Choosing between Leave of Absence and Non-practising accreditation
Leave of Absence and Non-practising accreditation offer flexible options to manage your accreditation. Compare their differences to find which option best suits you when you are not teaching.
Find the option that best suits you
Leave of Absence and Non-practising accreditation offer flexible options to manage your teaching accreditation.
You should consider your personal circumstances when deciding which option suits you best.
You cannot teach in any NSW school or service when you are on a Leave of Absence or hold Non-practising accreditation.
Leave of Absence
You can apply for a Leave of Absence if you are planning on taking a break from teaching in a school or service for a period of 6 months up to 5 years. You can take a Leave of Absence at any level of accreditation.
A Leave of Absence may suit someone who needs a break due to:
- illness or misadventure
- taking parental leave
- travel
- working in a different industry.
Non-practising accreditation
Non-practising accreditation is voluntary. It allows you to put your accreditation timeframe on hold indefinitely and provides a seamless return to teaching in a school or service in the future. You can change to active accreditation at any time to return to teach.
Non-practising accreditation may suit you if you are accredited at Proficient or higher in NSW and are no longer working in a school or service. Or you may have moved to another role for a longer period of time, such as:
- non-school based roles in education sector office
- non-service based roles in early childhood employer office
- education union employees
- NESA employees
- early intervention
- inclusion support
- university lecturers.
Professional development
If you hold Non-practising accreditation for:
- less than 6 consecutive months, your maintenance due date will remain the same as your original due date
- between 6 months and 5 years, your previous maintenance period is extended by the time you are away should you return to teaching
- more than 5 years, your maintenance period will reset when you return to teaching. Any professional development (PD) you completed will not count towards your new maintenance period.
Compare your options
The following table can help you to quickly compare the features of Leave of Absence and Non-practising accreditation.
| Leave of Absence | Non-practising | |
|---|---|---|
| Suitable for | Any NESA accredited teacher in NSW taking a break from teaching in a school or service | Any NESA accredited teacher in NSW who is no longer working in a school or service |
| Timeframe | 6 months to 5 years | 6 months to unlimited |
| WWCC required | No | Yes |
| Accreditation level required | Any | Proficient or higher |
| Annual fee payable | Conditions apply | Yes |
| Name on NSW Public Register of Teachers | No | Yes |
| Meets suitability requirements | No | Yes |
| Option to submit Maintenance | No | No |
| Option to complete PD if maintaining | Yes, but cannot finalise maintenance | Yes, but cannot finalise maintenance |
| Accreditation Supervisor or HALT Assessor | Yes | Yes |
| Make accreditation recommendations/attestations | No | No |
| Option to submit Proficient Teacher application | No | N/A |
Cancel your accreditation
You can voluntarily cancel your accreditation at any time while on a Leave of Absence or holding Non-practising accreditation.