Compliance Requirements Guidance

The Revised Standards for Registered Training Organisations are made up of:

• Outcome Standards
• Compliance Requirements (this document)
• Credential Policy

All RTOs are required to comply with this policy, in addition to the  Outcome Standards and the Credential Policy.

Overview of changes

The draft Credential Policy and Compliance Requirements largely reflect requirements drawn from the current Standards for RTOs. Where changes are proposed to existing requirements, these are outlined below. 

The draft Compliance Requirements set out the conditions that all RTOs must meet to obtain or maintain registration. The content of the Compliance Requirements reflects administrative and process-driven requirements drawn from the current Standards, with amendments to make requirements easier to navigate, and some changes to better support integrity. There will be two Schedules attached to the Compliance Requirements instrument to incorporate the Nationally Recognised Training (NRT) Logo Conditions of Use Policy, and the Fit and Proper Person Requirements (FPPRs). Please note these draft Schedules contain no changes to the current FPPRs, and minimal changes to streamline the NRT Logo Conditions of Use Policy as outlined below.

Key changes to administrative requirements for RTOs include:

• Broadening concepts in the current Standards into a general requirement to ensure secure maintenance of learners’ personal information, to highlight the importance of this.
• Including a requirement around retention of learner assessment items previously enshrined in guidance, and extending the retention period to at least two years following the learner’s completion of the training product to ensure evidence is available to support regulatory activities.
• Reducing the retention period for records of AQF certification documentation issued from 30 years to seven years if a student completes a training product on or after 1 January 2015, to address concerns around data custodianship and align more closely with other sectors.
• Where a training product is superseded, replacing the set timeframe for transitioning or teaching out existing learners with a requirement that this be undertaken in a timely manner, while retaining the one-year timeframe to cease enrolment of new learners. This is designed to minimise disruption for existing learners and reduce administrative burden on RTOs while ensuring speed-to-market by retaining the time limit for enrolling new learners and reducing the number of requests for extensions to the transition period. Jobs and Skills Councils (JSCs) would retain the ability to recommend adjustments to VET regulators by exception based on stakeholder consultation, for example to recommend set end-date for delivery of a particular training product to existing learners where required to address safety risks or licensing implications.
• Simplifying requirements around the submission of the annual declaration on compliance.
• Clarifying requirements for notifying the VET Regulator of material changes, and reducing the timeframe from 90 days to 10 business days to strengthen integrity.
• Clarifying requirements around third party arrangements, by providing a more detailed definition and further detail about what must be included in written agreements with third parties, drawing on regulatory guidance and related frameworks to support greater clarity and consistency.
• Removing requirements that duplicate requirements in the National VET Regulator Act 2011 to reduce regulatory burden.
• Streamlining prepaid fee protection requirements to support navigation and clarity.

Structure

The Compliance Requirements are made up of 21 Requirements split into 3 areas and 2 Schedules:

More information on each requirements is available below: