The 2025 Standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) came into effect on 1 July 2025.
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The 2025 Standards represent all Governments’ shared ambition to lift quality and integrity across the VET sector, through enabling a more flexible, robust, and quality-driven approach to regulation. The 2025 Standards were informed by an extensive program of sector consultation on revisions to the Standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) 2015.
For more than four years, the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) worked with the states and territories, VET regulators, and sector peak bodies, to revise the 2015 Standards, through strengthening the focus on quality outcomes for learners and employers, providing greater clarity, and allowing for more flexibility and innovation in training delivery.
The 2025 Standards for RTOs have been designed to reflect the diversity of the VET sector and ensure requirements are fit-for-purpose across different RTO settings. This will help ensure the 2025 Standards clearly articulate characteristics required of RTOs to foster high-quality delivery for all users of the VET system.
The 2025 Standards provide a clear and direct link between the requirements RTOs are expected to meet and the outcomes they are expected to deliver.
Structure of the Standards
The 2025 Standards for RTOs comprises three elements:
- the Outcome Standards (legislation)
- the Compliance Standards (legislation), including the Fit and Proper Person Requirements and NRT Logo Conditions of Use Policy, and
- the Credential Policy (TGA).
This approach reflects feedback from the sector that the mix of quality-oriented and compliance-focused requirements in the previous 2015 Standards caused an undue focus on prescriptive compliance at the expense of good organisational practises that deliver quality outcomes for learners and employers, and that the 2015 Standards were complex and difficult to navigate.
Further, the 2025 Standards build on the early changes to the 2015 Standards that came into effect on 1 March 2024, to alleviate VET workforce pressures and provide more immediate benefits to the sector.
Policy Guidance for providers, trainers and assessors
Policy Guidance is available to support training providers, trainers and assessors to understand the intent of changes to the 2025 Standards for RTOs Outcome Standards.
The policy guidance describes the policy intent of the Outcome Standards to support a consistent understanding and application of these among training providers.
Separately, an overview of the Credential Policy and Compliance Standards is also available.
The 2025 Standards for RTOs can be found in an accessible, policy document format at the links below:
- Policy Document – Outcome Standards
- Policy Document – Compliance Standards
- Policy Document – Credential Policy.
It is important to note the policy documents do not impose legal obligations.
ASQA regulated RTOs must meet and will be regulated against the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator (Outcome Standards for Registered Training Organisations) Instrument 2025 and the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator (Compliance Standards for NVR Registered Training Organisations and Fit and Proper Person Requirements) Instrument 2025 available on the Federal Register of Legislation, and Credential Policy available on the National Training Register (TGA).
The policy documents provide the 2025 Standards in a more accessible format.
Guidance from VET Regulators
The Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) has developed Practice Guides to support providers’ understanding of ASQA’s regulatory expectations against the 2025 Standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs). Practice Guides and further information on the 2025 Standards can be found on the ASQA website.
Requirements for RTOs regulated by TAC WA are set out in the WA Vocational Education and Training Act 1996 and the Vocational Education and Training (General) Regulations 2009. For more information, please visit the TAC online guidance hub.
Requirements for RTOs regulated by VRQA are set out in the Victorian Education and Training Reform Act 2006. Subsection 4.3.17(2) of this Act requires RTOs to meet the Victorian RTO Standards, which include the AQTF 2010 Essential Conditions and Standards for Initial Registration and the AQTF 2010 Essential Conditions and Standards for Continuing Registration and the VRQA VET Provider Guidelines.
Policy Guidance Videos
Coming soon.