The AS/NZS upholstery flammability standards are voluntary. There is no mandatory domestic requirement in either country.
Written by a British upholsterer. This is informational guidance rather than legal advice, and I work in England. Every statement is sourced and the sources are listed at the foot of the page — check them, and where a job carries real risk get the requirement confirmed in writing by whoever is responsible for the premises.
Domestic work
AS/NZS 4088.1 — a voluntary standard
Nothing compels you to meet it
AS/NZS 4088.1 sets ignitability requirements for covering and filling materials in domestic furniture, and AS/NZS 3744 provides the test methods — 3744.1 for a smouldering cigarette, 3744.2 for match flame equivalent. Neither is mandatory for domestic upholstered furniture in Australia or New Zealand.
Australian Consumer Law still applies
Goods must be of acceptable quality and safe. Mandatory product safety standards do exist for various children’s furniture. There is simply no mandatory flammability standard for ordinary domestic upholstery.
Which makes it a professional judgement
With no legal floor, the standard you work to is the one you choose. Specifying materials tested to AS/NZS 4088.1 costs little, and it is what you would want to be able to point at if a piece you built were ever involved in a fire.
Tell the customer what you have done
Where there is no legal requirement, a written record of the materials and their test evidence is worth more, not less. It is the only thing that distinguishes a considered specification from an accident.
Commercial and contract work
Building codes and the specifier, not furniture law
Comes from the National Construction Code
Fire requirements for public buildings in Australia flow from the NCC and the relevant state fire authority, not from an upholstery standard.
AS/NZS 3744.2 is the usual match test
Where a specification calls for open-flame performance, AS/NZS 3744.2 (match flame equivalent) is the local equivalent of BS EN 1021-2. Contract fabrics sold in Australia are commonly tested to it.
British standards turn up in specifications
Because much contract fabric is imported, BS 7176 and crib 5 appear in Australian and New Zealand specifications more often than you might expect. If a specifier asks for crib 5, they mean the British test.
Get it in writing
Same rule as everywhere: the requirement belongs to the building. Ask the person responsible for it, and record the answer.
Sources.
- AS/NZS 4088.1 — Upholstery materials for domestic furniture: smouldering ignitability
- AS/NZS 3744 series — Assessment of the ignitability of upholstered furniture
- Product safety — Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
Last checked 2026-08-02. Fire rules change — verify before you rely on this.