RSA Melbourne Update

This is an archived update from April 2022. It warned that non-accredited online RSA courses were leaving people unable to work in Victorian venues, and it described a temporary COVID-era arrangement for online delivery.

The warning still holds. The arrangement it described does not, and the unit code it cited has since changed. What follows is what the post said, what has changed, and the Victorian position as it stands now.

What the 2022 post said

That Liquor Control Victoria accepted only face-to-face RSA training under normal circumstances; that during the declared state of emergency a limited number of approved RTOs were permitted to deliver the accredited course in a virtual classroom; that we had seen a rise in calls from people who had paid for non-accredited online courses believing they could then work in licensed premises; and that the unit involved was SITHFAB002.

It also carried a time-limited offer for people who had been misled. That offer was specific to 2022 and nothing about it is asserted here.

For the wider context of that period, see education during lockdown and the benefits of returning to face-to-face learning.

What has changed since

The second row is the practical one, and it has a sharper edge than it looks. The debate the 2022 post was having — whether online RSA counts — is over. What matters now is whether the provider is on LCV's approved list for the mode you are buying, not whether the delivery is online.

LCV approves by delivery mode, on two lists

This is the detail that replaces the 2022 question, and it is easy to get wrong because "LCV-approved" sounds like one thing.

A provider on one list is not approved for the other mode. We are on LCV's in-person list, under one-day RSA course providers, and are not on LCV's separate self-paced online list. So we deliver Victorian RSA in person, or online using a live meeting platform — not as a self-paced online course. If self-paced online is what you need in Victoria, choose from LCV's published online providers.

And the hard consequence, in LCV's own terms: complete a course LCV has not approved and you receive an RSA Statement of Attainment, but "this does not allow you to supply alcohol in Victorian licensed venues or locations". That is the modern version of the 2022 problem. The course may be genuine accredited training from a real RTO; the Victorian permission simply never existed.

The current two-part process

Completing the course alone does not produce a certificate. The sequence is:

1. Complete SITHFAB021 with an LCV-approved RSA provider.
2. The provider sends your completion details to LCV. Allow a few working days.
3. LCV emails you a certificate number.
4. Use that number to create an account on the Liquor Control Victoria Learning Hub and complete all three parts there: a pre-training survey, the module Sexual Harassment and Assault: Recognise, Prevent and Respond, and a post-training survey.
5. Download the RSA Certificate of Completion.

That Certificate of Completion is the Victorian licensing document. The Statement of Attainment the RTO issues is a separate, nationally recognised training record. Both are useful and they do different jobs: the Certificate of Completion is what a Victorian venue needs to see, and the Statement of Attainment is what travels interstate. LCV puts it directly — the employer keeps the certificate, and "you do not need to give them the Statement of Attainment that course providers issue".

Staff who stop after the course hold the Statement of Attainment and no Victorian RSA certificate. That is the most common failure mode on this topic now, and it has replaced the 2022 problem of the fake online course as the thing people actually get wrong. See how to get an RSA certificate for the full walkthrough.

Training must be completed either before first supplying alcohol or within one month of that date. The certificate is kept current by the free online RSA Refresher every three years, which takes about 90 minutes and needs your original certificate number.

The refresher binds every certificate holder, not only licensees. LCV's wording is that you must do the free RSA Refresher course every three years to keep your RSA certificate current. Licensees carry a separate obligation of their own under s 108AA of the Liquor Control Reform Act 1998. And the refresher is not a lighter version of the course: LCV states that RSA training, "including the RSA Refresher course", includes the sexual harassment and assault module. See can I renew my RSA online in Victoria.

RSA is required in Victoria to supply alcohol under General, On-premises, Late night and Packaged liquor licences, and it applies where the job includes offering alcoholic drinks, taking orders or payment for alcohol, or pouring and serving alcoholic drinks. It is the job's content that decides, not the job title. It is also required when applying for a permanent licence or a licence transfer — except for a BYO permit or a pre-retail licence — or where a licence condition requires it. Separately, Advanced RSA training is a distinct requirement attaching to some licence types only; it is not something every staff member needs and it is not a renewal of the ordinary certificate.

Two documents, and which one each audience wants

The distinction between the two documents is the single most useful thing on this page, so it is worth a table.

Keep both, and keep the LCV certificate number somewhere you will find it in three years, because the refresher will ask for it. The number sits at the top or bottom of the certificate. If you lose it, email contact@liquor.vic.gov.au with your full name, date of birth, when you completed the original course and the name of the training organisation, and LCV will verify and provide it — you do not need to redo anything.

What the unit itself assesses

The course is not a slideshow about standard drinks. SITHFAB021 assessment requires a candidate to demonstrate, among other things:

• Outlining the procedure to refuse sale or service, and to assist, each of: customers in emotional or physical distress; customers with no food consumption during extended service; and customers who appear to be under the effect of illicit substances or other drugs.
• Identifying customers to whom service must be refused under state or territory law, including minors and people purchasing on behalf of minors — secondary supply.
• Requesting and obtaining acceptable proof of age before sale or service where appropriate.
• Refusing service professionally and stating the reason, and offering the means of assistance the unit names: connecting the customer with their designated driver or companions, offering food or non-alcoholic drinks, and organising or providing transport information.
• Conflict resolution with two intoxicated customers being asked to leave: one compliant, one difficult customer who refuses to go.
• Knowledge of at least three early indicators of intoxication, plus intervention strategies to prevent intoxication.
• Identifying erratic drinking patterns as an early sign of possible intoxication — performance criterion 2.3. The unit names them: 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.
• Sourcing and explaining two of the venue's own policies and procedures for the responsible sale or service of alcohol, and (performance criterion 2.1) using knowledge of industry requirements and professional standards to determine the volume for standard drinks or samples.

Victorian course content adds Victorian liquor law, drink spiking, ID checks and secondary supply, prone restraint, harm minimisation, compliance and enforcement, and sexual harassment and assault.

That last list is the reason a non-accredited "online certificate" is not a substitute: the refusal role-plays are performance evidence, and nothing produced by an unassessed video course carries them. See responsible service: managing intoxicated patrons.

What the venue has to do, and what it risks

This part is worth spelling out because it explains why employers ask for the certificate rather than taking your word for it.

Under the Liquor Control Reform Act 1998 (Vic):

When producing them, the licensee also has to give the licensee's or responsible person's name, the name of each person who sells, offers for sale or serves liquor, the date each of them first did so, and any other prescribed information.

No dollar figure appears here. The value of a penalty unit in Victoria is indexed each financial year under the Monetary Units Act 2004, so any amount printed on a web page is wrong within twelve months. Look up the current penalty unit value published by the Victorian Government and multiply.

The practical consequence for a worker: s 108AB is why your employer wants the certificate at hiring rather than at the end of your first month, and s 108AC is why they will chase you about the refresher three years later. Give them a copy promptly, and note they need the Certificate of Completion rather than the Statement of Attainment.

Coming to Victoria with an interstate RSA

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.

What Victoria offers instead is the mildest fix of the three restrictive states: a free bridging course — and the bridging course is the RSA Refresher, the same free, online, roughly 90-minute course that Victorians use to keep an existing certificate current. Completing it gives you a Victorian RSA certificate.

To be eligible, all three of the following must be true. Your original training must have been:

• approved by a state or territory liquor licensing authority
• completed within the last three years
• and if it was completed online, you must have been living interstate or overseas at the time

Applications that do not meet those criteria are declined. Processing takes about 10 working days, so do not leave it until the week you start. A current nationally accredited RSA — SITHFAB021 or its predecessor SITHFAB002 — is what the bridging course accepts. Separate exemptions exist for interstate staff supplying alcohol at a producer's event.

If you hold an interstate qualification, confirm your eligibility with Liquor Control Victoria before enrolling in a full course, because the bridging route is free and the full course is not. LCV publishes the detail at vic.gov.au/rsa-training and can be reached on 1300 182 457.

Minimum age in Victoria

This page previously declined to state the Victorian position. It can now be stated, on LCV's own wording, because training age and serving age are two different questions and LCV answers both.

A person under 18 may complete RSA training in Victoria, but must be 18 to serve alcohol. So the course is open to a 17-year-old; the job is not.

Do not carry that across to other states, because they take genuinely different approaches rather than milder or stricter versions of the same one. Queensland sets no minimum age at all under its Liquor Act 1992, and under-18s may serve in hotels, restaurants and cafes provided the venue holds no adult entertainment permit. Western Australia instead penalises the licensee who employs a juvenile to sell, supply or serve alcohol, with a $10,000 penalty under the Liquor Control Act 1988 (WA) — a prohibition on the employer's conduct rather than an age condition on the worker. Three jurisdictions, three different kinds of rule.

Leaving Victoria: one unit, eight legal wrappers

RSA is a single national unit sitting under eight different state and territory regimes. A Victorian certificate does not automatically travel, and the direction of travel matters.

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

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.

For South Australia, check the training date and provider approval. Training from 1 November 2020 must be through a Liquor and Gambling Commissioner-approved RTO. CBS states that people who completed RSA before that date do not have to repeat it with an approved provider solely because of that change. An interstate location alone does not decide acceptance. See SA’s approved-provider guidance. Tasmania’s requirements differ for employees and licence holders; check the Tasmanian regulator’s guidance. We (RTO 3722) are not on the Tasmanian Commissioner's register and were not on the ACT Access Canberra approved list as at 1 September 2026, so our Statement of Attainment does not serve those two specific purposes.

See RSA Sydney, RSA Queensland and RSA Perth for the state-specific routes, and how long does an RSA last for the expiry picture in full.

What has not changed

A non-accredited course still produces nothing that a Victorian venue can accept. It produces no Statement of Attainment, and it carries no standing with any liquor regulator, even where the content taught happens to be accurate.

The check is the same as it was in 2022, with one refinement: confirm the provider is on LCV's published approved-provider list, for the delivery mode you are buying, before paying. LCV approves providers; it does not deliver RSA training itself. LCV also publishes an approved-provider wordmark and tells readers to look for it — but verify it against the register rather than the image, because a logo can be copied onto any website and a register cannot.

A USI is generally required for nationally recognised training unless an applicable exemption applies. Check the RTO registration and unit codes to verify the outcome. An accredited outcome shows a unit code and an RTO number — alongside the NRT logo, the RTO's registration code, an authorised signature and a seal or watermark, which are prescribed rather than decorative. Your USI must not be printed on the certificate itself. The RSA scams page sets out the other warning signs, and the difference between a good and a bad course provider covers what to look for more generally.

One timing rule is worth knowing so you can tell delay from fraud. An RTO must not issue certification documentation to anyone it has not assessed as meeting the requirements, and where you have been assessed as competent it must issue it within 30 calendar days from the completion of the assessment, provided you completed the product and paid all agreed fees. In Victoria, add the few working days before LCV emails your certificate number and the Learning Hub stage after that.

One scam signal is worth naming precisely, because it has become common since 2022. Queensland and Western Australia operate no approved-provider register for RSA at all. The Queensland regulator directs candidates to the national register of RTOs with SITHFAB021 on scope, and Western Australia requires no state approval and no top-up module. So a provider advertising itself as "OLGR-approved" or "DLGSC-approved" for RSA is describing a scheme that does not exist — and that is a breach rather than mere puffery, because an RTO may only represent that completing a training product leads to a licensed or regulated outcome where the relevant industry regulator has confirmed it. In those two states the only thing to check is that the provider is a registered RTO with SITHFAB021 on its current scope.

We are on Liquor Control Victoria's approved RSA provider list, on the in-person list, verified as at 30 September 2026, and are not on LCV's separate self-paced online list. Because that list changes, check it yourself on LCV's own published register before you pay any provider, including this one — that habit is worth more than any single assurance on a web page. Our Melbourne RSA course is described at RSA Melbourne, and the online option at RSA online.

Where RSA sits in the qualification structure

RSA is not only a licensing matter. SITHFAB021 is a unit of competency with a place in the training package, and two consequences follow.

First, it is core in SIT30722 Certificate III in Hospitality (Restaurant Front of House), alongside SITXFSA005, and an elective in SIT30622 Certificate III in Hospitality. Anyone who has completed SIT30722 already holds RSA as part of the qualification.

Second, and less obviously, RSA is an academic prerequisite to nine other units in the food and beverage stream:

That is the same reach the food safety unit has: within this stream SITXFSA005 is also a prerequisite to nine units, so RSA gates as many units as the food safety unit does. Keep both figures scoped to the food and beverage stream, because SITXFSA005 additionally sits in front of cookery, patisserie and kitchen units elsewhere in the SIT package.

Two chains in that table are worth reading as sequences rather than as single gates. SITXFSA005 then SITHFAB023 then SITHFAB030 puts the cocktail unit three deep, and it needs RSA as well. And SITHFAB021 then SITHFAB032 and SITHFAB033 then SITHFAB039 is a sommelier path four units deep — the longest sequence in the stream.

SITHFAB034 is one of four units in the food and beverage stream carrying two or more prerequisites: SITHFAB023 Operate a bar carries the same pair of two, while SITHFAB030 and SITHFAB039 each carry three. For SITHFAB034 the register explains why: it covers the higher-order service techniques expected of senior food and beverage attendants, where SITHFAB027 covers fundamental skills for casual dining, and the difference is reflected in the additional alcohol-service prerequisite. That gate applies regardless of the venue's licence status, which surprises people who think of RSA purely as a liquor-licensing hurdle. It also means a lapsed Victorian certificate does not block you from enrolling in those units, even though it does block you from working — the prerequisite is satisfied by having completed the unit, not by holding a current state certificate.

RSA also appears on our scope inside skill sets rather than only as a standalone unit — SITSS00071 Responsible service of alcohol, and SITSS00070 Hospitality Compliance, which packages SITHFAB021 with SITXFSA005 and SITXFSA006. For scale, our scope carries 17 current qualifications, 81 current skill sets and 579 current units, all at the extent Deliver and assess. See SIT30722 Certificate III in Hospitality (Restaurant Front of House), bartending course and restaurant waiting.

Verifying an old certificate

If you are an employer looking at a certificate from a few years ago, three facts help.

A Statement of Attainment does not expire. What expires is the state certificate sitting on top of it — the Victorian Certificate of Completion, or the NSW competency card. So an old Statement of Attainment naming SITHFAB021 or SITHFAB002 is still a genuine training record even if the person's Victorian certificate needs a refresher.

The RTO keeps the record for 30 years. An RTO must retain records of the certification documentation it has issued for that long, and must maintain a register of what it is authorised to issue and what it has issued. So a missing document is a records request, not evidence of anything — and an outfit that has vanished with its records was not an RTO to begin with.

And check the RTO number, not the trading name. RTO 3722 has traded under six names, five of them current: Victorian Bar School (from 1 June 1994), Complete Hospitality Training (2011), Ready Serve Achieve Melbourne (2018), Coffee School by CHT (2021) and Alchemy Institute of Australia (2024). A sixth, Complete Healthcare Training, ran from 24 October 2023 to 19 April 2025 — a document in that name issued in that window is an RTO 3722 credential. The legal entity is COMPLETE HOSPITALITY TRAINING (VIC.) PTY. LTD., ABN 27 006 947 262, ACN 006 947 262, and the current registration period runs 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2032 under ASQA. Business names are separately searchable on the Australian Business Register, which records Victorian Bar School and Ready Serve Achieve Melbourne among others against that ABN — so an unfamiliar name can be checked on two public registers rather than taken on trust.

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. We check the issuing RTO and the unit codes when verifying a credential; a USI request alone does not establish whether a provider is legitimate.

About us

We are 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.

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.

Source records and further guidance

We link the unit records and regulator guidance relevant to this page below. Check the current source before making an enrolment, licensing or employment decision.

• SITHFAB021 Provide responsible service of alcohol
• SITXFSA005 Use hygienic practices for food safety
• SITHFAB023 Operate a bar
• SITHFAB034 Provide table service of food and beverage
• SITHFAB030 Prepare and serve cocktails
• Responsible Service of Alcohol training requirements (Victoria)
• Responsible Service of Alcohol training requirements (New South Wales)
• Responsible Service of Alcohol training requirements (Queensland)
• Responsible Service of Alcohol training requirements (Western Australia)
• Responsible Service of Alcohol training requirements (South Australia)
• Responsible Service of Alcohol training requirements (Tasmania)
• Responsible Service of Alcohol training requirements (Australian Capital Territory)
• Responsible Service of Gaming (RSG) training requirements (Victoria)
• Unique Student Identifier (USI) requirements for RTOs