Renting with a pet, after the reform.

NSW Fair Trading publishes a standard pet application form. Complete Section A, get every tenant on the lease to sign it, and give it to the landlord/agent. Keep a copy. Form is at nsw.gov.au/housing-and-construction/rental-forms-surveys-and-data.

The 21 days starts the day after you give them the form. If they don't respond within 21 days, consent is automatically given, with no conditions. Add 7 working days for post if you sent it by mail.

The landlord can only refuse on the seven specific grounds below. The refusal must use Section B of the same form and state which ground applies and why.

If you believe the refusal isn't valid, apply to NCAT within 28 days of receiving the landlord's response. NCAT can order consent be given, or remove an unreasonable condition.

Four animals or fewer is treated as a reasonable number. The landlord can only use this ground if you'd have more than four AND can explain why the number is unreasonable for the property.

If the animal could escape because of the fencing, refusal is open. But not if the landlord has let the fence fall into disrepair, and not if the pet will be kept in an enclosure or indoors-only with leash/carrier outside.

Insufficient room for toileting, exercise, or outdoor living. Doesn't apply if the pet toilets indoors hygienically (e.g. litter box), gets exercise off-property, or lives in an enclosure.

Something about the property would make keeping the animal cruel or unsafe — e.g. unable to provide necessary food, shelter, or care.

It must be highly probable the animal will cause damage exceeding the bond. The test considers preventative measures you'd take, minor alterations you propose, and the property's surfaces.

Council rules (e.g. max 2 dogs), restricted-breed orders, animal welfare laws, residential-land-lease community rules, OR a strata by-law about pets — except: a strata by-law that bans ALL pets is invalid and cannot be used to refuse.

The one case where the landlord can refuse without a specific reason. Applies if you have a right to access and use the same home (not just next door or in a separate granny flat).

Damage caused by a pet is not fair wear and tear. Scratches on doors, urine staining in carpet, chewed skirting, dug-up lawn — these are tenant liability and can be deducted from your bond.

Once consent is given, it doesn't expire — even if the landlord or agent changes. But if you move, you need consent at the new place. And consent is for that specific pet; new pets need a new application.

A condition to professionally clean carpets only applies if the pet was kept indoors and the condition was appropriate for the animal and property. Fumigation conditions only apply if the pet was a mammal and was kept indoors. Both apply at end-of-tenancy regardless of whether the carpet looks clean or there's no infestation.

If you're in a strata property, the owners corporation may also need to approve the pet under its by-laws. That's a separate process — apply to both the landlord AND the strata at the same time.

An accredited assistance animal is NOT a pet. You don't need to apply for consent — just notify the landlord. Refusing is generally unlawful disability discrimination, not a tenancy matter. The landlord may ask for accreditation evidence but cannot ask for private medical records.