What You Need To Know To Be An Electrician in Oz!

Over the last ten years, we at XS Training Ltd have had a few candidates approach us and ask for the NVQ 3 Electrical Installation so that they can be recognised in Australia as an electrician.

Unfortunately, some people have gone to the expense and trouble of emigrating to Australia believing that they could gain employment as an electrician without fully researching what is required. XS Training Ltd has been in contact with TAFE (Technical and Further Education) in New South Wales (NSW), Australia and they have provided us with the following information for electricians wishing to emigrate to New South Wales, Australia*.

TAFE recognises the NVQ Level 3, AM2 and JIB gold card, however, the NVQ, AM2 and JIB gold card alone will not allow you to operate as a fully qualified and licensed electrician in Australia.

Having said that, if you have a JIB gold card then you will automatically be eligible for recognition for previous electrical studies completed overseas.

There are three things that ALL persons need to obtain to become a fully qualified electrician in New South Wales (the process may be slightly different in other states).

1. National qualification UEE30811 – Certificate 3 in Electrotechnology (Electrician)

This qualification requires 3 years off-the-job training plus 4 years on-the-job experience.

Note: For overseas electricians arriving from countries such as the UK…

* the off-the-job training is reduced to approximately 12 months due to being eligible for recognition of their previous electrical studies completed overseas

* the on-the-job work experience is also reduced to 12 months in lieu of experienced gained overseas (the local regulator requires that 12 months local wiring experience be gained in Australia under bonafide employment conditions and completed under supervision)

2. A Certificate of Proficiency as an Electrician

This is effectively their “Trade Certificate” issued by Training Services NSW – an NSW government department.

3. A Qualified Supervisors Certificate (Electrical)

Issued by the NSW Office of Fair Trading,  this is the full “Electrician’s Licence”.

There are currently three pathways that can be taken to achieve the above.

* Pathway 1 – Apprenticeship/Contract of Training (for school leavers or experienced workers) – Enrolment in UEE30811 is FREE due to being fully funded by the government.

* Pathway 2 – Trade Recognition (for experienced workers only) – Enrolment in UEE30811 is $3960 (reduced from the full fee of $13,300) due to being partially funded by the government. The fee is reduced even further once recognition is granted.

* Pathway 3 – Commercial – Full commercial fee for enrolment in UEE30811 (full fee required to be paid due to not being eligible for government funding). The fee is also reduced once recognition is granted.

Pathways 1 and 2 require a person to be either an Australian Citizen or a Permanent Resident due to government funding requirements. Some overseas electricians may be eligible for these pathways (which is preferable due to the lower cost involved).

Pathway 3 was previously only for OTSR holders and involved a specific Gap Training course. The Gap course is no longer an option with TAFE NSW, but they do accept the OTSR as evidence for recognition purposes. Pathway 3 is therefore similar to Pathway 2 but with a higher initial fee which reduces after recognition is applied.

Download TAFE NSW PDF for more details

For more information…

The TAFE NSW general website is www.tafensw.edu.au

The Electrotechnology teaching section at Belmont can be contacted directly via Belmont.Electrical@tafensw.edu.au and on phone number +61 2 4979 6111.

* Please note that other states in Australia may have different criteria to New South Wales