lessee, a legal advice report covering the waiver (s 21B(2), (4)).
• Ending the lease. You may end it by written notice within 6 months after entering into it if the landlord did not give you the draft lease and statement as required, or its statement was incomplete, false or misleading in a material way. For a defective statement only, you lose this right if the landlord acted honestly and reasonably and you are in substantially as good a position. You may also claim compensation (s 21F).
• Later steps. You get the signed lease or a certified copy within 30 days after signing (s 22). If you exercise an option to renew, the landlord must give you an updated statement within 7 days of your notice, unless you gave a waiver notice with it. You may then withdraw your renewal notice within 14 days of receiving the statement (s 21E).

Work out the real cost of the lease

Look past the advertised rent. Add up the base rent, outgoings, GST, insurance, energy, fit-out, the cost of making good at the end, and any bank guarantee and legal costs. Then work out what you will pay in each year of the term, including after each rent review. Business Queensland notes that lighting, air conditioning and refrigeration costs can really add up.

Example (hypothetical). Rent of $30,000 a year plus GST, rising by a fixed 4% each year, is about $35,100 in year 5. That is about $162,500 in base rent over 5 years, before outgoings, GST and other costs.

How often can the rent go up?

Under a retail shop lease, if the rent can be reviewed, the lease must state when and on what basis. Generally, rent cannot be reviewed more than once in each year of the lease after the first year, and each review uses a single basis, such as CPI, a fixed percentage or market rent. A ratchet clause, which stops the rent going down at a review that could otherwise lower it, is void (ss 27(1) to (5), 36A).

• A set combination, such as CPI plus a fixed percentage, counts as a single basis, but market rent cannot be combined (s 27(5)(a), (g)). A lease can cap increases (s 27(10)), and a major lessee can opt out in writing before entering into the lease (ss 27(8), 36A(3)).
• Under other commercial leases, the lease decides.

What are outgoings in a commercial lease?

Outgoings are the landlord’s costs of running the building or centre, such as council rates, water, insurance, cleaning and maintenance, that the lease passes on to tenants on top of rent. Under a retail shop lease, you only pay outgoings that the lease spells out, and the landlord cannot recover land tax or capital costs. Under other commercial leases, you pay what the lease says, so read that clause closely.

• Retail exclusions: land tax, capital costs, depreciation or sinking fund contributions, loss-of-profits insurance, the landlord’s insurance excess, its merchants’ association and promotion fund contributions, and interest on its loans (s 7(3)).
• Retail rules: the lease must say which outgoings you pay and how they are worked out, shared and recovered. Your share cannot be more than your shop’s share, by area, of the premises that benefit (ss 37, 38). You generally get an itemised estimate at least 1 month before each period and an audited statement within 3 months after it ends (ss 38A, 38B).
• Sinking funds (retail): contributions are not outgoings, but the lease can require separate payments into one sinking fund for major maintenance and repairs. Payments by all tenants are capped at 5% of estimated outgoings a year, and the fund at $100,000 (ss 7(3)(c), 24(4), 40).
• Other commercial leases: QSBC describes three methods: direct recovery (the landlord invoices you), net recovery (an estimate paid in advance, adjusted at year end) and gross rent (outgoings built into the rent). Unless the lease says otherwise, a standard term makes the tenant pay a share, by area, of taxes, rates and assessments on the land (PLA schedule 1, clause 2).
• GST: a landlord can pass on GST (RSLA s 24A), and QSBC notes GST may be payable if the landlord is registered for GST. Ask your accountant how it applies to you.

Who pays the legal costs of the lease?

Under a retail shop lease, you do not pay the landlord’s legal costs of preparing, renewing or extending the lease. You can be asked to pay registration and related survey fees, and the landlord’s reasonable costs if you ask for a final lease and then do not sign it. The landlord also cannot make you use or pay for its own lawyer. Under other commercial leases, who pays is a matter for the lease, so negotiate it.

• Sources: ss 47(1), 48(1) to (3). A retail landlord can also recover its reasonable costs of a variation or sublease consent you ask for (s 24(1)(c)), and of an assignment (s 39(2)(b)).

Term, options and the dates you cannot miss

Check how long the first term is, how many option periods you have, and the exact window for exercising each option, then diary them. For a retail shop lease, the landlord must remind you in writing 2 to 6 months before the option date (s 46(2)). Under the Property Law Act 2023, a landlord who wants to refuse your option because of a breach must give a breach notice within 10 business days of your option notice (or of a later breach), and you then have 1 month to apply to court (ss 164(2), (3), 166(3)).

• Late option notices. The breach notice process covers “formal requirements”, such as the form of your notice, but not the time for giving it (PLA s 164(4)). So it does not help if your notice is late.
• Retail leases with no option. The landlord must tell you in writing, within a set window before the lease ends, whether it will offer a renewal. If it does not, you can ask in writing, before the lease ends, for the term to be extended until 6 months after it gives that notice (s 46AA).
• The Property Law Act option rules apply to most leases, whenever signed (PLA ss 150, 256).

Should my lease be registered?

Ask about registration with Titles Queensland if the term plus options could run past 3 years. A lease of 3 years or less (a “short lease”) is generally binding on a new owner of the land even if it is not registered. That protection does not cover option rights beyond 3 years from the start of the original term (Land Title Act 1994 (Qld), s 185(1)(b), (2)(b); schedule 2). A retail tenant can be asked to pay registration costs (RSLA s 48(2)).

Permitted use, council approval and fit-out

Make sure the permitted use clause covers everything your business will do, now and as it grows. Then check with your local council that your use is approved for that address, not just that the zoning looks right. Ask who pays for the fit-out, who owns it at the end, and whether the lease can be conditional on approvals you need. If the lease lets you change the use with the landlord’s consent, the landlord must not unreasonably refuse.

• Check with the council for the premises, such as City of Moreton Bay, Sunshine Coast Council or Brisbane City Council. QSBC says most leases put the onus on the tenant to get approvals, and that adding a new service, such as a wellbeing provider adding classes, can need a development approval.
• The consent rule applies only where the lease needs consent to change the use (PLA s 142(1)(d), (3); schedule 1, clause 9). Under a retail shop lease, a clause making you refurbish or refit is void unless the lease gives general details of the nature, extent and timing of the work (RSLA s 50B).

Repairs, maintenance and make good

Find out which repairs are yours and which stay with the landlord, especially air conditioning, plant and anything structural. Then read the make good clause, which says what condition you must hand the premises back in. Before you move in, get a condition report with dated photos, signed by both sides. If the lease is silent, the standard terms make you keep the premises in good condition, apart from structural parts and reasonable wear and tear.

• Under the standard terms, you hand the premises back in at least the same repair and condition as at the start. You need not repair reasonable wear and tear, or damage from fire, flood, storm and other insured risks, with some exceptions. You must remove your own fixtures and repair damage from removing them. Items left more than 1 month after the lease ends are treated as abandoned (PLA schedule 1, clauses 3 and 12).
• Under a retail shop lease, the landlord may owe you compensation if it does not fix plant or equipment it maintains as soon as practicable (s 43(1)(d)).

Bonds, bank guarantees and personal guarantees

Most landlords ask for security: a bond, a bank guarantee, a personal guarantee from the company’s directors, or a mix. Check the amount, when the landlord can draw on it, when it is returned, and who holds it if the property is sold. A personal guarantee can make you personally liable for the company’s lease debts, so ask whether it can be limited, and get advice before you sign one.

• Key money. Under a retail shop lease, the landlord must not ask for or accept key money (a premium or non-repayable payment for granting, renewing or assigning a lease) or a payment for your goodwill. It may take a repayable bond, rent in advance of up to one rental period, and payment for fit-out it paid for (s 39; schedule, Dictionary).
• Guarantors. QSBC suggests asking how far a guarantor is exposed. If the landlord knows a guarantor’s name and address, it must give them a copy of any notice to remedy breach (PLA ss 152, 154(1)).

If you sell your business: assignment and subletting

If you might sell the business during the lease, check the assignment clause now. Where the lease needs the landlord’s consent, the Property Law Act 2023 says the landlord must not unreasonably withhold it for an assignment or sublease, and must give its decision within 1 month of getting full details (s 142). For a retail shop lease, you and the buyer also have disclosure steps before the landlord is asked to consent.

• If the lease says nothing about assignment, a standard term still requires the landlord’s written consent, which must not be unreasonably withheld (PLA schedule 1, clause 5).
• For a retail shop lease, the seller, buyer and landlord exchange disclosure statements, and the buyer gives advice reports unless it is a major lessee (ss 22B, 22C, 22D(2)). The landlord can recover its reasonable assignment costs (s 39(2)(a), (b)).

Other protections for retail shop tenants

A retail shop lease can let the landlord relocate your business or end the lease to demolish, but only on the Act’s terms. For relocation, you get at least 3 months’ notice, a reasonably comparable shop, your reasonable relocation costs, and the right to end the lease instead by notice within 1 month. For demolition, you get at least 6 months’ notice. You may also be owed compensation if the landlord substantially restricts access to your shop or significantly disrupts your trading.

• Sources: ss 43(1), 46C to 46K. Some limits and exclusions apply to compensation (ss 43AB, 43AC, 44A).

Do I need a solicitor for a commercial lease?

For a retail shop lease, in practice yes. Unless you lease 5 or more retail shops in Australia, you must give the landlord a legal advice report signed by a lawyer, and a financial advice report from a qualified accountant, before you enter into the lease (s 22D). For other commercial leases, the law does not require a lawyer, but Business Queensland recommends legal and financial advice before you sign. Under a retail shop lease, the landlord cannot make you use or pay for its lawyer (s 47(1)).

Read more about our commercial law work.

How much are legal fees for a commercial lease?

It depends on the work. The main cost factors are whether it is a retail shop lease (and so needs a legal advice report), the length and complexity of the lease, how much negotiation is needed, the other documents (such as disclosure statements, guarantees, incentive deeds and bank guarantee terms), and the timeframe. Ask for a quote before you instruct a lawyer.

If you have a draft lease or disclosure statement to review, call Catton Roderick Lawyers on 1300 673 792.

If a problem comes up later

For a retail shop lease, a dispute usually starts with a notice lodged with the Queensland Small Business Commissioner for mediation, and it can go to the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) if it does not settle (ss 55, 63, 64). For other commercial leases, the Commissioner can mediate if both sides agree, and otherwise the courts decide. Some deadlines are short, so get advice early.

• A QSBC mediator can deal with whether an outgoing was reasonably incurred, but not the amount of rent or outgoings (s 97(1)(b), (3)).
• QSBC says to get legal advice before withholding payments. Do not stop paying rent or leave the premises without advice.

Frequently asked questions

Who pays the legal costs for a commercial lease in Queensland?

For a retail shop lease, the landlord pays its own costs of preparing, renewing or extending the lease (s 48). Tenants can be asked to pay registration costs and some other reasonable costs, such as for a requested variation or an assignment. For other leases, the lease decides, so negotiate before you sign.

Can a landlord charge land tax as an outgoing?

Not under a retail shop lease. Land tax is excluded from outgoings, and a clause making the tenant pay it is void (ss 7(3)(a), 17, 24 and its example). Under other commercial leases it depends on the lease, so check the outgoings clause and ask your lawyer.

What if I did not get the disclosure statement 7 days before I signed?

Under a retail shop lease, a late statement still counts if, before you entered into the lease, you gave the landlord a signed waiver notice and (unless you lease 5 or more retail shops in Australia) a legal advice report covering the waiver (s 21B(2)). If not, you may be able to end the lease by written notice within 6 months after entering into it, and claim compensation (s 21F(1), (5)). Get advice quickly.

Does the Retail Shop Leases Act apply to an office or medical suite?

Usually not, unless the premises are in a retail shopping centre where more than 25% of the lettable area of that level or building is retail (ss 5A(3), 5B, 5D). Check the definitions for your premises.

Can I walk away from a commercial lease?

Usually not without consequences. A lease is binding, and leaving early can leave you owing rent and damages. The usual ways out are an assignment, a sublease or an agreed surrender. Get advice before you act. Read more about our commercial law work.

Sources

Legislation, current versions (all checked 25 September 2026):

1. Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 (Qld), in force from 1 August 2025: ss 5A to 5D, 7, 11, 12, 16, 17, 20A, 21B, 21E, 21F, 22, 22A to 22D, 24, 24A, 27, 36A, 37, 38, 38A, 38B, 39, 40, 43, 43AB, 43AC, 44A, 46, 46AA, 46C to 46K, 47, 48, 50B, 55, 63, 64, 97 and the schedule (Dictionary). https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-1994-047
2. Retail Shop Leases Regulation 2016 (Qld), in force from 3 May 2022: s 8 and schedule 1. https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/sl-2016-0223
3. Property Law Act 2023 (Qld), in force from 28 April 2026: ss 139, 142, 150, 152 to 154, 164, 166, 255, 256 and schedule 1, clauses 2, 3, 5, 9 and 12. https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-2023-027. Legislative history (parts 2 to 19 and schedules 1 to 3 commenced 1 August 2025, 2024 SL No. 209): https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-2023-027/lh
4. Land Title Act 1994 (Qld), in force from 1 August 2025: s 185 and schedule 2 (short lease). https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-1994-011

Official guidance (all checked 25 September 2026):

5. Queensland Small Business Commissioner (QSBC), “What is a retail shop lease in Queensland?”. https://www.qsbc.qld.gov.au/small-business-help/dispute-insights-case-examples/what-is-a-retail-shop-lease-in-queensland
6. QSBC, “Outgoings”. https://www.qsbc.qld.gov.au/small-business-help/factsheets/outgoings
7. QSBC, “Queensland’s new Property Law Act: what commercial tenants, landlords and property agents need to know”. https://www.qsbc.qld.gov.au/small-business-help/dispute-insights-case-examples/queenslands-new-property-law-act-what-commercial-tenants-landlords-and-property-agents-need-to-know
8. QSBC, “Tips when entering a commercial lease”. https://www.qsbc.qld.gov.au/small-business-help/factsheets/tips-when-entering-a-commercial-lease
9. QSBC, “Make good”. https://www.qsbc.qld.gov.au/small-business-help/factsheets/make-good
10. QSBC, “Before you sign: understanding council planning rules for your business lease”. https://www.qsbc.qld.gov.au/small-business-help/dispute-insights-case-examples/before-you-sign-understanding-council-planning-rules-for-your-business-lease
11. Business Queensland, “Signing a business premises lease”. https://www.business.qld.gov.au/starting-business/premises-location/leasing/signing
12. Business Queensland, “Retail shop leases” (last updated 14 September 2026). https://www.business.qld.gov.au/starting-business/premises-location/retail-shop-leases

Talk to us before you sign

To have a lease reviewed before you sign, call Catton Roderick Lawyers on 1300 673 792 or email info@cattonroderick.com.au. Dr Darren Catton, the firm’s principal, handles our commercial and retail lease work. His doctoral research (SJD, QUT, 2017) was on retail lease legislation, and he is a member of the Queensland Law Society Property Law Committee. We see clients at our Caboolture office (Unit 3, 9 East Street) and our Redcliffe office (First Floor, Cominos Arcade, 133 Redcliffe Parade), and in Birtinya (Sunshine Coast) and Brisbane by appointment.

• Commercial law
• Commercial lawyers in Caboolture
• Commercial lawyers in Redcliffe
• Commercial lawyers in Brisbane (by appointment)

You can also contact us online.

This page is general information about Queensland law as at 27 September 2026. It is not legal advice about your situation. Time limits apply, so please get advice about your own circumstances.

Last reviewed: 27 September 2026