Frequently Asked Questions

The Food Act 2006 requires all food businesses involved in the manufacture, preparation and sale of food to have a Food Safety Supervisor by 22nd of February 2008.

An enforcement amnesty has been applied until 1st of July 2008.

Yes, we offer an online Food Safety Supervisor course for only $190.  This course covers the two nationally recognised units of competencies: Follow Workplace Hygiene Procedures SITXOHS002A and Implement Food Safety Procedures SITFSA001A. The course will take you approximately 8 hours to complete, you can log in and out as you like. Once you have successfully completed the course you will be issued a Statement of Attainment for both competencies. Book into the Online Food Safety Supervisor course.

The availability of the Food Safety Supervisor is critical, the Act requires them to be reasonably available while the business is operating. A Food Safety Supervisor is to be located on the premises whenever food handling is being undertaken.

For further information check out the Food Industry Fact Sheet 19, from Queensland Health.

This will depend on if you can demonstrate that you have completed the relevant units of competency for the food sector.

Check out the Food Industry Fact sheet 18, to find out the relevant course codes that would be listed on your qualification.

Yes, only for the interim period, all current nominees from 31st of December 2008 will be deemed approved managers. This status will apply until 30 of June 2010 or until the nominee ceases employment at the licensed premises.

In this case the licensee, including corporations must ensure they comply with the requirements to the Liquor Act 1992 in relation to when an approved manager is required.

For the status of the approved manager to apply after 30 of June 2010 the nominee must have completed the approved manager application process.

You must send the application form with the prescribed fee of $376 with current copies of the Responsible Management of Licensed Venues (RMLV) and Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) course certificates to the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (OLGR).

A police background check will be performed. The manager's approval will be valid for five years unless cancelled; the renewal must be applied for prior to approval expiry date.

An approved manager must sign a register at the start of each shift they are on duty, recording their name, the date and starting time of their shift. At the end of their rostered shift the approved manager must sign the register and record the date and finishing time of their shift.

By signing the register at the commencement of their shift the approved manager is accepting responsibility for ensuring that liquor is supplied and possessed on the premises in accordance with the conditions of the liquor licence.

Consequently approved managers are liable for any breach of the Liquor Act 1992, which occurs while they are the person in control of the premises.

The responsibilities of the licensee or permittee is they must keep a register with the following information:

• Name of approved manager
• Date, start and finish times of each shift the approved manager is rostered on duty
• Copies of current training course certificates

The register must be made available for inspection by an investigator. You can purchase registers from The Academy. 

We have two options: 

• The Academy's version @ $55 
• or tailored with your own logos @ $110.

If the licensee is a corporation an approved manager must be present or “reasonably available” at the premises during ordinary trading hours.

During approved extended trading hours (7am-10am & 12midnight-5am) the approved manager or individual licensee must be present at all times.

In the following instances an approved manager is not required:

• At licensed premises to which a community club licence or community other licence relates if liquor is served or supplied at the premises by volunteers only.
• At premises to which community liquor permit or restricted liquor permit relates if liquor is served or supplied at the premises by volunteers only.

An approved manager cannot be a licensee, if the licensee is an individual an approved manager is only required to be rostered on duty if:

• The licensee cannot be "reasonably available" during ordinary trading hours; or
• The licensee cannot be present at the licensed premises during extended trading hours

From 1st of January 2009, various legislative provisions regarding training came into force, these requirements relate to Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) and Responsible Management of Licensed Venues (RMLV) training.

All licensees must ensure the following persons have a current training course certificate in RSA:

• The licensee (If individual)
• Approved managers and
• Any staff at the premises that are involved in the service or supply of liquor.

Staff members include bartenders, glass collectors, floor hostesses, bottle shop staff and room service staff. Staff members who were employed prior to the 1st of January 2009 will have until 30th of June 2010 to complete the training.

Any new staff members from 1st of January 2009 must complete the RSA training within 30 days. RSA training has an expiry date of three years, after this time the holder of the certificate will need to renew the training.

The RMLV training is mandatory for all licensees (if individual) and approved managers, the RMLV training has an expiry date of three years, after this time the holder of the certificate will need to renew the training.

From 22 August 2011, students who graduate from an approved NSW Responsible Service of Alcohol or NSW Responsible Conduct of Gambling course in NSW, will need to apply for a photo competency card from a participating Australia Post outlet to carry as evidence of their qualification.

Students will pay for the RSA/RCG competency card as part of their course payment to the training organisation when they enrol. It is not paid separately to the registered training organisation.

 No. 

After the trainer has assessed you as competent following your RSA or RCG course, you will be given an interim certificate by Academy Hospitality Australia. You can use your interim certificate straight away to work in jobs that require an RSA or RCG competency in NSW – but only until the expiry date on your interim certificate. Make sure you check the expiry date. You can’t work after that date without your photo competency card.

Once you have successfully completed your RSA or RCG course and received your interim certificate you can apply in person at a participating Australia Post outlet in NSW for your photo competency card. The back of your interim certificate contains the application form and a list of documents you need to take to Australia Post to prove your identity.

There are 3 simple steps to getting your card. To find out more....

Download: Fact Sheet NSW RSA/RCG Photo Competency Card Getting it| Keeping it

Yes. 

The immediate changes only apply to students graduating from 22 August 2011.  Paper RSA and RCG certificates will still be recognised and people can continue to work in licensed venues using the certificates they already have as evidence of competency.

However, everyone working in positions which require RSA or RCG training will be required to obtain a photo card within the next 5 years. People with paper certificates issued more than 10 years ago will be required to undertake training and obtain the card sooner than those who have obtained their certificates more recently. Paper certificate holders will be given ample time complete an approved course or refresher training and apply for the photo card.

Holders of paper certificates issued prior to 31 December 2000 are the first group who will need to attend an RSA/RCG course and obtain the new photo competency card by 30 June 2012.

Once you have attended the interview at a participating Australia Post outlet, taken along your interim certificate and provided your right documents that prove your identity (100 points or more) and have your photo taken the competency card will be ordered and sent to you within 10-15 working days.

You need to report the matter to Police and also complete a replacement card form from the Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing (OLGR) website as soon as possible.  Download the replacement card form.

Download and complete the replacement card form and lodge it with the Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing (OLGR), a replacement card will cost $30.

Download and complete the change of details form and lodge it with Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing.

Contact us on 07 3801 4131 if only you have completed the NSW RSA and/or RCG course with The Academy and we can email you through another copy.  If you didn't complete the course with The Academy you will need to contact the training organisation that delivered the course to request a copy.  If you cannot contact the training organisation you can contact the Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing (OLGR) on 02 9995 0900.

You must complete the name amendment form, and then a new interim certificate can be produced by the The Academy (only if you have completed a course with us) with your correct name.  Once you received the new interim certificate you can apply for the photo competency card at a participating Australia Post outlet.

The photo competency card will last for five years, you will need to renew the card before the expiry date on the card.

With all PayPal payments for the online courses, your enrolment activation needs to be processed manually. This can only be done within business hours, therefore if you purchase outside of business hours you will need to wait for the next business day for your enrolment to be activated.  You will be sent an email stating when your enrolment is activated.

When the trainer marks all of your assessments and deems you competent for the particular online course, you will be receive an email with a completion letter. This completion letter should be suffice for any employer as it states you have completed the course.  The certificate is posted out to within 21 days of you completing the course.

The Academy has photocopies of RMLV certificates that were issued from August 2009, any course date before this we don't have copies of certificates.  If you would like a replacement certificate it will cost $55, and payment must be received in full before replacement certificate is issued out. 

To organise a replacement certificate, please call the office on 07 3801 4131 or send an email to admin@acats.com.au , please provide these details: full name, completion date, location of the course and who paid for your attendance - yourself or a company/venue.

In the RMLV course, some of the elements in the RSA course is covered; however to receive the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation approved RSA qualification, you must complete this course separately.  The RSA course is mandatory for all:

• licensees (if individual)
• approved managers
• all staff who are involved in the supply or service of liquor

The Academy delivers the RSA training via face to face (public courses) and in-house courses. To find out more about the RSA options click here.

The RSA certificate has an expiry date of three years from the course completion date.  When the three years has finished you will need to attend another training course either a public, online or in-house training. 

At this stage there is no approved QLD refresher course.

The Academy only delivers courses in Queensland and Tweed Heads (Tweed Heads only as from November 2009). We do not keep original copies of certificates we have issued out however in most cases we can provide you with a photocopy of your certificate for no extra charge. We can also provide a replacement certificate if you like, which will incur a charge of $25. In either instance we require the following information of courses completed only with us to locate your details in our system:

• Your full name
• Date of birth
• When you completed the course with us?
• Where the course was held?
• Who paid for the course - yourself or a company?

Please contact the office on 07 3801 4131 or email admin@acats.com.au  and we will contact you to arrange this.

RSA course is a mandatory requirement for anyone who is in supply or service of liquor.  You must posses a Queensland Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (OLGR) certificate which is valid for three years.

Non Queenland RSA certificates are not accepted. The Academy has an online RSA Bridging course for only $35.

Recognition of prior learning anyone who has a Statement of Attainment or a state specific RSA certificate with the national code of SITHFAB009A  ‘Provide responsible service of alcohol' in any state or territory (including Queensland) can complete the OLGR RSA Bridging course.

No, there is no age restrictions on this course.  So for example if you are 16 years old, you can still complete this course.

Want to know further information on Child Employment in Queensland, please download the fact sheet from Chamber of Commerce & Industry Queensland.

No, the Nationally Accredited symbol means if you decide to complete a Certificate II in Hospitality course that you can apply to receive credit for the RSA module.  This does not mean your RSA certificate is valid in all States for work purposes.

RSG is mandatory in Queensland from 1st October 2010. It will apply to eligible licensees, gaming nominee licence holders, gaming employee licence holders, and staff who perform any gaming related tasks and who may be in position to observe player behavior.

This does not include Keno or TAB duties as this comes under a different legislation.

The only RSG course certificate that is now accepted is the Queensland OLGR approved RSG course.  The Academy delivers the QLD OLGR approved RSG course, we offer public, online & group training.

See FAQ - Mandatory RSG - What YOU need to know for further information.

Recognition of prior learning anyone who has a Statement of Attainment or a state specific RSG/RCG certificate with the national code of SITHGAM006A ‘Provide responsible gambling services' in any state or territory (including Queensland) can complete the OLGR RSG Bridging course for only $35.

Please note any Statement of Attainments or state specific RSG/RCG certificates older than 3 years old will not be accepted.

If you have completed a RSG course with us before 1st of July 2008, unfortunately we don't have copies of issued certificates. However we can organise a replacement certificate through our partner Registered Training Organisation for the fee of $20.  Please contact the office on 07 3801 4131 with the following details: your full name, when you completed the course, where the course was held and who paid for the course i.e. was it yourself or the company you were working at the time.

If you have completed course after 1st of July 2008, replacement certificates will incur a fee of $25, certificates will be issued out within 21 days once we have received your full payment.

PLEASE NOTE: The Academy is a Queensland based company, we have only delivered courses in Queensland and only recently (from Nov 09) delivered RSA/RCG courses in Tweed Heads (NSW).

No, there is no course required to obtain a Gaming Employee Licence. All you need to do is to submit the application form - Form 13 to the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (OLGR) with the prescribed fee of $197 and is valid for 5 years.

You will need to submit an application form - either Form66a (Clubs) or Form66b (Hotels) and the prescribed fee $395 to (OLGR) to become the Gaming Nominee for a particular venue. The licence is valid for 5 years.

As a condition of your application you must complete a two day mandatory Gaming Nominee Training course. 

To book into this course please contact the either Queensland Hotels Association or Clubs Queensland who are the two training providers who can deliver this course.

Responsible Service of Gambling training is mandatory in Queensland's gaming industry.

Who needs to do the training?

All people who carry out gaming duties or gaming tasks within a licensed club or licensed hotel must complete the approved RSG course, including:

• Eligible licensee
• Gaming Nominee
• Holder of gaming employee licence performing gaming duties
• Any person performing gaming tasks

Where can I do the RSG course?

To obtain the approved RSG course certificate you must complete the training with an approved Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (OLGR) Registered Training Organisation.

The Academy is approved by OLGR to deliver the RSG course, and we offer public courses, online and group training.

I have started a new job, what do I need to do?

From 1 October 2010, all new gaming employees will have three months from the date of starting employment to obtain their approved RSG course certificate.

What if I'm already working in gaming?

All existing gaming employees will have until 1 July 2011 to obtain the approved RSG certificate provided your were employed or engaged immediately before 1 October 2010 as any of the following:

• Eligible licensee
• Gaming Nominee
• Holder of gaming employee licence performing gaming duties
• Any person performing gaming tasks

I only recently did the RSG course so do I need to do it again?

If you are an existing employee (as stated above) you can apply for an extension until 1 July 2013. As long as you achieved either one of the following units of competency SITHGAM006A or THHADG03B at any time between 1 October 2009 and 1 October 2010.

You must lodge with OLGR the Application to recognise national accreditation form with a copy of your Statement of Attainment and the applicable fee of $20 by 30 April 2011.

Is there any recognition for prior learning?

Recognition of prior learning anyone who has a Statement of Attainment or state specific RSG/RCG certificate with the national code of SITHGAM006A 'Provide responsible gambling services' in any state or territory (includes Queensland) can complete the OLGR RSG Bridging course for only $35.

Please note any Statement of Attainments or state specific RSG/RCG certificates older than 3 years will not be accepted.

For further information please read the Mandatory RSG Training Fact sheet.