bpea.com.au · Body-protected electrical areas, explained · AS/NZS 3003:2018 (including Amendment 1:2019)
AS/NZS 3003 body-protected area quick reference
The numbers, the pre-inspection list and the 12-month test, on two pages. Our own words, not the standard’s; the clause numbers say where to check.
The numbers
| Figure | What it is | Where in AS/NZS 3003:2018 |
|---|---|---|
| 10 mA | The trip rating of every RCD protecting a patient-area outlet or hard-wired patient equipment. Type 1, double-pole (it switches active and neutral), tripping within 40 ms. | Clause 2.8.1 |
| 12 points | The most one RCD may protect. A point is a socket-outlet or a piece of hard-wired equipment, and a double outlet is two points. | Clause 2.8.3(a) |
| 1 room per circuit | Each final sub-circuit, and each RCD, serves one room (with its ensuite) and nothing else. | Clauses 2.4.1.1, 2.8.3(b) |
| 0 RCDs upstream | Nothing backs up the room’s 10 mA RCD: no 30 mA RCD at the switchboard on that circuit. | Clause 2.8.2 |
| 2.0 m | Readily accessible means reachable quickly, without climbing or moving anything, and no higher than 2 m. RCDs and the outlets staff use sit below it; the sign’s top edge sits at it. | Clause 1.5 (definitions); Section 2.6; Clause 2.12.2 |
| 500 mm | The least distance between the room’s RCD and a light switch. | Section 2.6 |
| 1200 mm and 250 mm | An RCD is not mounted under a shelf or structure lower than 1200 mm that projects more than 250 mm from the wall. | Section 2.6 |
| 2.0 to 2.3 m | Outlets in this band are out of reach: still 10 mA protected, with a readily accessible double-pole isolating switch below 2 m. | Clauses 2.4.3.2.2, 2.7.2 |
| Above 2.3 m | Permanently mounted non-medical equipment, an air conditioner for instance, is outside the patient-area rules. | Clause 2.4.3.2.2 (exception) |
| 2 m from the door frame | No standard outlets outside the room within this distance, measured in a straight line: a cleaners’ outlet or a 10 mA protected outlet with its own RCD only. Behind a locked door does not count. | Clause 2.4.3.2.2(b) |
| 15 m | The furthest a cleaners’ outlet can be from the area it serves. | Clause 2.7.3.1 |
| 2.0 kW | New fixed equipment at or above this rating brings the whole patient area up to the current standard. | Clause 6.2.5.2 |
| 10% | If added outlets increase a patient area’s total by more than 10%, every outlet in it gets the current colour coding. | Clause 6.2.4 |
| 12 months | The longest gap between routine inspections and tests. Alterations go ahead only with a test in the previous 12 months. | Section 8; Clause 6.2.3 |
| 1.5 mm, 2.0 mm, 5.0 mm | Minimum lettering heights: 1.5 mm for switchboard and circuit-breaker identification, 2.0 mm for RCD and outlet identification, 5.0 mm for “Cleaning Purposes Only”. | Section 2.12; Clause 2.7.4.3.1(d) |
| 200 × 90 mm | The size the green sign is sold in. The standard sets the symbol and the position; the size comes from the sign makers. | Clause 2.12.2; Section 7 |
| 50 mm | Unprotected supply cables to an RCD concealed within 50 mm of the surface get an earthed metal screen or armour, as the Wiring Rules describe. | Clause 2.4.2; AS/NZS 3000 Clause 3.9.4.4 |
Before you certify or book the inspector
What an inspector or certifier will look at, in the order you’d walk the room.
- The practice’s classification of each room, and the boundaries, in writing before you start. Clause 2.2.1
- Each final sub-circuit serves one room and its ensuite only; no RCD feeds points in two rooms. Clauses 2.4.1.1, 2.8.3(b)
- 10 mA Type 1 double-pole RCDs, no more than 12 points each, none backed up by another RCD. Clauses 2.8.1, 2.8.2, 2.8.3(a)
- RCDs readily accessible and visible: 2 m or lower, not under benches or in cupboards, 500 mm or more from the light switch. Section 2.6, Table 2.1
- RCDs labelled with their switchboard, circuit breaker and number; outlets marked RCD protected and ‘From RCD X’, with no switchboard label on the outlet. Clauses 2.8.5, 2.7.4.1
- Outlet colours right, amber indicators on every mains outlet, cleaners’ outlets beige and marked for cleaning only. Clauses 2.7.4.1, 2.7.4.3
- No standard outlets within 2 m of the door frame, unless behind a locked door: only a cleaners’ outlet, or a 10 mA protected outlet with its own RCD beside it. Clause 2.4.3.2.2(b)
- Any outlet that isn’t readily accessible has a readily accessible double-pole isolator below 2 m. Clause 2.7.2
- USB and other ELV charging outlets RCD protected. Clause 2.4.3.1.2
- Hard-wired patient equipment on 10 mA protection with a white test-only outlet; fixed equipment with an unreachable plug has an isolator. Clauses 2.4.3.3, 2.8.6; Section 2.10
- Cleaners’ circuit dedicated, on its own RCD, outlet within 15 m of the area. Clauses 2.4.1.3, 2.7.3.1
- Green sign fitted inside, top edge at 2 m, ready for the test label. Clause 2.12.2; Section 7
- Earthing to the Wiring Rules. Clause 3.2
- An RCD tester that can do the AS/NZS 3003:2018 tests. Energy Safe Victoria warns that some testers with 0° and 180° switches can’t. Energy Safe Victoria
- Tested to AS/NZS 3000 before energising and to AS/NZS 3003 after, before the room goes into service, with results on the commissioning checklist and statement of conformity. Section 2.13; Appendices B and C
- Every outlet individually switched, with the red on-indication. Clauses 2.7.5, 2.7.4.2
- Lettering heights: 1.5 mm board and breaker IDs, 2.0 mm RCD and outlet IDs, 5.0 mm Cleaning Purposes Only; the word FROM on outlet labels; nothing on a removable surround alone. Section 2.12; Clauses 2.7.4.1, 2.12.1
- Supply cables to the RCDs screened or armoured where concealed within 50 mm of the surface. Clause 2.4.2
- After an alteration: outlets recoloured if the count rose by more than 10%, and the alteration label fitted under the test label. Clauses 6.2.4, 6.4
- Statement of Conformity completed and a copy left with the practice. Appendix C
What the 12-month routine test covers
- A look at every outlet, RCD, isolator and the sign: damage, the right colours, indicators working, no more than 12 points on an RCD.
- Labels still true: each outlet names its RCD, each RCD names its circuit breaker and switchboard, the cleaners’ outlet is marked for cleaning only.
- Every outlet works and is individually switched; polarity correct.
- Earth continuity measured on every outlet and on fixed equipment in the area.
- Every 10 mA RCD tripped with a tester that can do the AS/NZS 3003 tests: trip current and trip time within limits, both poles opening, the test button and indicator working.
- Where an isolated supply with a line isolation monitor is fitted (rare outside hospitals), the monitor and its alarm.
- Faults and observations recorded; anything failed fixed before the room is used again.
- A new test label on the sign, dated and signed, the report to the practice, the classification record updated.
Content as at 14 October 2026; sources checked 12 October 2026. Checked by a Victorian registered electrical contractor. Information, not advice: confirm with your electrician and your regulator. The full rules, with the diagrams, are at bpea.com.au/rules.