How we calculate costs

As a cost recovery agency, ASQA applies fees and charges to tasks and activities that are necessary to regulate the VET sector. ASQA returns revenue from our fees and charges to the Australian Government’s Consolidated Revenue Fund to offset budget funding.

For more information on cost recovery, visit the Department of Finance website.

Cost Recovery Implementation Statement

The Australian Government requires all cost recovery agencies to publish a cost recovery implementation statement (CRIS). This document provides key information on how ASQA calculates and implements charges for specific regulatory activity. ASQA’s current CRIS is available at Cost Recovery Implementation Statement 2021-22.

ASQA worked closely with the Provider Roundtable and Stakeholder Liaison Group on the implementation of full cost recovery, outlined in our draft Cost Recovery Implementation Statement for 2022-23 (draft CRIS). We also heard directly from individual providers, course owners and other stakeholders on the proposed fees and charges during the second round of consultation on the draft CRIS. While this consultation has now closed, we welcome your feedback which we will review as part of our continuous improvement.

Changes to ASQA fees and charges

ASQA will begin operating as a full cost recovery agency from 1 July 2022. This will involve changes to ASQA’s cost recovery arrangements, including our fees and charges.

The Australian Government Budget 2018–19 announced ASQA would transition from partial cost recovery to full cost recovery by 2020–21. This transition was postponed to 2021-22 as part of a package of measures announced in April 2020 to lift the financial pressures on VET providers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The introduction of ASQA’s full cost recovery is further deferred to 1 July 2022.

As part of reviewing our fees and charges, ASQA engaged with VET sector stakeholders to seek feedback. The second round of consultation for the proposed fees and charges outlined in the draft Cost Recovery Implementation Statement (draft CRIS) closed on 9 February 2022. We will consider and respond to all submissions, which will inform the final CRIS. It will be published on our website before 1 July 2022.

While this consultation has now closed, we welcome your feedback which we will review as part of our continuous improvement.

Read our draft CRIS here.

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