The ABCB is a joint initiative of the Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments, and applies Australia-wide. The current version of the NCC was issued in 2025 and came into force in May 2026.

The NCC is published in three volumes plus a Housing Provisions (Deemed to Satisfy) Manual. The information below is drawn from Volume 2 and the Housing Provisions Manual, and is also applicable to Volume 1.

Wire balustrade regulations in Australia have remained essentially unchanged since 2005. Understanding them before you start will help ensure your balustrade complies.

The handrail must be a minimum of 1000mm from the deck or landing surface to the top of the handrail. The most common handrail thickness is 40mm, which puts the underside of the handrail at 960mm.

Almost all wire balustrades in Australia use 3.2mm wire rope (listed as 3.0mm in the NCC regulations). The regulations allow either 1x19 or 7x7 construction at this diameter.

In our experience, a maximum wire spacing of 80mm with 1200–1500mm between support posts works best for satisfying NCC regulations.

A typical setup — 1000mm handrail (960mm to the underside), 80mm wire spacing and post spacing up to 1500mm — will have 11 runs of wire.

The NCC specifies tension based on your wire spacing and the distance between posts — see Table 11.3.6a below. Requirements are given for 60mm, 80mm and 100mm wire spacing, at post spacings between 600mm and 2500mm. Tension can be measured using a tension gauge.

Alternatively, the NCC provides a deflection table specifying how much deflection is permitted per wire when a 2kg mass is suspended at mid-span — see Table 11.3.6b. All deflection measurements are in millimetres.

Vertical wires can be used at any deck or landing height, and must be used where the height exceeds 4 metres. The NCC allows two methods of construction.

Individually tensioned wires between rails. Tension must comply with Table 11.3.6a, or maximum deflection must comply with Table 11.3.6b.

Wires must be a maximum of 2.5mm in 7x7 or 7x19 construction. Maximum space between rails is 900mm, with tension requirements specified for 80mm, 100mm and 110mm wire spacing in accordance with Table 11.3.6c below.

Continuous wires must pass around a pulley block at each change of direction at the support rails, and the pulley block must not cause permanent deformation to the wire. Vertical wires require two pulley blocks per 180-degree change in direction; near-vertical wires may only require one.