Licensing & Certification
Trade Licensing in Australia: A State-by-State Guide
VeriTradie Team 29 August 2026 4 min read
Every Australian state and territory regulates trade licensing separately, and there's no single national licence. A tradesperson licensed in one state generally needs to apply (sometimes via mutual recognition, sometimes from scratch) before legally working in another.
Who regulates what, by state
- NSW — NSW Fair Trading (electrical, plumbing, building, gasfitting)
- VIC — Victorian Building Authority, VBA (building practitioners, plumbing)
- QLD — Queensland Building and Construction Commission, QBCC (building, most trades)
- WA — Building and Energy WA, part of DMIRS (building, electrical, plumbing, gasfitting)
- SA — Consumer and Business Services, CBS SA (building, electrical, plumbing)
- TAS — Consumer, Building and Occupational Services, CBOS (building, electrical, plumbing)
- NT — NT Build and the Electrical Workers and Contractors Board (building, electrical)
- ACT — Access Canberra (building, electrical, plumbing)
Fees, renewal cycles and continuing professional development (CPD) requirements change regularly and vary by licence class, so always check the current figures on your state regulator's own site rather than relying on a number you saw somewhere else — including this one.
Moving states for work?
Check mutual recognition rules before you assume your existing licence transfers automatically — some trades and licence classes carry across more easily than others.