Help centre

Everything here is in plain English. If you are new to vocational training, start with VET in five minutes: it covers the words you will meet in the portal.

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VET in five minutes

This page explains the world the portal works in. You don’t need to remember it all: every screen in the portal explains its own words too.

Vocational education and training (VET)

VET is practical, job-focused education: certificates and diplomas such as a Certificate III in Carpentry or a Diploma of Leadership and Management. The courses are the same across Australia, so an employer anywhere knows what a qualification means.

RTOs: the colleges

A Registered Training Organisation (RTO) is an organisation allowed to deliver and assess nationally recognised training and issue the certificates. Each RTO has a number, its RTO code, and a public page on training.gov.au, the national register. That page lists its scope: the qualifications and units it is allowed to deliver.

ASQA and the Standards

Most RTOs are regulated by ASQA (the Australian Skills Quality Authority). ASQA checks that RTOs meet the Standards for RTOs 2025. When ASQA audits a college, its auditors ask for documents and evidence: how each course is planned, who teaches it, whether they are qualified, and how students are assessed. Much of what this portal makes is exactly that evidence.

Qualifications and units

A qualification (for example CPC30220, Certificate III in Carpentry) is made of units of competency (for example CPCCWHS2001, Apply WHS requirements, policies and procedures in the construction industry). The qualification’s packaging rules say how many units a student must complete: some are core (everyone does them) and some are electives (the college chooses from a list).

Qualifications and units are grouped into training packages by industry (CPC is construction, BSB is business, CHC is community services, and so on). Each unit says what a student must be able to do (performance evidence), what they must know (knowledge evidence) and how they must be assessed (assessment conditions).

Hours

Nominal hours are a guide to how long each unit usually takes, published by NCVER (the National Centre for Vocational Education Research). The AQF volume of learning is the usual length of a whole qualification (a full-time year is about 1,200 hours). A college decides its own hours, and must be able to explain them; the portal helps you do that.

The main documents

Training and Assessment Strategy (TAS): the plan for one qualification: who the students are, how and where it is delivered, the units, the hours and why, and how students are assessed. It is usually the first thing an auditor asks for.
Session plan: a lesson-by-lesson plan for one unit, split into theory and practical sessions.
Trainer files: proof each trainer is allowed to teach and assess (their training credential, such as the TAE40122 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment), has the vocational skills, and keeps current in their industry.
Industry consultation records: proof the college asked employers what the course should cover.
Governance declarations: the people who run the RTO declare they are “fit and proper” and list any conflicts of interest.

International students

Colleges that teach students on a student visa must also be on CRICOS (the register of courses for overseas students) and follow the National Code 2018. One rule you will see in the portal: international students are scheduled for at least 20 hours a week.

That’s enough to start. Next: check yourself in two minutes, or go to your first ten minutes.

Which document do I need?

Answer two questions and we’ll point you to the right tool.

1. What are you working on?

Check yourself

Five quick questions on the words above. Nothing is saved; it’s just for you.

Your first ten minutes

Open your workspace. After signing in you see the portal’s home page. The dark bar along the top shows your workspace’s name, Help, Settings and Sign out. The first time, a short tour shows you around, and the Getting started button (bottom right) keeps a checklist that ticks itself off as you go.
Look at the home page. It shows Three steps for any document and the tools, grouped into areas: trainer compliance, TAS and timetables, industry consultation, and governance.
Set up your college. Open the TAS builder and choose Start with a new college. See Setting up a college. You do this once, and every tool uses it.
Make a first document. A TAS is the biggest; a declaration takes five minutes. Try whichever you need.
Invite your team from Settings › Team when you are ready.

Tip: every screen has a short What to do here list. If a word is underlined or has a What is…? link next to it, click it for a plain-English explanation.

Setting up a college

The portal calls each RTO a college. If you work at one RTO, you set it up once. If you are a consultant, set up each client college.

Its name, as you want it on documents.
Its RTO code. Type the number and the portal reads its details from training.gov.au: legal name, ABN, addresses, contacts, delivery locations and scope. If the college isn’t registered yet, skip this and type the details yourself.
Its template. If the college has its own TAS template (a Word .docx file), upload it and the TAS comes out in that template. If not, use the built-in template; it is recoloured to the college’s colour.
Its logo and colours. Upload the logo; the portal offers its main colours. A preview shows the TAS cover.
Check the details and save. The college now appears in every tool’s list and under RTO clients.

The session plan builder has its own short setup (its own template). A college set up for TASs already shows there, so you won’t add it twice.

Advanced: if a college’s own template reads wrongly, the full view (Show all the details) has extra screens for its tables, its parts and its fixed wording. Most people never need them.

Making a TAS

Open the TAS builder, choose your college, then answer one question at a time. You can switch to Show all the details to see everything on one page; both views use the same answers.

Which qualification? Type its code (for example BSB50420). Its details, packaging rules and units are read from training.gov.au. The portal checks the college is allowed to deliver it (its scope).
Who are the learners, and how is it delivered? Domestic or international students; classroom, online, workplace or a mix; and each site’s address.
Which units? Core units are chosen for you. Electives are suggested from the packaging rules; change them to the college’s own choice. The portal warns if the counts don’t match the rules.
Unit details. Each unit is read from training.gov.au by itself. A unit the register has no page for is listed so you can paste or upload it.
Hours. The portal suggests each unit’s hours and gives the reason for each. Check them, change any figure (with a reason), and confirm. See how the hours are worked out.
A few more details. The template’s remaining questions. Most are written for you from the template’s example: check and adjust.
Compliance check. The portal checks the TAS against the Standards for RTOs 2025 and shows what the template covers and what it adds.
Download, review and sign off. Anything worth a look is listed, each with a Fix it button that takes you to the right screen. Download the draft at any time. When ready, send it to a colleague for review, record the college’s sign-off, and issue version 1.0.

Two TASs from one set of answers: if a college teaches the same qualification to domestic and international students, make the first TAS, then make the other cohort’s from it. Each unit’s practical hours are copied across.

How the hours are worked out

For each unit the portal suggests three figures: theory, practical training and practical assessment, and how many weeks it takes. It explains each one in the Why these hours column, and that explanation goes into the TAS.

It starts from the unit’s NCVER nominal hours. The college may go above or below them; any difference is explained.
It reads the unit’s performance evidence: the tasks a student must do. More or bigger tasks mean more practical hours.
It judges each unit’s type: mostly theory, mostly practical, or a blend. You can change it.
International students are scheduled 20 hours a week. For domestic students, you say how many hours a week the college runs.
A unit used in several of the college’s qualifications keeps the same hours in each.
The units’ weeks must fit the course length; if they don’t, the portal stops the download and says why.

Type over any figure you disagree with and give a reason. Your own figures are kept.

Making a session plan

Open the Session plan builder. Set the college up once with its session plan template (a Word file). Then, for each unit:

Which unit? Type its code; it is read from training.gov.au and kept in the team’s unit library.
Hours. Taken from the college’s TAS when there is one, and split into theory, practical training and practical simulation sessions of the college’s usual length.
Course documents (optional). Add the unit’s PowerPoint, learner handbook, activities, self-study guide or assessment pack, and each session is filled from them. They are read on your computer; nothing is uploaded.
Download. A Word file in the college’s template. It is kept under Saved records.

The other guided tools

Each tool asks its questions in a few steps, shows a Live preview of the document as you type, and ends with Review and document, where you save it and download a Word file.

Tool	What it is for
Trainer resume	A trainer and assessor’s credentials, qualifications, industry experience and the units they deliver.
Industry currency letter	A statement from an employer or referee about a trainer’s recent industry work.
Trainer matrix	Maps a trainer’s qualifications and experience to each unit they teach.
Professional development record	What a trainer did to keep their skills current, and what came of it.
Training timetable	A weekly schedule and term plan for a course and group of students.
Industry consultation form	A record of asking an employer or industry person about a course.
Meeting minutes	Minutes of a consultation or validation meeting, with actions.
Fit and proper person declaration	For each person who runs or controls the RTO.
Conflict of interest declaration	Interests a person declares, and how they are managed.

Required answers are marked. Before you save as final, the portal lists any that are missing, each linked to its step.

Saved records and drafts

Everything you build is kept under Saved records for the whole team, newest first. Open one to carry on, download it again, or delete it (after a second click).
Save as a draft while you work; save as final when it is complete.
If you try to leave with unsaved changes, the portal asks whether to save first.
RTO clients lists every college. Archive one to hide it from every tool without losing anything; restore it any time.

Your team and roles

Invite people from Settings › Team. Type their email and choose a role. If email sending is switched on they get an email; otherwise you get a link to send them. The link works only for that email address, for 14 days.

Role	Can
Owner	Everything, including billing and deleting the workspace.
Admin	Everything in the portal, plus the team, billing, backups and history.
Editor	Uses every tool and saves.
Viewer	Sees everything and downloads, but saves nothing.

There is no charge per person. To remove someone, use Remove next to their name; the work they did stays.

Several workspaces. One person can belong to several workspaces (for example a consultant working with several clients who each have their own). Switch between them with the menu in the top bar, or from Settings › Workspaces.

Your data and backups

Each workspace’s data is kept separately. Only its members can see it.
Download a backup from Settings › Your data at any time: every saved item and file in one .zip. We recommend doing this monthly and before big changes.
Import a backup into the same workspace or another one. Items with the same name are replaced; nothing else is removed.
Course documents you add to the session plan builder are read on your computer and aren’t uploaded.
An owner can delete the workspace and everything in it from Settings › Delete workspace. This can’t be undone.

When something isn’t right

What you see	What to do
“Read-only: trial ended”	An owner or admin chooses a plan in Settings › Plan and billing. Your work is safe.
“View only”	You are a Viewer. Ask an admin to make you an Editor.
“You have been signed out”	Sign in again in a new tab, then come back: what you typed is still on screen.
A unit or qualification can’t be read	Check the code on training.gov.au. If it has no page, use Or bring in its page yourself to paste or upload it.
A tool shows Needs attention	That one tool hit an error; the rest work. Note it under Gaps & changes so we can fix it.
“A newer version is out”	Choose Reload now. Your work is saved as you go.
Forgot your password	Use Forgot your password? on the sign-in page.

Tell us what is missing or wrong: every tool has a Note a gap button. It goes on your workspace’s Gaps & changes list, and we read every one. For anything else, contact support.

Glossary

AQF: Australian Qualifications Framework: the national system of qualification levels (Certificate I up to Doctoral Degree).
AQF volume of learning: The usual length of a qualification in full-time years. One year is about 1,200 hours.
ASQA: Australian Skills Quality Authority: the national regulator that registers and audits most RTOs.
Assessment conditions: The part of a unit that says where, with what equipment, and observed by whom a student must be assessed.
Assessment mapping: A table showing which question or task in the college’s assessment covers each requirement of a unit.
Audit: When ASQA checks an RTO against the Standards, usually by asking for documents and evidence and interviewing staff.
CoE: Confirmation of Enrolment: the document an international student needs for their visa.
Cohort: A group of students on the same course, for example domestic or international students.
Competency / competent: VET assesses whether a student can do the task to the required standard. A student is “competent” or “not yet competent”, not given a mark.
Core unit: A unit every student in a qualification must complete.
Credential Policy: Part of the 2025 Standards: which training qualifications allow a person to deliver training, to assess, or to work under someone’s direction.
CRICOS: Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students. A college must be on it to teach students on a student visa.
Delivery mode: How training happens: face to face, online, in the workplace, or a mix.
Domestic student: An Australian citizen or resident (not on a student visa).
Elective: A unit the college chooses from a list allowed by the packaging rules.
ESOS: Education Services for Overseas Students: the law protecting international students in Australia.
Fit and proper person: A test the people who run an RTO must meet (for example no relevant convictions or bankruptcy). They sign a declaration.
Foundation skills: The reading, writing, numeracy and communication a unit needs.
Industry consultation: Asking employers and industry people what a course should cover, and keeping a record of it.
Industry currency: Evidence a trainer’s industry skills are up to date (recent work, visits, professional development).
International student: A student studying in Australia on a student visa. Extra rules apply (CRICOS, the National Code).
Knowledge evidence: The part of a unit that lists what a student must know.
National Code 2018: The rules for colleges teaching international students, including at least 20 scheduled hours a week.
NCVER: National Centre for Vocational Education Research. Publishes the nationally agreed nominal hours for each unit.
Nominal hours: A guide to how long a unit usually takes, published by NCVER. Colleges may differ, with a reason.
Packaging rules: The rules of a qualification: how many core and elective units, and which electives are allowed.
Performance criteria: The numbered steps (1.1, 1.2…) a student must show they can do in a unit.
Performance evidence: The tasks a student must actually do, and how many times, to show they are competent.
Practical assessment: Hours in which a student is observed doing the tasks the unit requires.
Practical training: Hours of hands-on practice with a trainer, before assessment.
Qualification: A certificate or diploma made up of units, for example CPC30220 Certificate III in Carpentry.
Release: The version of a qualification or unit on training.gov.au. A newer release can change its content.
RTO: Registered Training Organisation: an organisation allowed to deliver and assess nationally recognised training.
RTO code: An RTO’s number on training.gov.au, usually 4 or 5 digits.
Scope (of registration): The list of qualifications and units an RTO is allowed to deliver.
Session plan: A lesson-by-lesson plan for one unit.
Standards for RTOs 2025: The rules RTOs must meet, in full effect from 1 July 2025: Outcome Standards, Compliance Requirements and the Credential Policy.
Superseded: A qualification or unit replaced by a newer one. Colleges must move to the new one within a set time.
TAE40122: Certificate IV in Training and Assessment: the usual qualification a trainer and assessor needs.
TAS: Training and Assessment Strategy: the plan for delivering and assessing one qualification.
training.gov.au (TGA): The national register of RTOs, qualifications, units and training packages.
Training package: A set of qualifications and units for one industry, for example CPC (construction) or BSB (business).
Unit (of competency): One skill area a student must be assessed as competent in, for example CPCCWHS2001.
Validation: Checking, after assessment, that the college’s assessment tools and judgements are sound.