Profession

Property valuers in Australia: who is licensed where

Valuer rules differ by state: registration in Queensland, a licence in WA, a qualification rule in Tasmania, none in NSW. Registers and questions to ask.

Checked on against the sources at the bottom of the page.

In short

In Australia there is no national valuer licence: each state and territory decides, and the rules differ widely. Queensland requires registration with the Valuers Registration Board. Western Australia requires a land valuer licence under the Land Valuers Licensing Act 1978. Tasmania requires a qualification and experience rather than a registration. New South Wales repealed its valuer registration with effect from 1 March 2016. For Victoria, South Australia, the ACT and the Northern Territory we could not read a licensing rule.

What the valuer does

A valuer estimates what a property is worth. You meet valuers when a lender needs a valuation, when a state revenue office asks for evidence of value, or when you want an independent figure before buying or selling. See the purchase-duty guides for where a value affects duty.

Rules by state and territory

  • Queensland: “To work as a valuer in Queensland you need to apply for and be registered with the Valuers Registration Board of Queensland.” The Board keeps a searchable register. The law is the Valuers Registration Act 1992; we saw its title only in search results, not in a page we read, so rely on the Board’s page for the rule.
  • Western Australia: “anyone who wants to work as a land valuer must be licensed” under the Land Valuers Licensing Act. If you hold a licence from another state or New Zealand, mutual recognition may apply. Reform not yet confirmed: a Bill introduced on 18 September 2025 would let the Commissioner for Consumer Protection grant licences limited to residential valuations. Consumer Protection says that once the Bill passes, “further work is required before the changes can commence” and that it will announce a commencement date. We could not confirm on 14 October 2026 whether the Bill has passed, so treat the licence-for-all-land rule as the one we read.
  • Tasmania: Land Valuers Act 2001, section 4(1): a natural person “must not carry on business, or hold himself or herself out, as a land valuer unless” they meet the qualification and experience requirements (an accredited course and practical experience). The Valuer-General keeps the Register of Valuers (section 18), open to inspection when the office is open, and the Director must keep a register of disciplinary action (section 15). The authorised version we read is dated 25 July 2025.
  • New South Wales: Revenue NSW states the Valuers Act 2003 “required persons practising as property valuers in NSW to be registered” and “has been repealed, effective 1 March 2016”. For duty evidence Revenue NSW lists as suitably qualified certain members of professional bodies (for example members of the Australian Property Institute or the Australian Valuers Institute), and decides case by case for others.
  • Victoria, South Australia, ACT, Northern Territory: our searches did not give a licensing rule on a page we could read, and several regulator pages returned HTTP 403, which we did not bypass. We assert nothing; ask the state revenue office or the regulator.

How to check

  • Queensland: the Board’s register, linked from vrbq.qld.gov.au (“Click to search the register”). The page we read shows no terms of use or disclaimer, only a link to a privacy statement.
  • Western Australia: the online licence search, where you enter the licence type (land valuer) and a name or location, or a licence number.
  • Tasmania: the Act provides a public Register of Valuers; we did not find its online page.
  • Elsewhere: where no licence exists, ask for the valuer’s qualifications and membership number. Revenue NSW says the “valuer’s qualifications and membership number must appear in the valuation” for its purposes.

Terms of use

  • Western Australia (wa.gov.au terms of use, linked from the search page): “You may copy, distribute, display, download or print the material on this website for your own personal use”; “no part may be reproduced or re-used for any commercial purposes whatsoever without prior written permission”; and users must “not use any software (like bots, scraper tools etc) to access, monitor or copy the WA.gov.au website”.
  • Queensland: no terms shown on the page we read.
  • Tasmania: the Act allows inspection of the registers by any person; it sets no copying rule we read.

Payotte copies none of these registers.

What it costs

We found no published scale of valuer fees on the pages we read and give no figure. Fees are set by the valuer: ask for a fixed quote that states the purpose of the valuation, who it is addressed to and whether it includes an inspection.

Which professional to consult

A conveyancer or solicitor for the contract (conveyancers), a building inspector for the condition of the building (building inspectors), and a mortgage broker for lender requirements (mortgage brokers).

Questions to ask

  • Are you registered or licensed in this state, and what is the number?
  • Which professional body do you belong to, and what is your membership number?
  • Who is the report addressed to, and may I rely on it?
  • What date does the value apply to, and what was assumed?
  • Are you independent of the agent and the seller?

Frequently asked questions

Does a valuer need a licence everywhere?

No. We read registration or licensing rules for Queensland and Western Australia, a qualification rule in Tasmania, and a repeal in New South Wales.

Is a valuer the same as an agent’s appraisal?

Not necessarily. An agent is licensed as an agent (real estate agents); ask what basis an appraisal uses.

Can a Western Australian residential valuer be licensed?

Under the rule we read, licences cover all types of land. A Bill to allow residential-only licences was introduced in September 2025; we could not confirm its status.

What does Revenue NSW accept?

Its ruling lists certain professional-body members as suitably qualified and decides other cases individually.

Can I copy a register?

Read its terms first. Western Australia’s bar bots and commercial reuse; Payotte does not copy registers.

Sources