To provide for the safety and wellbeing of children and young people, VIT must assess all applications to ensure only qualified and suitable people are able to undertake the duties of a teacher or early childhood teacher.

Rigorous assessments are undertaken for all application types, including new teacher applications, applications for further grants of provisional registration or permission to teach, and renewal of registration applications.

How long does it take for an application to be assessed?

Most applications take between 4-6 weeks to assess once all documentation has been submitted. In some cases, applications may be assessed more quickly.

The length of time taken to assess an application depends on the type of application and each applicant's circumstances, and will only be fully assessed once all documentation has been provided.

In the case of applicants who are already registered with VIT, you can view the status of an application through the teacher list in your Employer portal.

There are many reasons why an application is marked as ‘pending VIT.’ For example, VIT may be seeking evidence of a change of name, waiting for a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCCHC) to be conducted, assessing declarations made by the teacher on their application form, or assessing the results of an NCCHC.
 
Employers should not assume that an application is marked ‘pending VIT’ because there is a problem with the application or that it will ultimately be refused.

Can VIT disclose information about the assessment of an application?

Due to VIT’s privacy obligations, VIT is only able to disclose personal, sensitive and health information about an individual in limited circumstances.

In the case of an employer seeking information about the status of the application, the applicant’s circumstances, or any matters that may be holding up the application, this information can only be provided with the applicant’s specific and informed consent. 

This means that if an employer wishes to enquire about an individual who has a pending application, the employer must demonstrate to VIT that the applicant consents to this information being provided to their employer.

How can I check whether a teacher has conditions on their registration?

Some teachers may have conditions placed on their registration. These conditions may be placed on the registration by agreement, because it is required by law, or because VIT has concerns about the teacher’s health or conduct.  

The VIT works closely with all teachers who have conditions on their registration, and monitors their compliance with those conditions. Often, this includes the teacher providing regular reports to VIT to demonstrate their progress.  

One way in which an employer can find out about the conditions on a teacher’s registration is to have a conversation with the teacher and request this information. In most circumstances, teachers can provide their employer with a copy of the conditions by showing them relevant correspondence from VIT. This may include a registration card letter, a signed Agreement between VIT and the teacher or a Notice of Conditions on Registration issued by VIT. 

Alternatively, if the employer would like to make enquiries with VIT about a teacher’s conditions, the employer must demonstrate to VIT that the teacher consents to this information being provided to their employer. One way to do this is to ask the applicant to provide VIT with a signed Consent to disclose personal and health information form.

How can I check if a teacher is registered with VIT?

The best place to check a teacher’s registration status is your Employer portal or the register of teachers, as these provide real time information about a teacher’s registration status.