Cancelling of qualifications – SPES Education Pty Ltd, RTO 46018

The RTO Student Management System has a record of you being enrolled in a course and being issued a qualification and/or statement of attainment during the period of time referenced in the notice.
 

ASQA has not made a decision about your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment yet. 

The Notice of Intent is the first step in the process to consider the validity of your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment. The notice advises you that ASQA considers the qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment issued to you by the RTO should be cancelled for the reasons outlined in the notice. 

You now have an opportunity to tell ASQA why your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment should not be cancelled and provide supporting documentation and any relevant information to support your response.

The first step is to respond to the Notice of Intent you received from ASQA and provide supporting documentation and relevant information, using the link provided in the notice. You can also access the response form on ASQA’s website.

It is important you reply by the date specified in the notice as ASQA has not yet made a decision about your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment.

If you were enrolled in a course and have been issued a qualification by the RTO during the period of time referenced in the notice, and have not received a Notice of Intent, call ASQA on 1300 701 801 (dial +61 3 9613 3910 from outside Australia).

The first step is to respond to the Notice of Intent you received from ASQA and provide supporting documentation and relevant information, using the link provided in the notice. You can also access the response form on ASQA’s website.

It is important you reply by the date specified in the notice as ASQA has not yet made a decision about your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment.

You can provide information on the qualification you received in the response form.

The Notice of Intent you received from ASQA specifies the date you should respond by. 

ASQA will consider your response before it makes a decision on whether or not to cancel your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment.

ASQA has created a secure electronic form on its website which will allow you to lodge your response and any supporting documentation and relevant information. Please use the link provided in your notice to submit your response. You can also access the response form on ASQA’s website. 

The file types allowed for upload are jpg, jpeg, msg, gif, zip, 7z, pdf, png, tif, tiff, txt, html, htm, xls, xlsx, ppt, pptx, doc, docx, rtf, avi, mov, wmv, wav, m4a, mp3, mp4, and mpeg.

The maximum total upload for submission is 10 MB. Files exceeding 10 MB will not upload for submission and this will be indicated after attempted upload. You will need to upload smaller file sizes or compressed file/folders to submit this supporting evidence.

If you have evidence over the 10 MB upload limit you were unable to submit then answer "yes" to the related question on the response form. We will contact you within three days of submission with a link to provide additional evidence.

Without supporting documentation and relevant information to demonstrate you were assessed by the provider as meeting the competency requirements to be issued the qualifications or statements of attainment, it is likely the decision will be to cancel your qualifications or statements of attainment.

Please contact ASQA on 1300 701 801 (dial +61 3 9613 3910 from outside Australia).

If you have supporting documentation and relevant information that demonstrates you undertook valid training and assessment to achieve the learning outcomes or competencies required, you should provide this to ASQA.

Your response and supporting documentation and relevant information must demonstrate that the RTO provided you with appropriate training and assessment.

Listed below are examples of the types of supporting documentation and relevant information you should provide.

Relevant evidence you can provide

Documents related to your assessment with the RTO, for example:

• assessments completed
• assessments outcomes
• training module completion report
• completed assessment tasks
• assessment feedback
• marked assignments
• evidence of completing work placement/s. These records should include both the names and signatures of employer/supervisor and a representative from the RTO. (usually in the form of a work placement logbook)
• an outline of the period of enrolment and what assessment including work placement where applicable, occurred during that period
• completed assessment records, including assessment of Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) applications. These records should include details of the units of competency being assessed, and the name and signature of the person from the RTO who assessed your submissions.

Evidence that on its own will not be sufficient

• written statements which describe your skills and experience
• proof of employment in industry
• evidence of current related work (within last 12 months)
• documents, videos, photos submitted as part of an RPL process, without showing that the RTO has assessed these documents
• letters of support from employers
• documents only showing you did training with the RTO  
   

Evidence of other relevant training:

• VET qualifications or Statements of attainment issued by another RTO in a similar or same field
• higher education qualifications issued in Australia in a similar or same field
• evidence that overseas qualifications in a similar or same field have been assessed as equivalent to Australian qualifications by another Australian organisation. 

Evidence not considered to demonstrate the required training and assessment was delivered by the RTO

• identity documents 
• qualifications and transcripts issued by the cancelled RTO 
• payment receipts
• overseas qualifications
• RPL checklists or application forms from third parties not signed by the RTO  
• resumes without other workplace evidence  
• workplace policies and procedures 
• blank workplace forms or templates 
• aged employment evidence (for example, reference letters older than 12 months, employment contracts from previous years without other evidence to demonstrate current employment)  
• VET qualifications or Statements of attainment issued by another RTO in a different field  
• higher education qualifications issued in Australia in a different field 
• training and assessment evidence from other RTOs (e.g., placement workbooks or assessment evidence with other RTO branding)  
• payslips  
• statements of participation in non-accredited training  
• evidence of completed professional development  
• enrolment forms/confirmations  
• acknowledgement of assessment submission emails from the RTO  

If you decide not to respond to the Notice of Intent, ASQA may cancel your relevant qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment. 

ASQA will not consider any response after the date specified in the notice. If you do not respond by the date specified in the notice, ASQA may cancel your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment.

ASQA will review all the supporting documentation and relevant information you provide before making a decision.

ASQA will notify you of the outcome of its decision and provide you with information on the next steps.

ASQA will provide you a written notice of its decision after it has reviewed all the supporting documentation and relevant information you have provided. 

ASQA will notify you of the decision via email. 

The decision to cancel qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment is a reviewable decision. You have the right to have the decision reviewed. 

If the decision is made by the Regulator, you cannot apply to ASQA to reconsider the decision. You may apply to the Administrative Review Tribunal (the ART) (formerly the Administrative Appeals Tribunal) for a review of the decision.  More information on the review process can be found on the ART website (https://www.art.gov.au/).

If a decision is made by an officer of ASQA, you may be able to apply to ASQA to reconsider the decision. More information on the review process can be found on the ASQA website. 

The written notice of a decision will include information on how you can apply to ASQA to reconsider the decision and/or apply to the ART for a review of the decision.

ASQA will provide you a notice of its decision after it has reviewed all the supporting documentation and relevant information you have provided.

If you did not respond to the Notice of Intent, ASQA will provide you a notice of its decision after the date specified in the notice.

Where ASQA makes a decision to cancel a qualification(s) or statements(s) of attainment, the cancellation decision is published on the National Register. However, ASQA will not include your personal details in the publication. 

ASQA will also notify the Office of the Student Identifiers Registrar. The Office manages the register that holds each individual’s Unique Student Identifier (USI) Record.

The RTO cancellation decision has been published on the National Register. 

If you received a Notice of decision to cancel, you are required to return your qualification(s) and/or statements of attainment(s).

The documents must be returned to ASQA within 7 days of the date of this notice. You may incur a penalty if you do not comply.

If you continue to use your qualification(s) and/or statements of attainment(s), ASQA may take further action and penalties apply.  

You can return your original certificate(s) to ASQA’s Brisbane office:

Attention: Qualification Cancellations 
Australian Skills Quality Authority 
GPO Box 9928 
BRISBANE QLD 4001 

If you received your certificates in a digital format from the RTO, you must return them to ASQA by email: qualificationintegrity@asqa.gov.au 

The first step is to respond to the Notice of Intent and provide supporting documentation and relevant information, using the link provided in the notice. You can also access the response form on ASQA’s website. 

It is important you reply to the notice within the specified period as ASQA has not yet made a decision about your qualification. 

You should consider telling your employer and Licensing Authority, that you are engaging with ASQA in this process if your qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment:

• is/are required for you to undertake your role
• was/were presented to your employer for you to be appointed to your role
• was/were included as an educational requirement to obtain a construction industry-based licence or registration.

The first step is to respond to the Notice of Intent and provide supporting documentation and relevant information, using the link provided in the notice. 

It is important you reply to the Notice and within the specified period as ASQA has not yet made a decision about your qualification.

If you used the qualification(s) or statement(s) of attainment as part of your visa application process, you should consider telling your current training provider that you are engaging with ASQA in this process.

If you have a VET Student Loans debt that you believe you should not have, you can contact VET student loan complaints | Commonwealth Ombudsman for information and advice, or phone 1300 362 072.

If you are an overseas student, then you can contact the Overseas student complaints | Commonwealth Ombudsman for assistance.

There are several consumer protection agencies that may be able to assist.

• Australian Capital Territory: Access Canberra
• New South Wales: NSW Fair Trading
• Northern Territory: NT Consumer Affairs
• Queensland: Office of Fair Trading Queensland
• South Australia: SA Office of Consumer and Business Services (CBS)
• Tasmania: Tasmania Consumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS)
• Victoria: Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV)
• Western Australia: WA Consumer Protection - Department Of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) has advice for Problem with a product or service you bought | ACCC on their website.

ASQA will provide you a written notice of its decision after it has reviewed all the supporting documentation and relevant information you have provided. Where ASQA makes a decision to cancel qualification(s) and/or statement(s) of attainment, ASQA recommends searching for a registered training provider or training course on Your Career. Your Career is Australia's directory of training. It includes information on training in Australia for school leavers, students, apprentices, and employers. 

When choosing a training or education provider, it is important to consider whether the provider and the course will meet your needs and expectations. ASQA’s Choosing a course and provider section includes a consumer checklist with important questions to ask a potential provider.

You could undertake a Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) assessment with another provider. RPL may be based on evidence collected through formal, non-formal and informal learning to determine the extent to which a person has achieved the required learning and/or competency outcomes to be awarded a unit of credit; this is often matched with ‘gap’ training, to meet the full competency requirements of a unit or course.

Formal learning, as the term relates to RPL, may mean units of credit which are related, but not equivalent to, the credit being sought, or credits which are no longer current.

Non-formal learning refers to learning, which is structured and focused, but which is delivered outside the Australian Qualifications Framework; for example, seminars, continuous professional development activities, and non-accredited training.

Informal learning refers to learning which is gained without syllabus or curriculum without any formal or non-formal direction – in the vocational sector this often relates to skills acquired through the workplace, which have not been directed by an instructor or structured to lead to a recognised outcome.

You can provide a variety of documentation. This includes, but is not limited to:

• records of previously completed training
• assessment items
• assessment records and/or
• declarations from a student’s employer.

You can also speak with your employer about other training opportunities.

Once a qualification and/or statement of attainment is cancelled it is no longer valid, so you will not be able to use it to seek a credit transfer.

Call ASQA on 1300 701 801 (dial +61 3 9613 3910 from outside Australia).

If you are experiencing distress help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, anywhere in Australia. If you need help now, call: 

• Lifeline – 13 11 14
• Beyond Blue – 1300 224 636.

Information for employers and the general public who may be impacted by ASQA’s regulatory actions is available on the DEWR website.