• 01 About TQI registration — the authority and the standards 3
• 02 The registration categories — provisional, full, ECT, permit to teach 4
• 03 Fees and how to apply — sliding-scale fees and the application 6
• 04 Renewal and professional learning — the annual cycle and 20 hours 7
• 05 Moving from provisional to full — the Professional Guidance Panel 9
• 06 Interstate teachers and mutual recognition — the exemption trap 10
• 07 Working with Vulnerable People (WWVP) — the separate check 11
• 08 Overseas-trained teachers — skills assessment and English 12
• ? Frequently asked questions 13

The ACT Teacher Quality Institute is the sole authority that grants, renews, and cancels teacher registration in the ACT. It operates under the ACT Teacher Quality Institute Act 2010.

Registration is not sector-specific. Whether you teach in an ACT government school, a Catholic school, or an independent school, you need the same TQI registration. There is no separate credential for each sector.

The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) underpin TQI registration. New teachers are assessed at the Graduate career stage, and experienced teachers at the Proficient career stage. The APST is the same national standard used in every state, but TQI, not AITSL, is the body that makes the ACT registration decision.

Source: ACT Teacher Quality Institute, 2026. tqi.act.edu.au

TQI offers a small number of registration categories. The right one depends on your qualifications and how recently you have taught.

Source: TQI Registration, 2026 — tqi.act.edu.au

Provisional registration is for newly qualified teachers, and for experienced teachers who do not have recent experience teaching in a school in Australia or New Zealand. It requires a teaching qualification of at least four years of academic study and meeting the Graduate level of the APST. You can hold provisional registration for a maximum of five years, within which you are expected to progress to full registration.

Full registration is for qualified teachers assessed as meeting the Proficient level of the APST. You also need recent practice: 180 days of teaching at an Australian or New Zealand school in the five-year period before you apply. If you are otherwise eligible but do not meet that currency requirement, TQI may grant provisional registration instead.

A Permit to Teach is a limited, employer-requested approval, not full registration. It covers final-semester or final-year pre-service teachers, or people with specialist knowledge or skills, where an employer needs to fill a gap. Only an employer can request it; pre-service teachers cannot apply directly.

You apply through the TQI online portal: create an account, complete the application, upload colour PDF scans of your documents, and pay the fee. You will need 100 points of identification, your academic transcripts, a statement of teaching service, and your WWVP registration. TQI aims to assess applications within 10 working days, though overseas applications take longer.

The application fee is on a sliding scale depending on when in the school year you apply, because it is pro-rated against the registration year.

If your application is unsuccessful, the fee is refunded. Payment is by credit card, direct debit, or cheque.

Source: TQI Fees & How to Apply, 2026 — tqi.act.edu.au

TQI registration runs on the school year. You renew during Term 1, before 31 March each year, pay the annual fee, keep your contact and employment details current, and confirm your professional learning.

To renew, you must record and reflect on a minimum of 20 hours of professional learning each school year. The 20 hours have a required split:

• at least 5 hours from TQI-accredited programs
• at least 5 hours from teacher-identified activities
• the remaining 10 hours from any combination of the two

The requirement applies to all registered teachers, including those on leave, casual teachers, and teachers not currently working in the ACT. New registrants get a pro-rata reduction depending on when in the year they registered. All learning must be recorded by the end of the school year.

Source: TQI Maintaining Registration & Professional Learning Requirements, 2026.

This catches interstate teachers out, so it is worth being precise. The ACT requires 20 hours every year, logged annually. NSW, by contrast, requires 100 hours per maintenance period, which is five years for full-time teachers and seven years for casual and part-time teachers, with no annual minimum.

The total volume over five years is similar, but the cadence is different: the ACT expects an even 20 hours a year with a mandated accredited/teacher-identified split, while NSW lets you bank hours across a multi-year window.

Provisional teachers have five years from the date of first registration to demonstrate they are working at the Proficient level of the APST.

You are supported through this by a Professional Guidance Panel (PGP) in your school. The panel must include the principal or their delegate, a mentor, and a supervisor, and may include others. The panel's job is to help you build and assess your evidence, then make a recommendation to TQI.

The evidence requirement is specific. You gather 6 to 10 pieces of annotated evidence that, between them, address all 37 descriptors of the APST at the Proficient level. A single piece of evidence can address more than one descriptor. The annotation is the part that matters: each item needs a note explaining which descriptors it demonstrates and why.

The panel reviews your evidence and submits a recommendation report. TQI reviews that report and notifies you of the outcome. On approval, your digital full-registration certificate appears in the TQI portal.

Source: TQI Moving from Provisional to Full, 2026.

If you hold current registration in another Australian state or territory, or in New Zealand with a Practising Certificate, you apply for ACT registration through mutual recognition rather than the full application process.

The process is straightforward:

Once you have notified TQI, the mutual recognition provisions let you carry on teaching while TQI assesses your application and decides whether to register you or postpone the decision. TQI confirms your standing with your home jurisdiction as part of that assessment. Mutual recognition applicants pay the standard application fee; check the current amount on the TQI fees page.

Source: TQI Mutual Recognition, 2026.

TQI registration and WWVP registration are separate requirements, and both are mandatory for teaching in the ACT. WWVP is administered by Access Canberra, not TQI, under the Working with Vulnerable People (Background Checking) Act 2011 (ACT).

You apply for WWVP separately through Access Canberra. Key facts:

• The fee is $157 for paid work; it is free if your registration is for volunteer work only.
• A WWVP registration is valid for five years.

Your TQI registration does not substitute for WWVP, and WWVP does not register you as a teacher. Employers must only employ teachers who hold a current WWVP registration, and are required to notify TQI if a registered teacher's WWVP lapses. If you are new to the ACT, apply for both at the same time.

Source: Access Canberra & TQI Registration, 2026.

If you trained outside Australia or New Zealand, there are two assessments to keep separate.

First, if you are migrating on a skilled visa, you generally need an AITSL skills assessment before you arrive. This is the migration step, not the registration step. It requires at least four years of higher education study, at least 45 days of supervised teaching practice, and an Academic IELTS result of 7.0 in Reading and Writing and 8.0 in Speaking and Listening, taken within the previous 24 months. The AITSL skills assessment supports your visa application; it does not itself register you to teach.

Second, for TQI registration, your overseas qualifications are accepted if TQI assesses them as equivalent under its Teacher Registration Qualifications Policy. TQI also applies an English language requirement: if any part of your four-year qualification was completed outside Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, or Canada, you must provide an Academic IELTS result with band 8 in Speaking and Listening and band 7 in Reading and Writing, taken within the last two years.

Most overseas-trained teachers enter on provisional registration and then work toward full registration through the Professional Guidance Panel process in section 5.

Source: AITSL, 2026 & TQI Qualifications Policy, September 2025.

How much does ACT teacher registration cost?

The TQI application fee depends on when in the school year you apply: $115 from January to June, $90 from July to September, and $65 from October to the end of the school year. Annual renewal is $115. On top of TQI registration you need a Working with Vulnerable People registration through Access Canberra, which costs $157 for paid work and lasts five years.

How many professional learning hours does the ACT require?

The ACT requires 20 hours every school year, with at least 5 hours from TQI-accredited programs and at least 5 from teacher-identified activities. NSW requires 100 hours per maintenance period (five years full-time), with no annual minimum — similar over five years, but the ACT expects an even spread each year.

Can I teach in the ACT with interstate teacher registration?

Not automatically. Teaching is exempt from the national Automatic Deemed Registration scheme until 1 July 2027, so your interstate registration does not carry over by itself. You apply to TQI under mutual recognition: provide evidence of your registration and WWVP, notify TQI before you start, and you can teach while TQI assesses.

How do I move from provisional to full registration with TQI?

You have five years from first registration. A Professional Guidance Panel in your school — the principal or delegate, a mentor, and a supervisor — supports you. You gather 6 to 10 pieces of annotated evidence that together address all 37 descriptors of the APST at the Proficient level. The panel recommends, and TQI makes the final decision.

Do I need a Working with Vulnerable People check to teach in the ACT?

Yes. WWVP registration is mandatory and separate from TQI registration. It is run by Access Canberra, costs $157 for paid work, and is valid for five years. TQI registration does not cover it, so apply for both if you are new to the ACT.

What do overseas-trained teachers need to register in the ACT?

If migrating on a skilled visa, you usually complete an AITSL skills assessment first for the visa. For TQI registration, your qualifications must be assessed as equivalent, and if any training was outside the recognised English-speaking countries you need an Academic IELTS result of band 8 in Speaking and Listening and band 7 in Reading and Writing.

Teacher Passport

Ready to work?

Find ACT teaching jobs across every sector

Government, Catholic, and independent school jobs across the ACT — updated daily from official sources.

Government schools Catholic schools Independent schools All employment types

teacherpassport.com.au/jobs?state=ACT