Media release

Permits to burn closure - Top End

Fire and Rescue

The final day for issuing ‘Permits to Burn’ to landholders will be Friday 28 April 2023.

This applies to the below areas within the Northern Territory Fire and Rescue Service (NTFRS) Emergency Response Area (ERA).

  • Litchfield Municipality
  • Batchelor
  • Adelaide River
  • Pine Creek
  • Katherine
  • Mataranka
  • Borroloola
  • Timber Creek
  • Yirrakla
  • Nhulunbuy

All permits to burn within the listed ERAs will expire no later than 8:00am on Tuesday 2 May 2023.

By law, it is an offence to:

  • Not comply with a hazard reduction notice to eliminate or reduce a hazard
  • Light a fire in the open air without a permit unless for the purpose of meal preparation or personal comfort (warmth/living rough)
  • Light any fire in the open on a fire ban day
  • Not try to extinguish an unlawful fire
  • Not report an unlawful fire

People caught lighting fires illegally will be fined more than $600 under the Fire and Emergency Act 2016:

  • Light fire without a permit ($620 + $40 Victims Levy)
  • Fail attempt extinguish unlawful fire  ($620)
  • Fail to report unlawful fire ($620)

Additional information is available from your local NTFRS Station, or by visiting https://pfes.nt.gov.au/permitstoburn

Back to newsroom

Explore more featured news