Asbestos duties navigator

Work out your asbestos duties: whether you need a register and management plan, which removal licence the job needs, the regulator notice and clearance, then draft a register.

Figures checked 5 November 2026. Free to use, no sign-in.

Your duties

Asbestos register

confirm the building date

A register is needed unless the building was constructed after 31 December 2003 and no asbestos is identified or likely (s 425(6) of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW)). Check council or building records for the construction date.

Asbestos management plan: identify first

If asbestos is identified, assumed or likely to be present, a written plan is needed (s 429 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW)).

Removal: none planned

If removal is planned later, check the licence class before work is booked.

Regulator notice: depends on the licence class

Licensed removal needs written notice to the regulator at least 5 days before it starts.

Clearance: depends on the licence class

Clearance inspections and certificates are required after licensed removal work.

These duties fall on the person with management or control of the workplace, and on the business that commissions removal work.

General information, not legal advice.

Draft an asbestos register

One line per item: location | material | friable or non-friable | condition | date identified.

Asbestos register

Check before you use it

Only a competent person (or a licensed asbestos assessor) should identify asbestos; don’t sample material yourself.
Label or otherwise indicate the location of asbestos at the workplace.
Consult the workers who will be affected, and their health and safety representatives if you have them (s 47 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW)).
Replace every [bracketed] item and delete defaults that don’t fit your workplace.
Check the current law and guidance from SafeWork NSW before relying on the document.

Workplace	[Workplace name]
Address	[Address]
Person with management or control	[Name]
Identified by (competent person or assessor)	[Name and qualification]
Prepared by	[Name and position]
Jurisdiction	New South Wales

Draft asbestos register under s 425 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW). This is a draft prepared from the details entered. It does not by itself show that your obligations are met: check it against your workplace, consult the people who will use it, and update it when things change.

Asbestos identified or assumed

[List each item, or state that no asbestos or asbestos-containing material has been identified and none is likely to be present]

Keeping this register

Review and revise it when the management plan is reviewed, more asbestos is found, or asbestos is removed, disturbed, sealed or enclosed (s 426 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW)).
Keep it readily accessible to workers, their health and safety representatives and businesses working at the workplace (s 427 of the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2025 (NSW)).

Draft prepared with a free tool. Tailor it before use. General information, not legal advice.

Highlighted text in [brackets] still needs your input. Nothing you type is saved or sent. General information, not legal advice.

How this works

Answers are applied to Chapter 8 of the WHS Regulations: identifying asbestos (r 422), the register (r 425 and r 426), the management plan (r 429 and r 430), licensed removal (r 458, r 485 and r 487), notice to the regulator (r 466) and clearance (r 473 to r 475). Queensland’s earlier building date and the ACT’s licence rule are built in. In NSW, Queensland and the ACT the regulations call these sections.

In Victoria the tool applies Part 4.4 of the OHS Regulations 2017: identification and the register (r 226 to r 228), risk control (r 231 and r 232), limited removal (r 250), licence classes (r 264 and r 265), notice (r 298 and r 299) and clearance (r 294 and r 297).

Answering “Unsure” never gives a yes or no: the tool tells you what to find out first.

Not included: naturally occurring asbestos, demolition and refurbishment duties, health monitoring, and transport and disposal of asbestos waste.

Legal basis

Checked against these sources on 5 November 2026. Spotted a figure that looks wrong? Tell us.

Questions

Does every workplace need an asbestos register?

No. Under the WHS Regulations a register is not needed if the building was constructed after 31 December 2003 and no asbestos has been identified or is likely to be present. Queensland’s cut-off is 31 December 1989, and in Western Australia it is buildings constructed on or after 31 December 2003. Victoria has no date test: a register is needed wherever asbestos is present at the workplace. The register rules don’t apply to a home used only as a home.

When do we need a licensed asbestos removalist?

Friable asbestos always needs a Class A licence holder. Under the WHS Regulations, more than 10 square metres of non-friable asbestos needs a Class B (or A) licence holder; 10 square metres or less can be removed by a trained competent person. The ACT has no 10 square metre exception, so any non-friable removal needs a licence. In Victoria, unlicensed limited removal is allowed only for 10 square metres or less and no more than 1 hour of removal work in any 7 days.

How much notice does the regulator need?

The licensed removalist gives written notice at least 5 days before licensed removal starts, or in an emergency by phone straight away and in writing within 24 hours. In Victoria the licence holder notifies WorkSafe at least 24 hours before licensed removal of 10 square metres or less of non-friable asbestos, and at least 5 days before other licensed removal.

What happens after removal?

After licensed removal, the person who commissioned it arranges a clearance inspection by an independent person (a licensed asbestos assessor for Class A work), and a clearance certificate must be issued before anyone re-occupies the area. In Victoria a clearance certificate isn’t required where the work was only the removal of 10 square metres or less of non-friable asbestos.

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Workfloor answers pay, award, leave and termination questions for your team, with the Fair Work Act section or award clause behind each answer.

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