Media release

29 Jul 2013

Occupational Therapy Board of Australia lowers fees effective from 1 August 2013.

The Occupational Therapy Board of Australia has announced that the fees for occupational therapists have been reduced.

The Board has reduced fees by $50 for application for registration and registration renewals. Fees for other registration types have also been reduced. The fee reduction will apply from 1 August and cover the registration period for most practitioners from 1 December 2013 to 30 November 2014.

Board Chair, Dr Mary Russell, said that the Board was able to lower the fee as it is now able to forecast more accurately the cost of regulation with the experience and efficiencies gained over the past 12 months of being part of the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (National Scheme).

‘Before joining the National Scheme there was no way of knowing the number of occupational therapists in Australia, as the profession was only regulated in some states and territories. This meant that the Board had to use the best available information to set the registration fee for the first year of national regulation,’ Dr Russell said.

‘With more reliable figures now available, showing that there are more occupational therapists in Australia than previously thought, the Board has been able to reduce fees while ensuring that it still maintains adequate financial reserves that allow it to fulfil its regulatory functions,’ Dr Russell said.

The National Boards in the National Scheme have seen an increase in notifications against health practitioners (complaints) over the past year. As the number, complexity and cost of these cases can’t be accurately forecast, the Boards will continue to keep fees under close review to ensure careful financial management.

A fee schedule, including the fee arrangements for practitioners whose principal place of practice is NSW, will be published on the National Board’s website on 1 August 2013. Any variation to the fees payable by NSW practitioners will be announced by the Health Professional Councils Authority in NSW.¹

More detailed information about the Board’s financial operations will be outlined in the Health Profession Agreement between the Board and AHPRA, which will be published on the website. This agreement sets out the services AHPRA will provide to support the Board to regulate the profession.

The regulation of occupational therapists is funded solely by registrant fees and there is no cross subsidisation between professions.

For more information

• Visit the Occupational Therapy Board website 
• For registration enquiries: 1300 419 495 (within Australia) +61 3 8708 9001 (overseas callers) 
• For media enquiries: (03) 8708 9200

Download a PDF of this Media release - 29 July 2013 (98.4 KB,PDF)

¹NSW has a co-regulatory arrangement and notifications about practitioners in NSW are managed by the Health Professional Councils Authority.