An overview of the changes across ASQA’s fees and charges from 1 July 2026, and what RTOs should now be factoring into their annual planning.
ASQA’s new fees and charges model commenced on 1 July 2026, and the changes are extensive. Renewals, scope applications, performance assessments, compliance activities and other regulatory processes have all changed, with most moving from hourly rates to fixed fees.
Annual Registration Charge (ARC) invoices commenced being issued in late August, with some providers yet to receive theirs. But the ARC is only one part of a much bigger shift.
We’ve gone through the new model and compared it with what applied before. Here’s what actually changed, and what your RTO should be doing about it.
What has changed?
KEY FEES AND CHARGES, BEFORE AND AFTER 1 JULY 2026
| Activity | Previous | From 1 July 2026 |
| Initial registration (NVR) | $600 + $8,000 | $2,350 + $5,000 |
| Renewal of registration (NVR) | $320 + $250 per hour | $1,250 + $3,000 |
| Renewal of registration (CRICOS) | $320 + $250 per hour | $1,250 + $2,800 |
| Late renewal application | Not applicable | $500 |
| Change of scope, per application | $240 + $250 per hour | $200 + $1,100 (max. 5 qualifications and 50 units for NVR) |
| Performance assessment | $250 per hour | $900 to $11,700 (Categories 1 to 4) |
| Compliance resolution | $250 per hour | $6,650 to $33,300 (Pathways 1 to 4) |
| Student assessment validation | No separate charge | $2,550 per student |
| Reassessment | $1,000 | $500 + $5,100 |
| Annual Registration Charge | One matrix for all providers | Separate matrices by registration type |
Sources: ASQA, Current fees and charges; ASQA, Annual registration charge; ASQA Cost Recovery Implementation Statement 2022-23, pp. 46-52 and 64; ASQA Cost Recovery Implementation Statement 2026-27, p. 25.
Providers holding both NVR and CRICOS registration pay separate application and assessment fees for each registration. Where an application was submitted, or an assessment or compliance process commenced, before 1 July 2026, it continues under the previous charging model.
The headline for most providers is straightforward: the cost of dealing with ASQA is now largely knowable in advance. The more useful question is what that means for how you plan and budget. Three shifts stood out to us.
1. Registration and scope are now fixed and plannable
Renewal of registration has moved from $320 plus $250 per hour to a fixed $1,250 plus $3,000 for NVR providers, and $1,250 plus $2,800 for CRICOS. Change of scope is now $200 plus $1,100 per application, and there is a new $500 fee if you renew late. The open-ended hourly component that made these costs hard to predict is gone.
For providers, that is actually good news. Renewals and planned scope changes can now be costed and diarised well ahead of time, rather than landing as an open-ended invoice after the fact.
2. Performance assessments and compliance activity are now sizeable, separate costs
This is where the numbers get large. A performance assessment now ranges from $900 to $11,700 depending on its category, and where non-compliance is not resolved, compliance resolution runs from $6,650 to $33,300 across Pathways 1 to 4. A Category 3 assessment followed by a Pathway 1 process totals $13,950.
These are charged on top of your ARC and any renewals. You cannot diarise them the way you can a renewal, but you can reduce the likelihood of them by keeping your compliance house in order. The cost of getting compliance wrong is now explicit, and it is significant.
3. The ARC has changed, and single units of competency-only providers may see the biggest jump
The ARC is now calculated under separate matrices for NVR-only providers, providers holding both NVR and CRICOS registration, and ELICOS-only providers. Comparing ASQA’s previous and current tables, increases are around 20% across many equivalent tiers for NVR-only providers, and around 35% for providers holding both NVR and CRICOS registration. Some providers will see considerably more, and it is worth understanding why.
Previously, ASQA did not count units of competency when calculating the ARC. Now, for providers delivering only units, every 10 units (or part thereof) counts as one qualification, and every unique student counts whether they enrol in a single unit, a skill set or a full qualification. ASQA’s own case study shows a provider with 51 units, no qualifications and 480 students now assessed as holding 6 qualifications, with an ARC of $7,500. Under the previous rules, a provider with the same student numbers in the lowest qualification tier paid $3,400. If you deliver short courses or units only, this is the change to model first.
What should you budget for?
Because most activities now carry a published fee, ASQA costs can be built into your annual overheads rather than treated as surprises:
- Every year: the ARC, based on registration type, scope as at 30 June and unique students reported for the previous calendar year (ASQA, Annual registration charge).
- When it falls due: renewal of registration, at $4,250 in fees for NVR, or $8,300 for providers holding both NVR and CRICOS registration renewing at the same time, plus any planned scope changes at $1,300 per application.
- As a contingency: performance assessments ($900 to $11,700) and, where non-compliance persists, compliance resolution ($6,650 to $33,300), charged separately (ASQA, Current fees and charges).
What should you check now?
- Check your ARC invoice, once received, against ASQA’s fee schedule. If the figures do not align, ask ASQA for a breakdown of how the charge was calculated.
- Review your scope and remove what you no longer deliver. Superseded non-equivalent or deleted products left on scope are counted as separate qualifications, so this is good practice and a potential saving.
- Review your enrolment practices. Look at the learner journey and work out when an enrolment is actually accepted, so prospective students who do not proceed are not captured in your reported data. The aim is an accurate count, not a lower one: accurate AVETMISS reporting remains an obligation in its own right.
- Build renewals and likely scope changes into next year’s budget and diarise renewal dates to avoid the $500 late renewal fee.
- Add a compliance contingency line. With performance and compliance costs now explicit, keeping your compliance house in order is cost control, not just risk management.
Final thoughts
ASQA’s fees and charges have changed considerably across the whole regulatory lifecycle, not only the ARC. The upside is that most of these costs are now knowable, which means they can be planned for. Reviewing your scope, enrolment practices and upcoming regulatory activity now will put you in a strong position for the year ahead.
If you would like a hand working through what the changes mean for your RTO specifically, we are always happy to help.
Sources
- ASQA, Current fees and charges
- ASQA, Annual registration charge
- ASQA, Cost Recovery Implementation Statement 2026-27
- ASQA, Cost Recovery Implementation Statement 2022-23 (previous fees, linked from ASQA’s current fees and charges page)
- National Vocational Education and Training Regulator (Fees) Determination 2026
- National Vocational Education and Training Regulator (Charges) Determination 2026