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Business types in this industry

The education and training industry includes:

  • private education and training providers that operate for profit
  • tutoring businesses 
  • educational gaming apps and other online platforms
  • coaching businesses.

Industry Statistics

Industry research is an important part of planning for your business, it may help you identify:

  • economic and industry trends
  • establish or improve your business
  • help you keep pace with your industry.

See statistics about Australian industry and Education on the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) website. 

The Australian Tax Office provides a range of industry benchmarks to help you compare your business's performance against similar businesses in your industry. Read about the benchmarks for tutoring and coaching.

The Department of Education has a range of data, statistics and publications. See data for higher education and international education. 

Check out the profile for the education and training industry, on the Labour Market Insights website. This will give you an idea of what's happening in the Australian job market.

Legislation, standards and initiatives

It’s important that you are aware of the laws that apply to the education and training industry. Key legislation and standards include:

Licences and permits

Federal, state, territory and local governments manage the licences and permits for the education and training industry. You may need to consider: 

  • registered training organisation (RTO) approval
  • copyright licence - to reproduce media content for educational purposes 
  • education services for overseas students (ESOS) approval  
  • teaching registration
  • working with vulnerable people registration.

Find the licences and permits you need for your business

Search the Australian Business Licence and Information Service (ABLIS) to find information on the licences you may need.

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Taxation

Education and Training industry businesses have specific goods and services tax (GST) measures. It’s important that you know your GST obligations and to make sure you register with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) to ensure you can claim your GST credits.

Employing people

If you employ staff, you need to comply with Australia’s national workplace laws specific to the education and training industry.

Workplace health and safety (WHS)

There are general work health and safety regulations for all businesses, however there are state and territory WHS requirements that apply to businesses in the education and training industry:

Intellectual Property

It is important to protect your intellectual property when starting and growing your business. ‘Intellectual property’ (IP) is the creation of original ideas, inventions or brands.

If you have a business in the education and training industry, you may need to consider different types of IP. For example, this may be a patent for a new educational system, a trademark to protect your brand or a design for a new educational resource.

Find support

If you need advice or support, consider getting help from your industry association, a business adviser, accountant or legal professional.

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