Trade licensing by state and territory
There is no national trade licence in Australia. Eight jurisdictions run their own regulators and their own registers, and the answer to “who do I check this with” genuinely differs depending on where the work is happening.
Most published advice on this quietly assumes New South Wales or Victoria. These pages name the actual body for each area of work in each jurisdiction, and link the register you search. They do not restate the dollar thresholds at which a builder’s licence becomes mandatory, because those change and a stale figure here would be worse than none.
- NSWNew South WalesNSW Fair Trading licenses building, electrical and plumbing work, and you can check any licence free on the NSW public register before you sign anything.4 regulators listed · 8 sources
- VICVictoriaVictoria's building and plumbing regulator is the Building and Plumbing Commission, which replaced the Victorian Building Authority on 1 July 2025. Electrical licensing sits separately with Energy Safe Victoria.4 regulators listed · 8 sources
- QLDQueenslandThe Queensland Building and Construction Commission licenses building, plumbing and drainage work, runs a free licence search, and handles building disputes.4 regulators listed · 7 sources
- WAWestern AustraliaBuilding and Energy, part of the WA Government, licenses builders, electricians, plumbers and gasfitters, and runs the licence searches for all of them.4 regulators listed · 7 sources
- SASouth AustraliaConsumer and Business Services licenses builders and tradespeople in South Australia, with plumbing, gas fitting and electrical handled under specific PGE licence classes, and runs a free public register.4 regulators listed · 7 sources
- TASTasmaniaConsumer, Building and Occupational Services licenses builders, electricians, plumbers and gasfitters in Tasmania under the Building Act 2016 and the Occupational Licensing Act 2005.4 regulators listed · 7 sources
- ACTAustralian Capital TerritoryAccess Canberra licenses builders, electricians, plumbers, gasfitters and drainers under one Act, and its public registers show licence status plus any disciplinary action.4 regulators listed · 7 sources
- NTNorthern TerritoryThe Northern Territory splits licensing across separate bodies: the Building Practitioners Board for builders, the Plumbers and Drainers Licensing Board for plumbing, and NT WorkSafe for electrical work.4 regulators listed · 7 sources
The two national checks
Two credentials do not vary by state, which makes them the easiest things a homeowner can verify from anywhere in Australia. An ARCtick refrigerant handling licence is required for air conditioning work, and accreditation with Solar Accreditation Australia is required for a solar system to earn the federal certificates that fund its discount.