Part 4 Registration of veterinary practitioners
Division 1 Registration procedures
17 Application to registration of Licensing and Registration (Uniform Procedures) Act 2002
(1) The Board may grant the following kinds of registration for the purposes of this Act:(a) full registration,(b) honorary registration,(c) limited registration,(d) provisional registration,(e) specialist registration.(2) Part 3 of the Licensing and Registration (Uniform Procedures) Act 2002 (the applied Act) applies to and in respect of registration under this Act, subject to the modifications and limitations prescribed by or under this Act.Note. See clause 19 of Schedule 4, which temporarily suspends the provisions of the applied Act in relation to the making of applications by way of electronic communication.(3) For the purposes of applying Part 3 of the applied Act to the granting of registration under this Act:(a) an application for the granting of registration may only be made by an individual and must be accompanied by the approved fee for the application, and(b) the Board may require an application for the granting of registration to be accompanied by such documents in support of the application as the Board requires, and(c) registration may be amended under that Act, and(d) section 54 of that Act does not have effect, and(e) the reference to 28 days in section 46 (1) of that Act (as to the period within which applications are to be dealt with) is to be read as a reference to 40 days, and(f) the reference to 14 days in section 48 (1) of that Act (as to the period within which notice of the Board’s decision on an application is to be notified) is to be read as a reference to 7 days.(4) Full registration, honorary registration or specialist registration is continuing registration for the purposes of Part 3 of the applied Act.(5) Subject to this section, the regulations may make provision for or with respect to such matters concerning registration under this Act as are relevant to the operation of Part 3 of the applied Act.
The Board may refuse to register an applicant as a veterinary practitioner on any of the following grounds:(a) the applicant is not of good character,(b) the applicant has been found guilty of any of the following offences:(i) an offence under this Act, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979, the Stock Medicines Act 1989, the Stock Diseases Act 1923, the Exotic Diseases of Animals Act 1991, the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966, or the Export Control Act 1982 of the Commonwealth, or any of the regulations under those Acts,(ii) any other offence under a law of this State or of the Commonwealth, or another State or Territory, that imposes a requirement on a veterinary practitioner in his or her capacity as a veterinary practitioner,(iii) any offence under a law of the Commonwealth, or another State or Territory, or of a jurisdiction outside Australia, that in the opinion of the Board is equivalent to an offence referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii),(c) the applicant has been refused registration, licensing or other authorisation as a veterinary practitioner in another State or Territory or another jurisdiction prescribed by the regulations or has had his or her authority to practise veterinary science suspended or cancelled in another State or Territory or another jurisdiction prescribed by the regulations,(d) the Board is satisfied that the applicant is not fit to practise veterinary science because the applicant suffers from an impairment,(e) the applicant has not made the declaration, prescribed by the regulations, relating to the conduct to be observed by veterinary practitioners.
(1) Registration is subject to such conditions as are imposed by the Board.(2) The Board may, by notice in writing given to a veterinary practitioner:(a) impose a condition on the veterinary practitioner’s registration at any time, or(b) vary or revoke a condition imposed on the registration.(3) The Board may impose a condition on registration only if the Board is satisfied that the condition is warranted, having regard to any one or more of the following:(a) the provisions of any Act or law of a jurisdiction in Australia affecting veterinary practitioners or the practice of veterinary science,(b) the safety or health of any person,(c) the health or welfare of animals or any particular type of animals,(d) damage to the international reputation of Australia in relation to animal exports, animal welfare, animal produce or sporting events,(e) any conditions imposed on the applicant’s authority to practise veterinary science in another State or Territory or another jurisdiction prescribed by the regulations,(f) any impairment suffered by the veterinary practitioner.Note. The Board may be aware, for example, that a veterinary practitioner is prescribing or dispensing inappropriate drugs (such as those that leave a residue in meat intended for consumption), or prescribing or dispensing drugs in circumstances that allow the drugs to be used by human contestants in sporting events.(4) Without limiting subsection (1), a condition imposed on registration may require the registered person to do either or both of the following within a specified time:(a) to undertake and successfully complete additional academic or practical training courses,(b) to demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the Board:(i) a knowledge of the law and ethics relating to the practice of veterinary science generally, and(ii) in particular, a knowledge of the law and ethics concerning the supply, dispensing, storage and use of poisons and therapeutic substances that are relevant to the practice of veterinary science.
(1) Subject to this Act, registration continues in force until it is cancelled.(2) Registration is not in force during any period of suspension.
Division 2 Qualifications for registration
21 Qualifications for full registration
(1) A person may be granted full registration if:(a) the person holds an academic award in veterinary science that was awarded on the completion of a regular graded course of study extending over at least 5 academic years in which a general study of veterinary science was made at a university, college or institution approved in writing by the Board on the advice of the Australasian Veterinary Boards Council Inc, or(b) the person:(i) holds an academic award in veterinary science that was awarded on the completion of a regular graded course of study in veterinary science extending over at least 4 academic years at a university, college or institution (not referred to in paragraph (a)) and that at the time it was granted was accepted in the country in which it was granted as a sufficient qualification for the practice of veterinary science in that country, and(ii) has, if required by the Board, passed the examination required by the regulations.(2) The Board is to review the universities, colleges and institutions that are approved for the purposes of subsection (1) (a) at least once every year and the results of the review are to be included in the Board’s annual report.
22 Qualifications for honorary registration
A person who is a veterinary practitioner with full registration or a person eligible to be granted full registration may be granted honorary registration if the Board is satisfied that:(a) the person has been a member of the profession of veterinary science for not less than 40 years, or(b) the person is a member of the profession of veterinary science of long standing and is of or above the age of 65 years, or(c) the person’s standing in the profession of veterinary science is such as to justify the person’s being granted honorary registration.
23 Qualifications for limited registration
(1) A person may be granted limited registration if the Board is satisfied that the person does not have all the qualifications necessary for full registration but has such qualifications in veterinary science and experience in the practice of veterinary science as to justify the granting of limited registration.(2) Without limiting subsection (1), limited registration may be granted for any one or more of the following purposes:(a) to enable a person to carry on the practice of veterinary science for a specific purpose,(b) to enable a person to carry on the practice of veterinary science for a limited time,(c) to enable a person with a qualification referred to in section 21 (1) (b) (i) to carry on the practice of veterinary science until the person has passed the examination referred to in section 21 (1) (b) (ii).(3) Without limiting section 19, the types of conditions that may be imposed on limited registration include the following:(a) a condition that the registered person is to be supervised by a veterinary practitioner (other than a veterinary practitioner with limited registration) when doing any act of veterinary science,(b) a condition that the registered person is to perform only the acts of veterinary science specified in the certificate of registration.
24 Qualifications for provisional registration
(1) A person who has applied for full registration may be granted provisional registration by the Board if the Board is satisfied that the person has satisfied all the requirements for an academic award referred to in section 21 (1) (a) and, but for the conferring of the award, would be entitled to be granted full registration.(2) Unless sooner cancelled, provisional registration remains in force for a period of 3 months from the date of its issue.(3) The Board may, for any reason, cancel a person’s provisional registration without prejudice to the application of the person to be granted full registration.(4) If a veterinary practitioner with provisional registration is granted full registration while the provisional registration is in force, the person’s provisional registration expires (despite subsection (2)) on the day on which the person is granted full registration.
25 Qualifications for specialist registration
A person who is a veterinary practitioner with full registration or a person eligible to be granted full registration may be granted specialist registration in a branch of veterinary science if the Board is satisfied that the person has such qualifications in veterinary science and such experience in the practice of veterinary science as to justify the granting of specialist registration.
Division 3 Cancellation and suspension of registration
26 Cancellation and suspension of registration
(1) A person ceases to be registered as a veterinary practitioner if the person’s name is removed from the Register.(2) A reference in this Act to the cancellation of a veterinary practitioner’s registration is a reference to the removal of the veterinary practitioner’s name from the Register.(3) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply to the removal of a person’s name from a division of the Register as referred to in section 28 (4).(4) A person whose registration as a veterinary practitioner is suspended is taken not to be a veterinary practitioner during the period of suspension, except for the purposes of Part 5 (Complaints and disciplinary proceedings).
27 Removal of person’s name from Register
(1) The Board must remove a veterinary practitioner’s name from the Register if:(a) the veterinary practitioner has died, or(b) the veterinary practitioner has requested the Board to remove his or her name from the Register, or(c) the Tribunal or the Supreme Court has ordered that the veterinary practitioner’s registration be cancelled.(2) The Board may remove a veterinary practitioner’s name from the Register if:(a) the veterinary practitioner does not possess the qualifications in respect of which he or she is registered, or(b) the Board is of the opinion that the veterinary practitioner is not a person of good character, or(c) the veterinary practitioner has been found guilty of any of the following offences:(i) an offence under this Act, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979, the Stock Medicines Act 1989, the Stock Diseases Act 1923, the Exotic Diseases of Animals Act 1991, the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966, or the Export Control Act 1982 of the Commonwealth, or any of the regulations under those Acts,(ii) any other offence under a law of this State or of the Commonwealth, or another State or Territory, that imposes a requirement on a veterinary practitioner in his or her capacity as a veterinary practitioner,(iii) any offence under a law of the Commonwealth, or another State or Territory, or of a jurisdiction outside Australia, that in the opinion of the Board is equivalent to an offence referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii), or(d) the veterinary practitioner has had his or her authority to practise veterinary science suspended or cancelled in another State or Territory, or(e) the veterinary practitioner has been registered because of any false or fraudulent representation or declaration made either orally or in writing, or(f) the veterinary practitioner has become a mentally incapacitated person, or(g) the veterinary practitioner has failed to pay any fee or fine due to the Board under this Act or any other amount ordered to be paid by the veterinary practitioner in accordance with proceedings under this Act, or(h) the veterinary practitioner has failed to lodge a return as required by section 33.(3) Action is not to be taken under subsection (2) unless the Board:(a) has caused notice of the proposed action to be given to the veterinary practitioner, and(b) has given the veterinary practitioner at least 28 days within which to make written submissions to the Board in relation to the proposed action, and(c) has taken any such submissions into consideration.
Division 4 Register of veterinary practitioners
28 Register of veterinary practitioners
(1) The Board is to keep and maintain a Register of veterinary practitioners.(2) The Register is to be divided as follows:(a) a division that includes an entry for each veterinary practitioner with full registration,(b) a division that includes an entry for each veterinary practitioner with honorary registration,(c) a division that includes an entry for each veterinary practitioner with limited registration,(d) a division that includes an entry for each veterinary practitioner with provisional registration,(e) a division that includes an entry for each veterinary practitioner with specialist registration.(3) Each entry of the Register that relates to a veterinary practitioner is to include the following:(a) the full name and address of the veterinary practitioner,(b) a description of the veterinary practitioner’s qualification for registration and, in the case of a veterinary practitioner with specialist registration, a description of the veterinary practitioner’s qualifications and experience that enable the veterinary practitioner to be granted specialist registration,(c) in the case of a veterinary practitioner with specialist registration, the branch of veterinary science in respect of which the veterinary practitioner is a specialist,(d) in the case of a veterinary practitioner with limited registration—the date (if specified in the certificate of registration) on which the registration will expire and any condition attached to the registration,(e) the premises (if any) at which the veterinary practitioner practises,(f) such other particulars as may be prescribed by the regulations.(4) The name of a person is to be removed from a division of the Register if the name of the person is entered in any other division of the Register.
29 General provisions relating to Register
(1) If a veterinary practitioner applies for particulars to be recorded in the Register in addition to those required to be recorded under this Act, the Board may, on payment of the approved fee, cause to be recorded in the Register such of those additional particulars as the Board approves.(2) The Register is to be available for inspection, at the office of the Board at all times when that office is open for business, by any person on payment of the approved fee.(3) If the description of a person’s qualifications is required to be entered into the Register, the description is to include the date on which the qualification was awarded.(4) The name of a veterinary practitioner is removed from the Register by the making in the Register of such recording as the Board directs.
(1) A veterinary practitioner must, on or before 30 June of each year following the year in which the veterinary practitioner was first registered, pay to the Board the approved fee for annual registration.(2) The Board may approve different annual registration fees by reference to different factors.(3) The Board may cause a veterinary practitioner’s name to be removed from the Register if the veterinary practitioner has failed to pay the approved fee for annual registration by the due date.(4) A person whose name has been removed from the Register for failure to pay the approved fee for annual registration by the due date is entitled to re-registration if the person pays to the Board any unpaid approved fee or fees for annual registration together with any approved fee for late payment.(5) The entitlement to re-registration is an entitlement to registration on the same terms and subject to the same conditions (if any) as applied to the person’s registration immediately before the removal of the person’s name from the Register.(6) A person registered pursuant to an entitlement to re-registration under this section is taken to have been so registered on and from the day the person’s name was removed from the Register or on and from such later day as the Board determines and notifies to the person. However, nothing in this subsection affects any proceedings for an offence instituted against the person before the person was entitled to be re-registered.(7) Nothing in this section requires the Board to re-register a person if the Board is satisfied that the person would not be entitled to be registered as a veterinary practitioner but for this section.(8) An entitlement to re-registration under this section does not override any other provision of this Act pursuant to which a person’s name is authorised or required to be removed from the Register.
31 Change of particulars to be notified
A veterinary practitioner must comply with the requirements of section 53 (as applied by this Act) of the Licensing and Registration (Uniform Procedures) Act 2002.Maximum penalty: 10 penalty units.
Note. Section 53 of the Licensing and Registration (Uniform Procedures) Act 2002 makes it a condition of registration for registered persons to provide information regarding changes to their particulars.
A certificate:(a) that is signed by the Registrar, and(b) that certifies that, on a specified date or during a specified period, the particulars contained in the Register as to specified matters were as so specified,is admissible in any proceedings and is evidence of the matters so certified.Note. See also section 55 of the Licensing and Registration (Uniform Procedures) Act 2002 with respect to evidentiary certificates.
Division 5 Returns and information
33 Annual return to be submitted
(1) A veterinary practitioner must, on or before the return date in each year, furnish in writing to the Board in a form approved by the Board a return for the return period specifying the following information:(a) if the veterinary practitioner has been found guilty of any of the following offences:(i) an offence under this Act, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979, the Stock Medicines Act 1989, the Stock Diseases Act 1923, the Exotic Diseases of Animals Act 1991, the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966, or the Export Control Act 1982 of the Commonwealth, or any of the regulations under those Acts,(ii) any other offence under a law of this State or of the Commonwealth, or another State or Territory, that imposes a requirement on a veterinary practitioner in his or her capacity as a veterinary practitioner,(iii) any offence under a law of the Commonwealth, or another State or Territory, or of a jurisdiction outside Australia, that in the opinion of the Board is equivalent to an offence referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii),(b) details of any impairment suffered by the veterinary practitioner,(c) details of any suspension or cancellation of, or imposition of conditions on, the licence, registration or other authorisation of the veterinary practitioner in relation to the practice of veterinary science in another jurisdiction (either within Australia or elsewhere) during the return period,(d) a statement as to whether the veterinary practitioner has been refused a licence, registration or other authorisation in relation to the practice of veterinary science in another jurisdiction (either within Australia or elsewhere) during the return period,(e) the premises (if any) at which the veterinary practitioner has been practising during the return period and the premises (if any) at which the veterinary practitioner intends to practise in the next 12 months,(e1) such details of any continuing professional development undertaken by the veterinary practitioner as are prescribed by the regulations,(f) such other information as may be prescribed by the regulations.(2) The Board may require a return under this section to be verified by statutory declaration.(3) Despite subsection (1), the regulations may provide that a veterinary practitioner with honorary registration need not submit an annual return or need include in the annual return only such information as the regulations may specify.(4) The Board may cause a veterinary practitioner’s name to be removed from the Register if the veterinary practitioner has failed to furnish an annual return in accordance with this section.(5) A person whose name has been removed from the Register for failure to furnish an annual return is entitled to re-registration if the person furnishes the return to the Board together with any approved fee for restoration to the Register under this section.(6) The entitlement to re-registration is an entitlement to registration on the same terms and subject to the same conditions (if any) as applied to the person’s registration immediately before the removal of the person’s name from the Register.(7) A person registered pursuant to an entitlement to re-registration under this section is taken to have been so registered on and from the day the person’s name was removed from the Register or on and from such later day as the Board determines and notifies to the person. However, nothing in this subsection affects any proceedings for an offence instituted against the person before the person was entitled to be re-registered.(8) Nothing in this section requires the Board to re-register a person if the Board is satisfied that the person would not be entitled to be registered as a veterinary practitioner but for this section.(9) An entitlement to re-registration under this section does not override any other provision of this Act pursuant to which a person’s name is authorised or required to be removed from the Register.(10) In this section:return date means the date in a particular year notified to a veterinary practitioner by the Board in writing at least 1 month in advance.
return period means the period of 12 months ending 2 months before the return date in a year.
Division 6 Review of registration decisions
34 Tribunal may review certain registration decisions
(1) A person may apply to the Tribunal for a review of any of the following decisions of the Board under this Part:(a) a decision to refuse to grant the person full registration,(b) a decision to impose conditions on the full registration of the person,(c) a decision to remove the person’s name from the Register.(2) Despite subsection (1), a person is not entitled to apply to the Tribunal for a review of a decision of the Board refusing to grant registration to the person if the registration was refused on the ground that the person had failed to pass an examination that the person was required to pass under this Part.