Shea CullenNSW Registered Architect 9748 · Updated 6 July 2026A foreshore building line is a line on the map beyond which buildings generally cannot be erected, set to protect the amenity of a waterway and its foreshore. It is most relevant to waterfront and near waterfront land. These simple steps show how to check whether a foreshore building line applies to land in NSW on the Planning Portal.
Use the free foreshore building line checker below to see whether a line applies to your address in seconds, or follow the step by step guide to check it yourself on the NSW Planning Portal.
Check your foreshore building line
Type your address to see the foreshore building line the NSW Planning Portal records for your property.
What a foreshore building line means
Where the line applies, new building work is kept landward of it, which can shape where a home or addition can sit on a waterfront block. Knowing this early helps you plan a design that works with the constraint rather than against it.
How to find it
- Open the NSW Planning Portal Spatial Viewer.
- Search for your address.
- Turn on the Foreshore Building Line layer under the planning controls.
- Read whether a line applies across your lot.
If nothing is shown, no foreshore building line is mapped for your property.
More site checks: find your zoning, find your land value and site area, or work through the full site feasibility guide.