Surrendering or maintaining approval to teach

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.