Asbestos removal licensing in Australia: Class A, Class B and notification

Asbestos remains the biggest single cause of work-related death in Australia, and the rules around removing it are correspondingly strict. This guide explains when asbestos removal needs a licence, the difference between Class A and Class B, when you must notify the regulator, the control plan, air monitoring and clearance requirements, the register every older workplace should hold, and the trail of records a removal job generates. Requirements are set under the model WHS laws and administered by each state and territory regulator, so check the rules where you work.

Class A vs Class B licences

Two licence classes cover asbestos removal. A Class B licence allows the removal of more than 10 square metres of non-friable (bonded) asbestos, the solid, stable material such as asbestos-cement sheeting where the fibres are bound in. A Class A licence is required to remove friable asbestos, the more dangerous, easily-crumbled form that readily releases fibres, and a Class A licence also covers non-friable work. Small quantities of non-friable asbestos (10 square metres or less) can generally be removed without a licence, but the safe-work requirements still apply in full, the exemption is about the licence, not about doing the work carelessly. Naturally occurring asbestos and asbestos-contaminated soil have their own considerations.

When you must notify the regulator

Licensed asbestos removal work must be notified to the WHS regulator in your state or territory before it starts, generally at least five days beforehand, with details of the site, the licence holder, the type and amount of asbestos, and the removal dates. Genuine emergencies have a separate, faster process. Notification is not a formality; it lets the regulator know hazardous work is happening and where, and doing licensed removal without notifying is itself a breach.

The asbestos removal control plan and SWMS

Before licensed removal begins, the licence holder must prepare an asbestos removal control plan (ARCP) setting out how the removal will be carried out, the method, the containment and decontamination arrangements, the waste handling, and the controls to stop fibres spreading. Because asbestos removal is high-risk construction work, a SWMS is also required. The two documents work together: the control plan is specific to the asbestos removal, and the SWMS addresses the high-risk work method.

Air monitoring and clearance

Friable (Class A) removal generally requires independent air monitoring by a licensed asbestos assessor during the work, to confirm fibres are being controlled, and a clearance inspection and certificate before the area is reoccupied, the assessor confirms the area is safe and issues clearance. Non-friable removal has clearance requirements too, though the air-monitoring rules differ. The principle is the same: the area is not handed back until it has been checked and cleared, and that clearance is documented.

The asbestos register and management plan

Removal is only part of the picture. Any workplace in a building constructed before the end of 2003 must have an asbestos register identifying where asbestos is (or is presumed to be), and, where asbestos is present or presumed, an asbestos management plan for how it is managed. The register must be maintained, reviewed and made available to anyone who might disturb the material, including contractors doing maintenance or refurbishment. Many asbestos incidents happen not during planned removal but when someone drills, cuts or breaks material they did not know was asbestos, which is exactly what the register exists to prevent.

Training, waste and health monitoring

Workers involved in asbestos work need appropriate training, asbestos awareness for those who may encounter it, and specific competencies for removal workers. Asbestos waste must be double-wrapped, labelled, transported and disposed of at a facility licensed to accept it, with the disposal documented. And workers carrying out licensed removal are subject to health monitoring. Each of these adds to the record trail.

The records that matter

An asbestos removal job generates a substantial, connected trail: the removalist's licence, the notification, the asbestos removal control plan, the SWMS, the air-monitoring results, the clearance certificate, the waste disposal records, the worker training and the health-monitoring records. Keeping that trail complete and filed against the job is both a legal requirement and your protection if anyone, a client, a regulator, an occupant, or a court, asks years later. Given the latency of asbestos disease, "years later" is not hypothetical, and a scattered or incomplete record is a real exposure. Keeping licences, control plans, monitoring and clearance records organised against the job is what WHS compliance software is built for.

Asbestos removal quick reference

• Class B: non-friable removal over 10m²; Class A: friable removal (and non-friable)
• Non-friable ≤10m² can be unlicensed, but the safe-work rules still apply
• Notify the regulator before licensed removal, generally at least five days ahead
• Prepare an asbestos removal control plan and a SWMS
• Friable removal needs independent air monitoring and a clearance certificate before reoccupation
• Pre-2004 workplaces need an asbestos register and management plan
• Keep the full trail: licence, notification, control plan, SWMS, monitoring, clearance, waste, training

Related reading: our SWMS guide, roofing SWMS (asbestos-cement roofs), and WHS compliance software. This is general information, not legal advice, always follow the current requirements of your regulator. You can keep asbestos licences, plans and clearance records in one place with Complys, free for 30 days.