For employers

1. Is a teacher eligible to teach regardless of the category of registration they hold?

The Teacher Register Information Professional (TRIP) is a secure online register where employers can validate a teacher’s registration.   If you are the employer or the Principal and need to access the Teacher Register Information (Professional) for the first time, please refer to Teacher Register Information (Professional) information available on the TRBWA website, under ‘Schools and Employers’.

You can request to sight a teacher's photographic identification document (e.g. Passport or driver’s licence) and confirm the teacher is currently registered in a category that enables them to teach, through the Teacher Register Information (Professional) or by checking the online public Register of Teachers.

The information on TRIP and the Register of Teachers is updated in real time and may be used to verify the registration status of all teachers in an educational institution at any time.

For educational institutions other than schools:  You can request to sight a teacher's photographic identification document (e.g. Passport or driver’s licence) and grant of registration or renewal of registration letter.  You can confirm the teacher is currently registered by checking the online public Register of Teachers. 

The information on the Register of Teachers is updated in real time and may be used to verify the registration status of all teachers in an educational institution at any time.

If you are uncertain if a teacher is currently registered and would like to check, please contact the TRBWA directly through info@trb.education.wa.edu.au or on (08) 9223 9100 or country callers 1300 652 911.

3. How do I check the expiry date of a teacher's registration?

This information is only available through the Teacher Register Information (Professional). The registration expiry date is not available on the online public Register of Teachers.  If you are the employer or the Principal and need to access the Teacher Register Information (Professional) for the first time, refer to Teacher Register Information (Professional) information available on the TRBWA website, under ‘Schools and Employers’.

4. Who needs to be registered in WA?

The Teacher Registration Act 2012  gives the following definition:

Teach means to undertake duties at an educational institution that include any of the following:

• the delivery of an educational program and the assessment of student participation in an educational program; 
• leading the delivery and assessment of any such educational program, including managing others undertaking the delivery and assessment.

Visit the TRBWA website for further information on who needs to be registered.

5. Who doesn't need to be registered in WA?

• a teacher's aide or an education assistant, or a student teacher on practicum placement
• a person employed or engaged to provide care at a child-care centre but who is not employed or engaged to undertake the delivery, assessment or leadership of an educational program at the service
• an unpaid volunteer, unless the volunteer is undertaking duties of a kind, or to an extent, prescribed for the purposes of this paragraph

Visit the TRBWA website for further information on who doesn't need to be registered.

6. What should I do if I suspect a teacher is unregistered?

If a person's details do not appear on the public online Register of Teachers or the Teacher Register Information (Professional), they may not be entitled to teach in Western Australia.

Please be aware, it is an offence under section 7 of the Teacher Registration Act 2012 to appoint, employ, engage or give permission to another person to teach in an educational institution unless the other person is a registered teacher, holding Full, Provisional (Graduate Teacher or Returning Teacher), or Limited Registration. 

Should it be believed that an individual may be teaching in contravention of the Act, please contact the Investigation and Compliance Branch of the Teacher Registration Board of Western Australia on  (08) 9223 9101 or email icb@trb.education.wa.edu.au.

7. What are my responsibilities in the Limited Registration application process?

Under the Teacher Registration Act 2012, the employer or the employer's delegate (the person, usually a school principal, who is authorised to engage teaching staff) is responsible for making the application for Limited Registration and paying the applicable registration fee. Current application fees can be found in the Schedule of Fees. 

As part of the application process, the nominee is required to give consent for the TRBWA to undertake a national criminal history check on their behalf.  For a criminal history check to be completed, the TRBWA or authorised third party, is first required to verify the identity of the nominee. For Limited Registration applications, the employer is authorised to verify the identity of the nominee. The employer must compare the original photo identity documents, provided as part of the application process, with a face-to-face comparison of the nominee and then complete a declaration to confirm that they are satisfied as to the correctness of the nominee’s identity. This declaration is contained within the application for Limited Registration.

Further information on applying for Limited Registration is set out in the Limited Registration section of the TRBWA website.

8. Can a Limited Registration application be submitted if the teacher already holds Limited Registration at another educational institution? 

Yes, Limited Registration can be held for multiple institutions.  Current application fees can be found in the Schedule of Fees, however if the application by the subsequent institution is made within 12 months of the first application for Limited Registration for that teacher, there will be no fee applicable.