Maintaining your teacher registration - what it means for you

The Queensland College of Teachers acknowledges and appreciates the significant contributions of all teachers. If you are teaching in a Queensland school or supervising or assessing the work of a teacher or preservice teacher in a Queensland school, you need to maintain your registration. Many teachers choose to maintain their registration even if they are not currently teaching, have retired or are working in another sector.

Here are some reasons to maintain your registration.

Reasons to stay registered

If you are on an extended period of leave from a school, but still employed there, you should check with your employer before allowing your registration to end.

Your leave arrangements may require you to hold registration. Remember, you can renew even if you are not teaching.

Returning to the register requires more than payment of an annual fee. If you reapply for registration in the future there will be application fees involved.

For teachers with full registration, annual fees for three years are less expensive than reapplying.

If you allow your registration to end, a full application process will be required to gain registration again.
You may have to supply additional documentation and you will not be able to teach until granted registration.

For most teachers with full registration, maintenance requires only a streamlined renewal process, which can take five minutes every five years.

Requirements for registration change over time. For example, until the 1990s, some teachers met qualification requirements with less than four years of higher education.

If you are in this category and allow your registration to end, then later decide to reapply, you may not meet current requirements for registration.

You may not be able to gain registration again without additional studies.

You may hold an exemption card because you are a registered teacher. This allows you to work in regulated child-related services without requiring a blue card, for example:

  • working in an early childhood service
  • private tutoring
  • volunteering at a local children's sport club.

Allowing your registration to end would invalidate your exemption card and you would need to apply for a blue card.

You may require registration for roles other than teaching in schools, for example:

  • NAPLAN marking
  • supervising student teachers undertaking professional experience.

The following table provides important information regarding the requirements for maintaining or surrendering your registration with the Queensland College of Teachers.

Maintaining full
registration
Maintaining provisional registration
 
Surrendering (whether temporarily or permanently)
  • All usual registration obligations
  • Pay annual fees when they are due
  • Complete 20 hours of CPD in each calendar year in which you teach 20+ days in an Australian school (otherwise no minimum CPD hours)
  • Need to apply online for renewal every five years, which you can do even if you are not teaching
  • No obligation to teach or to reside in Queensland or Australia
  • All usual registration obligations
  • Pay annual fees when they are due
  • No minimum annual CPD required
  • Need to reapply at the end of four years if you have not moved to full registration
  • No obligation to teach or to reside in Queensland or Australia
  • Read all of the information on this page so that you understand the implications
  • Email here with your name, date of birth, registration number, and nominated surrender date
  • Once the QCT confirms you are no longer registered, you will not be able to teach in any state or non-state school in Queensland
  • Before you can be registered in Queensland again, you will need to reapply and wait for the QCT to assess your eligibility against requirements current at that time
$100.70 annually*
$100.70 annually
(plus up to $312.17 to reapply at the end of four years)*
Up to $312.17 to reapply*
Maintaining full registration
  • All usual registration obligations
  • Pay annual fees when they are due
  • Complete 20 hours of CPD in each calendar year in which you teach 20+ days in an Australian school (otherwise no minimum CPD hours)
  • Need to apply online for renewal every five years, which you can do even if you are not teaching
  • No obligation to teach or to reside in Queensland or Australia
$100.70 annually*
Maintaining provisional registration
  • All usual registration obligations
  • Pay annual fees when they are due
  • No minimum annual CPD required
  • Need to reapply at the end of four years if you have not moved to full registration
  • No obligation to teach or to reside in Queensland or Australia
$100.70 annually
(plus up to $312.17 to reapply at the end of four years)*
 
Surrendering (whether temporarily or permanently)
  • Read all of the information on this page so that you understand the implications
  • Email here with your name, date of birth, registration number, and nominated surrender date
  • Once the QCT confirms you are no longer registered, you will not be able to teach in any state or non-state school in Queensland
  • Before you can be registered in Queensland again, you will need to reapply and wait for the QCT to assess your eligibility against requirements current at that time
Up to $312.17 to reapply*

*Fees as at 5/2/2025, subject to annual adjustment

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