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Product Name: RSA Sydney | RSA Course | RSA Certificate - Complete Hospitality Training
Fulfillment Type: online
Category: Education & Training > Professional Certifications & Courses

RSA in New South Wales: The Competency Card, the Approved Provider Rule, and the Fines

We answer one question directly here, because getting it wrong costs money and can stop you working: does a nationally recognised RSA Statement of Attainment let you serve alcohol in New South Wales?

Next step: check your NSW pathway

Before you pay for training, use the official NSW RSA recognition and bridging rules to confirm whether you need the full approved course, bridging, or can work temporarily with approved interstate evidence. Check your residence, role and certificate date.

NSW permits eligible temporary interstate workers to use approved interstate RSA certification if they remain resident outside NSW, can produce the required evidence and understand NSW liquor obligations. Permanent movers and people performing security or RSA marshal duties must meet NSW training and competency-card requirements; eligible holders can use bridging instead of the full NSW RSA course. Bridging eligibility requires certification within five years for QLD, WA, SA or TAS, or a national Statement of Attainment or RSA refresher within three years for VIC, ACT or NT. See the NSW recognition and bridging rules.

The short answers

Does a Complete Hospitality Training RSA certificate satisfy NSW requirements?	It depends on your residence, role and certificate age. Eligible temporary interstate workers may use approved interstate RSA; other workers must meet NSW training and competency-card requirements, using bridging where eligible.
Will it produce a NSW competency card?	Not directly. With a recent interstate certificate you may qualify for the NSW bridging course instead of the full course.
Is Complete Hospitality Training an approved NSW provider?	No. CHT, RTO 3722, is not on the Liquor & Gaming NSW approved training provider list.
Is CHT approved anywhere?	Yes, in Victoria. We appear on Liquor Control Victoria's in-person approved RSA course provider list. That approval is Victorian and does nothing in NSW.
What do I need to work in a licensed venue in NSW?	RSA training from a Liquor & Gaming NSW Approved Training Provider, then a competency card issued through Service NSW.
Do I need an interim certificate before I enrol?	No — that is backwards. The interim certificate is issued by an approved provider after you complete their training.
Do I need SITHFAB021 before I enrol?	No. The approved course delivers it. It is an outcome, not an entry requirement.
I am becoming a licensee or approved manager. Same route?	No. An interstate holder moving into those roles does Licensee Training rather than the bridging course.
Where is our certificate accepted directly?	Queensland, Western Australia, the Northern Territory, the ACT, and Tasmania for serving staff — plus Victoria, where we are an approved provider and a second Learning Hub stage then applies. See the table below.

Why New South Wales is different

Most Australian jurisdictions recognise the national unit SITHFAB021 Provide responsible service of alcohol and accept a Statement of Attainment from any registered training organisation with that unit on scope.

New South Wales does not work that way. NSW operates its own Approved Training Provider (ATP) scheme administered by Liquor & Gaming NSW. Only an ATP can deliver RSA training that counts in NSW, and only an ATP can issue the interim certificate that leads to a competency card.

The underlying distinction is worth understanding, because it tells you what question to ask about any state. Some jurisdictions regulate the credential: they name the national unit and accept it from any RTO holding it on scope. Queensland and Western Australia work this way, which is why neither maintains a provider register. Others regulate the provider: New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia maintain approved-provider lists and recognise only training delivered by an organisation on them.

An RSA Statement of Attainment is a national training record, but permission to serve alcohol depends on the destination’s rules. NSW permits eligible temporary interstate workers; permanent movers and security or RSA marshal roles must meet NSW training and competency-card requirements, using bridging where eligible. Victoria offers bridging to eligible interstate holders. SA applies approved-provider rules to training from 1 November 2020, with earlier training not required to be repeated solely for that change. QLD and WA require suitable national RSA evidence. Tasmania distinguishes staff from licence holders; the ACT and NT have local currency and refresher requirements. Check the regulator before your first shift. See RSA recognition by jurisdiction, NSW’s rules and SA’s rules.

There is a second reason NSW is different, and it is about content rather than paperwork. The national unit alone is not sufficient in NSW. An approved course must also cover NSW-specific material:

NSW liquor laws and responsible alcohol service
managing intoxication — helping customers drink responsibly, assessing intoxication, and refusing service
preventing underage drinking, checking ID, and preventing secondary supply
harm minimisation strategies
compliance and enforcement

So a nationally recognised Statement of Attainment from a provider without NSW approval is a genuine training credential that is missing a genuine component — it is not merely an administrative mismatch.

Victoria does the same thing for its own jurisdiction: the approved Victorian course carries SITHFAB021 plus Victorian liquor laws, drink spiking, ID checks and preventing secondary supply, the use of prone restraint, harm minimisation, and compliance and enforcement. Both states add local content to the national unit; only NSW then issues a card.

What being an Approved Training Provider actually involves

Worth setting out, because it explains why the list is short and why a provider cannot simply declare itself approved. ATP approval in New South Wales is applied for through the ATP portal and is granted at three separate levels, each with its own form:

Form	What it approves
CC0600	The provider itself, with a fee
CC5000	Each course the provider wants to deliver
CC0200	Each trainer who will deliver it

Approval also carries Conditions of Approval and L&GNSW's advertising guidelines for approved courses, which is why claims about NSW approval are worth reading carefully rather than skimming.

Two consequences follow for a student. First, approval is per course and per trainer, not a blanket organisational badge — so the right question is whether the specific course you are buying is approved, not merely whether the name appears somewhere. Second, fines apply to ATPs, including for issuing an interim certificate to someone who did not complete the course with them. If a provider offers to issue you an interim certificate for training you did elsewhere, that is not a shortcut; it is an offence on their part and a worthless document in your hands.

The same logic sits behind the national VET rules. Where marketing refers to a training product, an RTO must include the code and title as published on the National Register, must accurately represent what is on its scope of registration, and may only represent that completion leads to a licensed or regulated outcome where the relevant industry regulator has confirmed it. In New South Wales that confirmation exists or it does not, and the L&GNSW list is where you look.

Our position

Complete Hospitality Training, RTO 3722, is not on the Liquor & Gaming NSW approved training provider list. Its SITHFAB021 Statement of Attainment cannot be converted directly into a NSW competency card.

CHT is on Liquor Control Victoria's approved provider list, on the in-person list under one-day RSA course providers, which permits delivery in person or online using a live meeting platform. That is a Victorian approval under a Victorian scheme, and Liquor & Gaming NSW gives it no weight.

If New South Wales is where you need to work, either go to the Liquor & Gaming NSW approved provider list and choose a provider from it, or check whether the bridging course below applies to you. This page states that plainly rather than leaving you to discover it after paying.

The bridging course: the shorter route for interstate holders

This is the part most pages leave out, and it matters if you already trained elsewhere.

Someone moving permanently to NSW who already holds a recent interstate RSA does not necessarily have to sit the full NSW course. They can complete the NSW RSA bridging course — online and self-paced — and then obtain a competency card.

Eligibility depends on where the original certificate came from and how old it is:

Original certificate from	Must have been issued within
Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania	the last 5 years
Victoria, ACT, Northern Territory — national Statement of Attainment or RSA refresher certificate	the last 3 years

Because we deliver in Victoria, a current CHT-issued RSA held for less than three years will generally make you eligible for the bridging course rather than the full NSW course. Confirm your own position with Liquor & Gaming NSW before relying on it.

Note that the Victorian row accepts either the Statement of Attainment or a Victorian RSA refresher certificate. That is useful, because Victoria requires every certificate holder to complete its free refresher every three years anyway — so a Victorian worker keeping their own certificate current is also keeping the NSW bridging route open.

Note also the asymmetry in that table: the states with no provider approval scheme get the longer five-year window, while Victoria and the territories get three. It is worth checking the issue date against the right row rather than assuming one figure.

When you apply for the card after the bridging course, attend Service NSW with your bridging completion certificate, proof of identity and the interstate RSA certification itself, which Service NSW validates. Keep the original interstate document; you will be asked for it.

If you are moving into a licensee or manager role, the route is different again

An interstate RSA holder who is becoming a licensee, approved manager or club secretary in New South Wales does Licensee Training rather than the RSA bridging course. It is a different program for a different obligation, so check which one applies to the role you are taking before enrolling in either.

If you are only working in NSW temporarily

Non-residents working temporarily in NSW do not need the bridging course, provided they do not live permanently in NSW, they hold approved interstate certification, they can produce evidence when asked, and they understand their obligations under NSW liquor law.

There is one firm exception. Anyone working in security or performing RSA marshal duties must complete the NSW bridging course and hold a NSW competency card regardless of residency. There is no temporary-worker concession for those two roles.

In Victoria, an interstate RSA certificate generally cannot be used on its own. Eligible holders can apply for the free RSA Refresher bridging course to obtain a Victorian certificate. LCV requires approved original RSA training completed within the last three years and, for an online course, residence interstate or overseas at the time. Allow about ten working days for the application. LCV lists a specific exemption for interstate liquor producers at qualifying temporary or major events. Check the Victorian eligibility and event rules before relying on a certificate.

How the NSW credential actually works

Three stages, two documents, two issuers

Stage	What happens	Issued by	Valid for
1	Complete an approved course — face-to-face, trainer-led virtual, or online	Approved Training Provider	—
2	Interim certificate issued; you may start work immediately	Approved Training Provider	90 days
3	Convert at Service NSW in person	Service NSW, on L&GNSW authority	5 years

The 90-day limit is a working limit. After 90 days the interim certificate can no longer be used to work, though it may still be presented at Service NSW to create the card.

Converting the interim certificate into a card

You must attend a Service NSW centre in person and:

present the interim certificate,
present 100 points of original identification — the points system is explained on the back of the interim certificate, and
have a photo taken.

A digital card becomes available through the Service NSW app shortly after the photo. The physical card arrives by post in two to four weeks — allow up to five. The cost of the first competency card is included in the ATP's course fee.

Validity and renewal

The card is valid for five years.
If a card carries more than one endorsement, they all expire five years from the earliest endorsement received.
Renewal is by RSA Refresher, an online self-paced course of 60 to 90 minutes with a multiple-choice assessment requiring 100 per cent correct to pass.
Liquor & Gaming NSW notifies holders by email or phone 90 days before expiry.
Renewal costs the card issue fee only, not a course fee.
If the card has already expired you have 28 days to complete the refresher online and remain compliant. Beyond 28 days you must sit the full RSA course again.
Re-doing the full course does not extend the card. Only the refresher does.
Liquor & Gaming NSW cannot extend a card expiry date.
RSA training completed in NSW more than five years ago requires the full course again.

One distinction worth holding onto through all of that: the card expires, but the underlying Statement of Attainment does not. It is a training record rather than a licence, and it stays on your national training transcript permanently. What lapses is the state instrument layered on top of it. The card also confers nothing outside New South Wales — what travels interstate is the Statement of Attainment the ATP issued in its capacity as an RTO, which other jurisdictions then treat on their own terms.

Do not confuse the NSW refresher with the Victorian one. They share a name and nothing else: the NSW RSA Refresher renews a five-year card and demands 100 per cent on its assessment, while the Victorian RSA Refresher is a free three-yearly requirement on every Victorian certificate holder, takes about 90 minutes, and doubles as the bridging course for interstate arrivals.

Who must hold a competency card in NSW

Service staff and food and beverage attendants
Retail liquor salespersons
Winery and brewery staff
Promotional staff
RSA marshals
Security staff and crowd controllers
Volunteers
Licensees, approved managers, club secretaries and club directors
Directors of companies owning hotels who have an operational role

Note that volunteers are on that list. Unpaid service at a licensed community event is still service. Queensland takes the opposite position and exempts supervised volunteers serving under a community licence or permit, so a volunteer pouring at a community event may need a card in NSW and nothing in Queensland.

Minimum age

The Liquor Act 2007 (NSW) provides that a licensee must not cause or allow a minor to sell, supply or serve liquor on licensed premises except with the approval of the Authority. A minor is a person under 18.

Liquor & Gaming NSW does not publish a minimum age for enrolling in RSA training or for holding a competency card, as distinct from the age at which a person may lawfully serve. Those are different questions and only the second has a published answer, so the first is not stated here. Victoria does answer the first question: an under-18 may complete RSA training there, but must be 18 to serve.

The fines

Penalty notice amounts from the Liquor & Gaming NSW fines schedule. References are to the Liquor Regulation 2018.

Offence	Licensee or manager	Staff member	Reference
Staff member sells, supplies or serves alcohol without a card carrying a current RSA endorsement	—	$220, or $440 in a Prescribed Precinct	LR2018 c63(1)
Licensee permits a staff member to do so	$1,100	—	LR2018 c63(2)
Licensee does not hold a card with current industry RSA endorsement	$1,100	—	LR2018 c63(3)(a)
Manager does not hold a card with current industry RSA endorsement	$1,100	—	LR2018 c63(4)(a)
Acting as a crowd controller without RSA endorsement	—	$220, or $440 in a Precinct	LR2018 c64(1)
Employing a crowd controller without RSA endorsement	$550	—	LR2018 c64(2)
Acting as an RSA marshal without RSA endorsement	—	$220, or $440 in a Precinct	LR2018 c65(1)
Employing an RSA marshal without RSA endorsement	$550	—	LR2018 c65(2)
Failing to show a valid interim certificate or card on request	$55	$55	LR2018 c75(2)
Working with a suspended card	—	$550	LR2018 c76(8)(a)
Working while disqualified from holding a card	—	$550	LR2018 c76(8)(b)

Fines are materially higher in the Kings Cross and Sydney CBD Entertainment Prescribed Precincts. Workers must carry the physical or digital card whenever working in a role that requires it, and produce it to police or Liquor & Gaming NSW compliance officers on request.

Note that New South Wales fines both the worker and the licensee. That is a materially different allocation of liability from Victoria, where the RSA training offence provisions target the licensee alone — under sections 108AB and 108AC of the Liquor Control Reform Act 1998 to ensure staff have completed and refreshed an approved program, at 60 penalty units each, and under sections 108AD and 108AE to keep and produce the certificates, at 5 penalty units each — and are expressed in penalty units whose value is indexed each 1 July under the Monetary Units Act 2004 rather than as fixed dollar amounts. Do not carry one state's position, or its arithmetic, across a border.

What the national unit requires

SITHFAB021 sits within the SIT Tourism, Travel and Hospitality Training Package. To be assessed as competent, a candidate must be able to:

Interpret the relevant legal requirements for the responsible sale or service of alcohol under the law of the applicable state or territory.
Source and explain two organisational or house policies and procedures that must be followed for responsible sale or service.
Use knowledge of industry requirements and professional standards to determine the volume for standard drinks or samples — performance criterion 2.1.
Outline at least three early indicators of intoxication, with suitable intervention strategies to prevent intoxication.
Identify erratic drinking patterns as an early sign of possible intoxication and take appropriate action — performance criterion 2.3. The unit names the patterns: mixing a wide range of drink types; drinking quickly and in quick succession; ordering more than one drink for own consumption; consistently returning to request more samples; ordering multiple or large samples; and ordering "triple shots" or extra-large drinks.
Outline the procedure to refuse sale or service, and assist, each of three named groups of intoxicated customers: those in emotional or physical distress; those with no food consumption during extended service of alcohol; and those who appear to be under the effect of illicit substances or other drugs.
Offer appropriate means of assistance, which the unit names as assisting the customer to connect with their designated driver or companions, offering alternatives to alcohol including food or non-alcoholic drinks, and organising or providing relevant information on transport for a customer wishing to leave — all in accordance with house policy.
Request and obtain acceptable proof of age before sale or service where appropriate, and identify customers to whom service must be refused under the applicable law, including minors and those purchasing on behalf of minors.
Interpret organisational or house requirements and outline communication and conflict-resolution skills for asking two different intoxicated customers to leave: one compliant customer, and one difficult customer refusing to leave.

The unit's second element is titled Assist customers to drink within appropriate limits, which is where the erratic-pattern test and the means of assistance sit. Refusal is what happens when that has not worked, not the starting point.

This is a substantive unit. The NSW issue is not the quality of the training — it is that New South Wales applies its own provider-approval framework and its own state-specific content on top of the national system.

The unit is also an academic prerequisite

Worth knowing because it is entirely separate from the NSW licensing question, and it survives wherever you work.

SITHFAB021 is a formal prerequisite for SITHFAB034 Provide table service of food and beverage. Formal table service cannot be awarded until you hold RSA, whether or not the role involves pouring wine — the training package treats advising a customer through a menu in a licensed dining room as work presupposing responsible service of alcohol competence. SITHFAB034 is one of four units in the food and beverage stream carrying two or more prerequisites. It and SITHFAB023 Operate a bar each carry two — SITHFAB021 and SITXFSA005 Use hygienic practices for food safety — while SITHFAB030 Prepare and serve cocktails and SITHFAB039 Manage the sale or service of wine each carry three. RSA is itself a prerequisite to nine units in that stream, the same number as SITXFSA005. RSA is also a prerequisite, together with SITXFSA005, to SITHFAB023 Operate a bar.

So the national unit is worth holding for reasons that have nothing to do with a competency card. See restaurant waiting and hospitality package.

Note also that SITSS00071 the Responsible Service of Alcohol skill set and SITHFAB021 the unit are different entries on the national register. We hold both.

Credit transfer, RPL, and your USI

If you hold the national unit already and are enrolling in a qualification that contains it, that is credit transfer under Standard 1.7 of the Outcome Standards for RTOs — a document check with no reassessment. That is different from recognition of prior learning under Standard 1.6, which assesses prior skills, learning and experience and is a genuine assessment. Raise either at the pre-training review, required under Standard 2.2 of the Outcome Standards for RTOs before enrolment. See skills assessment. We first verify the evidence and equivalence, check that the units fit your training product, and check for licensing or regulatory restrictions before granting credit. See ASQA’s credit-transfer guidance.

Credit transfer of the national unit does not discharge the NSW state requirement, because that is a licensing rule rather than a training one. The two systems are independent. The same is true of Victoria, where the national unit does not by itself produce the state RSA Certificate of Completion.

For nationally recognised training, a Unique Student Identifier (USI) is generally required before a qualification or Statement of Attainment can be issued, unless an applicable exemption applies. See the official USI exemption guidance. A USI is free at usi.gov.au. If you already have one, recover it rather than creating another. Your USI must not be printed on your qualification or Statement of Attainment. We verify that it belongs to you before using it.

Two timing rules worth knowing about the training document, as distinct from the card. An RTO must not issue certification documentation to anyone it has not assessed as meeting the requirements of the training product, and where you have been assessed as competent it must issue that documentation within 30 calendar days from the completion of the assessment, provided you completed the product and paid all agreed fees. Records of certification issued are retained for 30 years, so a lost Statement of Attainment is a records request rather than a re-enrolment.

Where our Statement of Attainment is accepted

State or territory	Accepted?	Conditions
Victoria	Victorian certificate or eligible bridging	Use a current Victorian RSA certificate. Eligible interstate holders can apply for free bridging: approved original training within three years, with the online-course residence condition. Specific exemptions apply at qualifying producer events.
Queensland	Accepted subject to requirements	Accepted where the evidence is a Statement of Attainment for the nationally accredited Provide Responsible Service of Alcohol course. An attendance certificate is insufficient.
Western Australia	Accepted subject to requirements	Provide the RSA certificate showing completion of the nationally accredited course. An interstate RSA card alone is not accepted as evidence.
Northern Territory	Accepted subject to requirements	Certificates from an RTO registered to deliver RSA are accepted, including interstate certificates. Check certificate age and the NT refresher requirements.
Australian Capital Territory	Accepted subject to requirements	Valid interstate RSA certificates are recognised, subject to the ACT’s three-year currency limit and ACT-approved refresher requirements.
Tasmania	Accepted subject to requirements	Interstate certificates can be accepted under the Commissioner’s conditions. Requirements differ for employees and liquor licence holders; check the appropriate role.
South Australia	Accepted subject to requirements	Check provider approval and training date. Training from 1 November 2020 must be through a Commissioner-approved RTO. Earlier RSA training need not be repeated solely because of that approval change.
New South Wales	Conditional recognition	Eligible temporary interstate workers can use approved interstate RSA. Permanent movers and security or RSA marshal roles must meet NSW training and competency-card requirements; eligible holders can use bridging instead of the full NSW RSA course.

Current regulator guidance: NSW, VIC, SA, QLD, WA, NT, ACT, TAS.

For a new Victorian RSA course, use an LCV-approved provider for the delivery mode and complete the required LCV Learning Hub surveys and sexual harassment and assault module as well as the national unit. Victorian certificate holders must complete the free RSA Refresher every three years. In Victoria, an interstate RSA certificate generally cannot be used on its own. Eligible holders can apply for the free RSA Refresher bridging course to obtain a Victorian certificate. LCV requires approved original RSA training completed within the last three years and, for an online course, residence interstate or overseas at the time. Allow about ten working days for the application. LCV lists a specific exemption for interstate liquor producers at qualifying temporary or major events. Check the Victorian eligibility and event rules before relying on a certificate. Queensland and Western Australia accept suitable national RSA training evidence from an RTO. This is subject to the correct credential: Queensland requires a Statement of Attainment for the national RSA course, and WA requires the RSA certificate rather than an interstate card alone. Check the Queensland requirements and WA requirements.

The practical summary is that Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia all care who trained you, and Queensland, Western Australia, the Northern Territory and the ACT do not.

Does RSA affect your pay?

Not on its own — a single unit does not move an award classification. A completed Certificate III, relevant to your classification and actually used at work, sets a minimum classification of Level 4 under three of the four awards covering hospitality premises: MA000009 (cl 18.1), MA000119 (cl 18.1) and MA000058 (cl 18.3). The fast food award, MA000003, has no equivalent provision.

RSA is a core unit of SIT30722 Certificate III in Hospitality (Restaurant Front of House), so it is a genuine step toward that floor rather than a dead end.

And a full qualification is not the only route. The awards define an appropriate level of training three ways: completing a training program meeting the training and assessment requirements of a qualification or one or more appropriate units of competency from a training package; or being assessed by a qualified skills assessor as having at least equivalent skills; or, as at a specified date, having been doing the work of that classification for at least three months. Long-serving staff without certificates should read that third limb.

Which award applies is decided by the premises, not the job title. A bar inside a hotel or pub is MA000009; a not-for-profit registered club is MA000058, because MA000009 clause 4.4(d)(i) expressly excludes clubs registered or recognised under state or territory legislation; a standalone restaurant, cafe or night club is MA000119, a night club being commercial rather than not-for-profit; and a food-court or takeaway counter is MA000003. Registered clubs are a substantial employer of RSA holders in New South Wales, so that first distinction matters here more than in most states.

Under MA000119, Schedule A defines the Level 4 classification as Food and beverage attendant grade 4 (tradesperson) alongside Cook grade 3 (tradesperson), and the award's own "standard rate" is the Level 4 rate. Two caveats: the qualification must be relevant to your classification and you must make use of the skills, so it is not automatic on completion; and MA000058 lets the Fair Work Commission require the employee to demonstrate they utilise the relevant skills. Dispute routes differ too — MA000009 clause 40, MA000119 clause 34, and for MA000058 referral to the Fair Work Commission. No pay rates, loadings or roster notice periods are published here — rates re-set every 1 July and the other provisions differ between the awards, so use the Fair Work Ombudsman's Pay and Conditions Tool with your award code and read your award's own clauses.

If you need NSW certification

Go to the Liquor & Gaming NSW website and use its list of Approved Training Providers. Only training completed with a provider on that list produces a NSW interim certificate and, through Service NSW, a competency card — unless you qualify for the bridging course described above.

If you work in Queensland, Western Australia, the Northern Territory, the ACT, or as serving staff in Tasmania, our certification is accepted in those jurisdictions on the strength of the national unit alone. In Victoria it is accepted because we are an LCV-approved provider, with the Learning Hub stage to follow.

RSA in Australia has the full eight-jurisdiction matrix. The other state pages cover Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia. RSA online covers delivery mode, bartending the bar units RSA sits alongside, and all courses lists what is advertised.

About us

Complete Hospitality Training, RTO 3722, CRICOS 04242E, Level 3, 28 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne VIC 3000, and 410 Elizabeth Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010. Contact melbourne@cht.edu.au or +61 3 9654 1554. See about us.

SITHFAB021 is on our scope of registration, both standalone and within the skill set SITSS00071 Responsible Service of Alcohol. Our scope holds 17 current qualifications, 81 current skill sets and 579 units in total. We appear on Liquor Control Victoria's in-person approved RSA course provider list, and are not on LCV's separate self-paced online list. We are not on the Liquor & Gaming NSW approved training provider list and cannot produce a NSW competency card.

We link to the relevant course and regulatory sources in this guide. Check those sources for current requirements, and confirm course availability, delivery, fees and entry requirements with us before enrolling.

Can I use my Victorian RSA in New South Wales?

Not directly to obtain a card. If you are moving to NSW permanently and your Victorian certificate is less than three years old, you may be eligible for the NSW bridging course instead of the full course. If you are working in NSW temporarily, an approved interstate RSA is generally sufficient — except for security and RSA marshal roles.

And in the other direction — can I use my NSW card in Victoria?

In Victoria, an interstate RSA certificate generally cannot be used on its own. Eligible holders can apply for the free RSA Refresher bridging course to obtain a Victorian certificate. LCV requires approved original RSA training completed within the last three years and, for an online course, residence interstate or overseas at the time. Allow about ten working days for the application. LCV lists a specific exemption for interstate liquor producers at qualifying temporary or major events. Check the Victorian eligibility and event rules (https://www.vic.gov.au/rsa-training) before relying on a certificate.

What does it take for a provider to be approved in NSW?

Three separate approvals through the ATP portal: form CC0600 for the provider, with a fee; form CC5000 for each course; and form CC0200 for each trainer. Approval carries Conditions of Approval and L&GNSW advertising guidelines. So the useful question is whether the specific course and trainer are approved, not just whether the organisation's name appears somewhere.

A provider offered to issue me an interim certificate for training I did elsewhere.

Do not accept it. Fines apply to ATPs for issuing an interim certificate to a person who did not complete the course with them, and the document would be worthless to you.

I am becoming a licensee in NSW and I hold an interstate RSA. Do I do the bridging course?

No. An interstate holder becoming a licensee, approved manager or club secretary does Licensee Training instead. Check which program your role requires before you enrol in either.

Do I need SITHFAB021 before I can enrol in a NSW course?

No. The approved course delivers SITHFAB021 along with the NSW-specific content. It is the outcome of the course, not a prerequisite for it.

Can I work as soon as I finish the course?

Yes. The interim certificate lets you start immediately and is valid for working for 90 days, within which you must convert it at a Service NSW centre.

What happens if I miss the 90-day window?

You can no longer use the interim certificate to work, but you can still present it at Service NSW to have your card created.

What do I need to take to Service NSW after the bridging course?

Your bridging completion certificate, proof of identity, and the interstate RSA certification itself , which Service NSW validates. Keep the original rather than only a scan.

My card expired last week. Do I have to start again?

No, provided you act quickly. You have 28 days from expiry to complete the online refresher and remain compliant. After 28 days the full course is required again.

Does re-doing the full course reset my card's expiry?

No. Only the refresher extends validity, and Liquor & Gaming NSW cannot extend an expiry date.

Is the NSW refresher the same as the Victorian one?

No. They share a name only. The NSW RSA Refresher renews a five-year competency card and its assessment must be answered 100 per cent correctly. The Victorian RSA Refresher is free, takes about 90 minutes, falls due every three years for every Victorian certificate holder, and also serves as the bridging course for interstate arrivals.

Does my underlying Statement of Attainment expire too?

No. The competency card expires after five years; the Statement of Attainment is a permanent training record on your national transcript and does not expire. Records of certification issued are also retained by the RTO for 30 years.

Do volunteers need a competency card?

Yes. Volunteers appear on the list of people who must hold a card with a current RSA endorsement. Queensland exempts supervised volunteers under a community licence; NSW does not, and South Australia also expressly catches volunteers.

I have two endorsements on one card. Do they expire separately?

No. All endorsements on a card expire five years from the earliest endorsement received.

Can I do the NSW course online?

Yes. Approved providers may deliver face-to-face, trainer-led virtually, or online. The constraint is provider approval, not delivery mode. Victoria approaches this differently: it approves providers by mode, keeping one list for in-person delivery, which may also run online through a live meeting platform, and a separate list for self-paced online courses. See RSA online (/courses/rsa-online/).

Can I be fined personally, or only the venue?

Both. New South Wales fines the worker $220, or $440 in a Prescribed Precinct, and the licensee $1,100 for permitting it. Victoria targets the licensee alone, under ss 108AB to 108AE of the Liquor Control Reform Act 1998 and in penalty units rather than dollars.

What is the earliest sign of intoxication the unit expects me to spot?

Ordering behaviour, not appearance. Performance criterion 2.3 requires you to identify erratic drinking patterns — mixing drink types, drinking in quick succession, ordering more than one drink for their own consumption, repeatedly returning for more samples, ordering multiple or large samples, and ordering triple shots or extra-large drinks — and to act on them before intoxication sets in.

Is RSA a prerequisite for any other unit?

Yes — to nine units in the food and beverage stream. SITHFAB021 is a formal prerequisite for SITHFAB034 Provide table service of food and beverage, and — with SITXFSA005 — for SITHFAB023 Operate a bar; it is also one of the three prerequisites to SITHFAB030 Prepare and serve cocktails. These are academic requirements from the training package, separate from any state licensing rule.

Why is CHT not on the NSW approved list?

NSW operates its own Approved Training Provider scheme and requires state-specific content beyond the national unit. We hold Liquor Control Victoria approval — on LCV's in-person provider list — not Liquor & Gaming NSW approval. If you need a NSW card, use a provider from the L&GNSW list.

Do I need a USI?

For nationally recognised training, a USI is generally required before your qualification or Statement of Attainment can be issued, unless an applicable exemption applies. We can explain the requirements for your enrolment. See the official USI exemption guidance (https://www.usi.gov.au/students/create-your-usi/exemptions-usi). Creating a USI is free; recover an existing one rather than creating another. Your USI must not be printed on your qualification or Statement of Attainment.

How quickly should my Statement of Attainment arrive?

Within 30 calendar days from the completion of the assessment , once you have completed the training product and paid all agreed fees. The competency card is a separate process with its own timings.

Will RSA raise my pay?

Not by itself. But it is a core unit of SIT30722, and a completed Certificate III used at work sets a Level 4 floor under MA000009, MA000119 and MA000058 — as can one or more appropriate units, assessed equivalent skills, or three months doing the work of the classification.

Who do I contact about a competency card?

Liquor & Gaming NSW on 1300 024 720 , or competency.card@liquorandgaming.nsw.gov.au . The Find a Training Provider list is on the L&GNSW website.