To work on a building site in Australia you need a White Card, the card from the basic safety induction course. You take the course with a registered training organisation (RTO). It does not need renewing, but it stops being valid if you spend two years in a row without doing construction work. It is recognised in the states whose rules we were able to read.
It is employers who cannot let anyone work on site without this training, according to the Queensland regulation. The rule that Western Australia applies says the same.
What exactly is it?
Its official name is general construction induction training card. Many people still call it a White Card. The course is called Prepare to work safely in the construction industry, with the code CPCWHS1001. WorkSafe in Western Australia uses the code CPCCWHS1001.
It covers what construction work is, safety laws and common risks on site. It is different from high risk work licences, which have their own process.
Who needs it?
In New South Wales, SafeWork NSW includes:
- Labourers and tradespeople.
- Site managers, supervisors and surveyors.
- Anyone who enters active construction areas unsupervised or regularly.
There, the minimum age is 14. Western Australia adds self-employed people, contractors and staff of labour hire companies, and makes clear that the definition of construction is very broad.
How do you get it in each state?
| State | Who issues it | While you wait | If you lose it |
|---|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | The RTO sends the application to SafeWork NSW | The certificate is valid for 60 days. Most cards arrive within 30 | Replacement online |
| Queensland | Apply to the regulator within 60 days of the certificate | The certificate, from the last 60 days | Ask for a replacement |
| South Australia | The RTO, not SafeWork SA | The page does not say | Ask the RTO |
| Western Australia | The RTO | The page does not say | Ask the RTO, or another one with your certificate |
| Victoria, Tasmania, Canberra and Northern Territory | We could not check | We could not check | We could not check |
- Documents: New South Wales asks for 100 points of identity, which you show to the RTO.
- Price: each RTO sets it. SafeWork NSW does not give a figure, and neither do we.
- Western Australia: its page says the candidate must show that they are in that state.
- Checking a card: in New South Wales, at verify.licence.nsw.gov.au.
Can you take the course online?
We cannot confirm this. None of the official pages we opened says whether it must be in person or not. Before paying, you can ask the RTO how it delivers the course and whether that card is valid in your state.
Does the White Card expire?
It has no renewal date in the states we checked. But New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia agree on the two-year rule: if you spend two years in a row without doing construction work, it is no longer valid and you have to repeat the training.
Is it valid in other states?
According to the rules we have read, yes:
- New South Wales recognises cards from other states and territories.
- Queensland accepts equivalent ones, unless they were cancelled in the other state.
- Western Australia recognises nationally accredited training from other states.
In Queensland and South Australia, you must also have the card available on site.
What does the construction award pay?
Rates under the Building and Construction General On-site Award from 1 July 2026, for the entry category CW/ECW 1:
| Level | Per week | Per hour | Casual, our calculation |
|---|---|---|---|
| a | A$1,013.50 | A$26.67 | A$33.34 |
| b | A$1,033.50 | A$27.20 | A$34.00 |
| c | A$1,047.30 | A$27.56 | A$34.45 |
| d | A$1,066.00 | A$28.05 | A$35.06 |
Rules for casuals under that award:
- Loading: 25% on ordinary hours.
- Minimum: 4 hours per engagement.
- Overtime and weekends: where the rate is 150%, a casual gets 175%. Where it is 200%, they get 225%.
- Public holidays: 275%.
The award also includes allowances that we could not read. A site may have an enterprise agreement with different figures. General rights are in minimum wage and rights.
Does it count towards the second visa?
According to the specified work rules, construction counts in regional Australia with the 417 visa and in regional and northern Australia with the 462. It includes building, civil works, site preparation, structural work, installations and finishing. The list of areas and the rules on days are in how the visa works. They may change with the announced ballot.
If something goes wrong on site
Safety: you can report it to the regulator in your state.
- New South Wales: 13 10 50.
- Victoria: 1800 136 089.
- South Australia: 1300 365 255, or online.
- Western Australia: the complaints form.
Pay: the Fair Work Ombudsman helps for free and in several languages. Study Australia reminds us that the ABN is, in general, for people who work for themselves. If you have a boss, the normal thing is to use your TFN.
Labour hire companies in Victoria: the licence register shows which ones are authorised. From 18 January 2027 there will be new rules on large public projects worth more than A$50 million.
For your CV, see what a CV for Australia looks like. To look for site work, see how to look for work.
What we could not confirm
- In person or online: no official page we opened makes this clear.
- Victoria, Tasmania, Canberra and Northern Territory: we could not check their pages or could not find them. We do not give their procedures.
- Course price: there is no official figure on the pages we opened.
- New arrivals: we have not seen how they put together the 100 points of identity with foreign documents.
- Award allowances and overtime: we could not read those tables.
Sources
All seen on 5 November 2026.
- White cards, SafeWork NSW, official.
- Check a licence, SafeWork NSW, official.
- Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011, Queensland, version of 29 March 2026, part 6.5, official.
- White card, SafeWork SA, official.
- SafeWork SA home page, official.
- Construction induction, WorkSafe WA, official.
- Construction induction training, WorkSafe WA, official.
- WorkSafe WA home page, official.
- Do you need a licence?, WorkSafe Victoria, official.
- Building and Construction General On-site Award, MA000020, official, version up to 1 July 2026.
- LIN 22/012, specified work 417, compilation of 5 April 2025, official.
- LIN 22/013, specified work 462, compilation of 5 April 2025, official.
- Labour hire law changes 2026, Labour Hire Authority, Victoria, official.
- Check a provider's licence status, Labour Hire Authority, Victoria, official.
- Are your work rights at risk?, Study Australia, official.
- Fair Work Ombudsman, Study Australia, official.