General registration

• Qualifying for general registration
• When to apply
• How to apply and what to send us
• Fees for general registration
• Application form

Qualifying for general registration

You are eligible to apply for general registration in Victoria if you have been awarded a degree in veterinary science or medicine or a non-award qualification on the AVBC's list of generally recognised qualifications (PDF). For some degrees on the list, graduates must also have passed the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination (NAVLE). Applicants may also need to demonstrate their English language competency per AVBC English language standards (PDF).

If you are not sure you qualify for general registration, contact the AVBC at [email protected] or +61 3 9620 7844.

When to apply

The Board meets to consider applications every month. There is a cut-off date for submitting applications before each monthly Board meeting. You can ask for your application to be fast-tracked if you miss a cut-off date or want to be registered before a Board meeting. Fast-track processing takes up to 7 days and costs AUD$155 extra.

How to apply and what to send

Please email your application to [email protected] - you must email all documents as PDF files, NOT .jpeg, .png or other image files.  

To apply for general registration, you must:

1. Arrange for the registration or licensing authority where you are currently registered to email a letter of professional standing or license verification to [email protected]. You cannot send the letter to the Board yourself. The authority where you are registered must send the letter directly to us.
   • If you have active registration with more than one registration or licensing authority, you must arrange for all of those authorities to send the Board a letter of professional standing or license verification.
   • If you are not currently registered with any authority, you must arrange for the authority where you were last registered to send the letter or license verification.
     
     
2. Send the Board the following documents:
   • A completed application form
   • A personal resume covering all education, work and veterinary activities up to now. If there are any gaps in your veterinary work or activities, please explain why. Include your place of birth, and your places of primary, secondary and tertiary education. If English is not your primary language, include a section detailing your English language education.
   • A certified colour photocopy of your degree or diploma certificate from the tertiary institution where you graduated in veterinary science or medicine. Graduates of international universities who have taken the NAVLE, you must also arrange for the Veterinary Information Verifying Agency to email a score transfer certificate to [email protected]
   • Your English language skills/qualifications, using the following document as a guide: AVBC English Language Standards (PDF).
   • A certified colour photocopy of photographic identification. If your ID is a driver's licence, the certified copy must contain photos of both the front and back pages of the licence. 

• To certify a document, a person authorised to certify documents must write or stamp on the copy of the document: ‘I have sighted the document and certify this to be a true copy of the original.’ They must write this on the front of the copy (not a blank back page), and they must write this on each page if there is more than one page.
• Find out which types of people are officially authorised to witness documents in the country or State where you are located. NOTE Please do not get your documents certified by a relative, housemate, or someone with whom you are in a relationship: 
• In Victoria people authorised to certify documents include pharmacists, police officers, justices of the peace, and registered veterinary practitioners.
• International applicants: for Canada, see for Ireland, see Authenticating documents; for New Zealand, see Get a document witnessed or authenticated; for the United Kingdom, see Office of Authentications; for other countries, search online using the terms 'authenticate documents' and the name of your country. Email us first if it is expensive to get a document authenticated in your country.

Fees for general registration

• Fees for the period 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021 are AUD$545, consisting of a $155 application fee and $390 in registration fees.
• Fees for the period 1 December 2020 to 30 June 2021 are AUD$350, consisting of a $155 application fee and $195 in registration fees.

NOTE to have your application fast tracked, you would also pay a $155 fast track fee.

More information:  general registration and service fees

Application form

• You must print, complete and sign the statutory declaration in the form in front of a person authorised to witness statutory declarations (statutory declaration witnesses can also certify your degree testamur and photographic ID). 
• If you do not have a residential address in Victoria yet, write TO BE ADVISED. Inform us as soon as you have a residential address.
• If you do not have a practice address yet, write NO REGISTER ADDRESS. Inform us as soon as you have a practice address
• For the payment section of the form, fees depend on the time of year you are applying, e.g. for 2019-2020:
  • Fees for the period 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021 are AUD$545, consisting of a $155 application fee and $390 in registration fees.
  • Fees for the period 1 December 2029 to 30 June 2021 are $350, consisting of a $155 application fee and $195 in registration fees.
  NOTE you would pay an additional fee of $155 if you ask for fast track processing of your application.

Privacy of your information: The Board will only use and disclose personal information collected in the registration form for the purposes of registration, unless the Board has obtained your consent to use the information for additional purposes. More information: Privacy and data protection policy