WA builder registration can involve two approvals. Practitioner registration belongs to the person managing or supervising the building work. Contractor registration belongs to the individual or business signing the building contract. A sole trader who plans to do both will generally need both registrations.
| How you plan to operate | Registration to investigate |
|---|---|
| Supervise building work for a registered builder | Practitioner |
| Quote and sign building contracts as a sole trader | Practitioner and contractor |
| Sign contracts through a company or partnership | Contractor for the business, with a registered practitioner as nominated supervisor |
| Work as an employee or subcontractor under a registered contractor | Depends on the work and supervision arrangement |
Start with who will sign the contract and who will supervise the building work. That usually makes the sequence much clearer.
Practitioner registration is about you
Practitioner registration is held by an individual. It shows that the person has been assessed for the qualifications and experience needed to manage or supervise the relevant building work.
It does not, by itself, let you trade as a building contractor. A practitioner can be the nominated supervisor for a registered contractor, including a company or partnership.
WA currently uses five practitioner application sets with different qualification and experience routes. Do not choose a set by years in the industry alone. Check which one fits your qualifications, role and work history against the current WA guidance.
Contractor registration is about the business
Contractor registration is for the individual, partnership or company that contracts with clients to provide building services.
If your company will quote the job and sign the building contract, the company needs the contractor registration arrangement. It must also have a registered practitioner nominated to supervise the work. If you contract as an individual, you generally need to hold practitioner registration as well.
The contractor application also checks the business structure, management and supervision arrangements and financial capacity. Current WA guidance says the Board generally expects access to at least $50,000 in cash or cash equivalent and a quick ratio of at least 1:1, subject to the requirements that apply to the application.
Common examples
You are a supervisor working for a registered builder
You want registration in your own name so you can act as the nominated supervisor, but the employer’s business signs the client contracts. Practitioner registration is the starting point.
You are going out on your own
You plan to supervise the projects and sign contracts directly as a sole trader. You will generally need both practitioner and contractor registration, with the two applications lined up around the same work.
You are setting up a company
The company will sign contracts and you will supervise the building work. The company investigates contractor registration, and you investigate practitioner registration as its nominated supervisor.
Show your actual building responsibility
For practitioner registration, a job title and number of years are not enough. WA asks for experience to be documented and independently verified. Useful records show:
- the project address and type of build
- the dates you worked on it
- your duties and level of responsibility
- the building stages you managed or supervised
- the person who can independently verify the work
For employed experience, a suitable verifier may be the employer or an authorised representative. For contracting or subcontracting experience, the client or building contractor may be suitable. WA guidance can exclude relatives, employees, co-workers, subordinate workers and office or HR managers from acting as credible independent verifiers.
Check the current form before choosing referees. Licensing Services may contact the person who signs the record.
Make the person and business applications agree
When both registrations are needed, prepare them together. The practitioner’s class and nominated supervisor role should fit the building services the contractor proposes to provide.
Prepare:
- the practitioner qualification and project evidence
- independent verification of the experience
- the contractor form for the correct business structure
- the business profile and management and supervision information
- current financial material where required
- a consistent description of the work across both applications
A contractor application may not be finalised until the related practitioner registration is in place.
Does every building job need these registrations?
No. Registration depends on the work, value, permit requirements, location and exclusions.
WA registration generally applies to building work requiring a permit and valued at $20,000 or more, or $50,000 or more for Class 10a work, within the Board’s area of jurisdiction. There are numerous exclusions. Employees and subcontractors working under a registered contractor may also be in a different position.
Use those figures as a prompt to check, not as a universal answer for every job.
Keep the person and business applications consistent
Builders Licence Success checks whether you, the business or both need registration. We then prepare the practitioner project records and independent verifiers, confirm the nominated supervisor position and make sure the business application describes the same building services.
Read the WA builder registration guide or see WA builder registration support for service details.
Will you supervise the building work, sign the contracts yourself or trade through a company? Check your WA registration setup. Tell BLS who will hold the practitioner registration, which entity will sign contracts and who will act as nominated supervisor.
FAQ
Does practitioner registration let me sign building contracts?
No. Practitioner registration is attached to the individual who manages or supervises the work. Contractor registration is the business-facing registration for contracting with clients.
Can a company hold practitioner registration?
No. Practitioner registration is held by an individual. A company can hold contractor registration and nominate a registered practitioner to supervise its building services.
Is my work history enough on its own?
No. The applicable practitioner set can also require qualifications or accepted equivalents, correctly documented experience, independent verification and other application material.
Who makes the final decision?
The Building Services Board and relevant WA authorities decide registration applications. BLS prepares and organises the application but cannot guarantee the outcome.