ACMA Access areas API

openapi: 3.2.0
info:
  title: ACMA Spectrum Licensing Access areas API
  version: '1.0'
  summary: Public, anonymous read access to the Australian Communications and Media Authority's Register of Radiocommunications Licences.
  description: The ACMA Spectrum Licensing API is an application programming interface which allows members of the public to query the ACMA's spectrum licensing data.
  contact:
    name: ACMA
    email: info@acma.gov.au
    url: https://www.acma.gov.au/contact-us
  license:
    name: Licence to use the Register of Radiocommunications Licences
    url: https://www.acma.gov.au/radiocomms-licence-data#terms-and-conditions
  termsOfService: https://www.acma.gov.au/radiocomms-licence-data#terms-and-conditions
  x-source: https://www.acma.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-11/Spectrum%20licensing%20API.docx
  x-wsdl: https://api.acma.gov.au/SpectrumLicensingAPIOuterService/OuterService.svc?wsdl
  x-generated-by: API Evangelist enrichment pipeline
  x-generated-on: '2026-07-25'
servers:
- url: https://api.acma.gov.au/SpectrumLicensingAPIOuterService/OuterService.svc
  description: Production REST endpoint (HTTPS). The guide publishes the same path over HTTP; HTTPS is live and verified.
security: []
tags:
- name: Access areas
  description: Spectrum licence access areas.
paths:
  /AccessAreaXML/{areaCode}:
    get:
      operationId: showAccessAreaSearchXML
      summary: Look up a spectrum access area (XML)
      description: 'Returns the area details for the specified access area, e.g. the Australian Capital Territory.


        A single query returns at most 2,000 records; page with the offset parameter to retrieve more. For the whole dataset, ACMA publishes a same-day full RRL extract as a zip download rather than serving it through this API.'
      tags:
      - Access areas
      parameters:
      - name: areaCode
        in: path
        required: true
        description: The code for the area (1 through 18).
        schema:
          type: integer
      - $ref: '#/components/parameters/strOffset'
      - $ref: '#/components/parameters/strLimit'
      - name: sortBy
        in: query
        required: false
        description: The field to sort the results by.
        schema:
          type: string
          enum:
          - area_code
          - area_name
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Matching records. The service returns HTTP 200 with an empty result array when nothing matches.
          content:
            application/xml:
              schema:
                type: string
                description: An XElement document. The element structure mirrors the JSON envelope of the matching *JSON operation; the XML Schema for the SOAP projection of this service is published at https://api.acma.gov.au/SpectrumLicensingAPIOuterService/OuterService.svc?xsd=xsd0 and harvested to wsdl/acma-spectrum-licensing-xsd0.xsd.
        '400':
          description: Malformed request - an unparseable URI template, or a parameter value the WCF service cannot bind (for example a non-numeric offset).
          content:
            text/html:
              schema:
                type: string
        '404':
          description: Unknown web method - the leading path segment does not match a published operation name.
          content:
            text/html:
              schema:
                type: string
        '500':
          description: Service fault. The WCF endpoint returns an HTML fault page rather than a structured error body; there is no RFC 9457 problem+json envelope.
          content:
            text/html:
              schema:
                type: string
      x-evidence:
        documented_in: https://www.acma.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-11/Spectrum%20licensing%20API.docx
        verified_live: https://api.acma.gov.au/SpectrumLicensingAPIOuterService/OuterService.svc/AccessAreaXML/18
        verified_on: '2026-07-25'
        verified_status: 200
  /AccessAreaJSON/{areaCode}:
    get:
      operationId: showAccessAreaSearchJSON
      summary: Look up a spectrum access area (JSON)
      description: 'Returns the area details for the specified access area, e.g. the Australian Capital Territory.


        A single query returns at most 2,000 records; page with the offset parameter to retrieve more. For the whole dataset, ACMA publishes a same-day full RRL extract as a zip download rather than serving it through this API.'
      tags:
      - Access areas
      parameters:
      - name: areaCode
        in: path
        required: true
        description: The code for the area (1 through 18).
        schema:
          type: integer
      - $ref: '#/components/parameters/strOffset'
      - $ref: '#/components/parameters/strLimit'
      - name: sortBy
        in: query
        required: false
        description: The field to sort the results by.
        schema:
          type: string
          enum:
          - area_code
          - area_name
      - $ref: '#/components/parameters/isJSONP'
      - $ref: '#/components/parameters/jsonpCallback'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Matching records. The service returns HTTP 200 with an empty result array when nothing matches.
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/AccessAreaResponse'
              examples:
                live:
                  summary: Live response captured 2026-07-25 from https://api.acma.gov.au/SpectrumLicensingAPIOuterService/OuterService.svc/AccessAreaJSON/18
                  value:
                    Access Areas:
                    - AREA_CODE: '18'
                      AREA_NAME: Australian Capital Territory
                      AREA_CATEGORY_VALUE: Low Density Area
        '400':
          description: Malformed request - an unparseable URI template, or a parameter value the WCF service cannot bind (for example a non-numeric offset).
          content:
            text/html:
              schema:
                type: string
        '404':
          description: Unknown web method - the leading path segment does not match a published operation name.
          content:
            text/html:
              schema:
                type: string
        '500':
          description: Service fault. The WCF endpoint returns an HTML fault page rather than a structured error body; there is no RFC 9457 problem+json envelope.
          content:
            text/html:
              schema:
                type: string
      x-evidence:
        documented_in: https://www.acma.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-11/Spectrum%20licensing%20API.docx
        verified_live: https://api.acma.gov.au/SpectrumLicensingAPIOuterService/OuterService.svc/AccessAreaJSON/18
        verified_on: '2026-07-25'
        verified_status: 200
components:
  parameters:
    strOffset:
      name: strOffset
      in: query
      required: false
      description: The number of records to skip over.
      schema:
        type: integer
        minimum: 0
    jsonpCallback:
      name: jsonpCallback
      in: query
      required: false
      description: The callback function name to wrap the response in for JSONP.
      schema:
        type: string
    strLimit:
      name: strLimit
      in: query
      required: false
      description: The number of records to return after the offset. The service caps any single query at 2,000 records.
      schema:
        type: integer
        minimum: 1
        maximum: 2000
    isJSONP:
      name: isJSONP
      in: query
      required: false
      description: true or false, depending on whether JSONP is used.
      schema:
        type: boolean
  schemas:
    AccessArea:
      type: object
      title: AccessArea
      description: A spectrum licence access area (state/territory or density area).
      properties:
        AREA_CODE:
          type:
          - string
          - 'null'
        AREA_NAME:
          type:
          - string
          - 'null'
        AREA_CATEGORY_VALUE:
          type:
          - string
          - 'null'
    AccessAreaResponse:
      type: object
      title: AccessAreaResponse
      description: Access area details.
      properties:
        Access Areas:
          type: array
          items:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/AccessArea'
externalDocs:
  description: ACMA Spectrum Licensing API guide (DOCX, v1.0, 17/06/2016)
  url: https://www.acma.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-11/Spectrum%20licensing%20API.docx