Labour Hire Licence Victoria: A Complete Guide for Host Employers

Overview

• Host businesses commit their own offence by engaging unlicensed labour hire providers in Victoria, with 2026-27 penalties of up to $669,120 (3,200 penalty units) for corporations and $167,280 (800 units) for individuals, and no proof of knowledge is required.
• From 1 June 2026 the fit and proper person test also assesses character, professionalism, integrity and undisclosed control or influence over the provider, and failing to disclose such a relationship can be grounds for licence refusal or cancellation on its own.
• Licensed providers must now disclose tax and superannuation information for independent contractors, and the address of any accommodation they provide to workers.
• Check any provider on the Labour Hire Authority’s public register (updated hourly, over 5,700 active licences): confirm the status is active, note the expiry date, verify industry classifications match your work, and keep a dated screenshot.
• Wise Recruitments holds Victorian licence VICLHL10427, covering warehouse, logistics, food processing and manufacturing.

Using unlicensed labour hire providers in Victoria breaches the *Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018* (Vic), with maximum penalties of 3,200 penalty units for corporations and 800 penalty units for individuals. Host businesses, not just providers, face their own offence liability, separate from the provider’s.

What the Labour Hire Licensing Act actually requires?

The *Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018* (Vic) commenced on 29 October 2019 and is administered by the Labour Hire Authority (LHA). It establishes two key obligations: any person or business providing labour hire services in Victoria must hold a licence from the Authority, and host businesses commit a separate offence by engaging unlicensed providers.

When the host business commits an offence: a host commits an offence when engaging a provider that lacks a current licence. The Authority does not need to prove the host knew the provider was unlicensed. Verification responsibility rests with the host before and throughout the engagement.

When a provider commits an offence: providers breach the Act by operating without a licence, supplying workers outside their licensed industry scope, or entering arrangements designed to circumvent the Act.

Penalties at a glance (2026-27 financial year, per the Labour Hire Authority’s current rates, last updated 1 July 2026):

Offence	Corporation	Individual
Providing or engaging unlicensed labour hire	3,200 units ($669,120)	800 units ($167,280)
Entering an avoidance arrangement	3,200 units ($669,120)	800 units ($167,280)
Failing to notify the LHA of suspected avoidance	800 units ($167,280)	200 units ($41,820)

 

Penalties apply per offence, not per organisation. For a mid-sized Victorian business, a single engagement with an unlicensed provider can exceed its annual labour hire expenditure.

*Source: Labour Hire Authority penalties page.*

The ‘fit and proper person’ test: what it now checks

Every labour hire licence in Victoria depends on the people running the business passing what the Labour Hire Authority calls the fit and proper person test. It applies to nominated officers and other “relevant persons” in the business, not just the company itself.

From 1 June 2026, the test got stronger. The Authority now looks at character, professionalism and integrity, and it requires businesses to disclose whether a decision-maker is controlled by, or substantially influenced by, another person or body corporate not already listed on the licence: a shareholder, adviser, holding company, or relative exercising real influence over the business. Failing to disclose that relationship can be grounds for licence refusal or cancellation on its own, separate from anything else the business has done right.

Under the Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018, a person is not fit and proper if, within the preceding 10 years, they (or a company they were an officer of) were found guilty of an indictable offence involving fraud, dishonesty or drug trafficking punishable by three months or more in prison. The lookback for workplace-law contraventions, enforceable undertakings and breaches of minimum accommodation standards is shorter, at five years. Insolvency, licence cancellations and certain corporate disqualification histories in that same five-year window also count against the test.

What this means for a host business vetting a provider: ask not just “do you hold a current licence” but “has anyone with real control over your business, named or not, had a workplace-law finding, an enforceable undertaking, or a licence issue in the last five years.” A provider that hesitates on that question is telling you something the licence number alone will not.

*Source: Labour Hire Authority, labour hire law changes 2026; Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018 (Vic) s22.*

Superannuation, OHS and accommodation: what a licensed provider must keep in order

The fit and proper person test is not just about who runs the business; it is increasingly about how well they run it day to day. Since 1 June 2026, the Authority has widened what it can look at when deciding whether to grant, refuse or cancel a licence, and three areas matter directly to a host business choosing a provider.

Superannuation. Licensed providers must now supply tax and superannuation information relating to independent contractors as part of their compliance disclosures, not just for their direct employees. A provider with a history of late or missed super payments is carrying exactly the kind of compliance record the fit and proper test is designed to catch. And from 1 July 2026, the payday super rules make super timing a weekly rather than quarterly obligation, so a provider’s discipline here is easier to see, not harder. See our full breakdown of payday super and who is liable when workers are placed through labour hire.

Health and safety. Workplace-law contraventions, including WHS breaches, sit inside the five-year lookback for the fit and proper test. A provider’s WorkCover and public-liability certificates of currency are the paperwork; a clean workplace-law compliance history is what the Authority is actually assessing behind them. Our separate guide covers who carries WHS liability for a placed worker in more detail.

Providing accommodation. If a provider houses workers, which is common in food processing and regional placements, they must now disclose the address of any accommodation provided and meet clear requirements around accommodation and PPE standards in high-risk industries. This is a newer disclosure duty, added in the 1 June 2026 changes, and it is worth asking about directly if your placement involves workers who may be housed by the provider.

None of these three are separate from the licence check; they are the evidence behind it. A provider happy to walk through all three with you, unprompted, is the one that has nothing to hide from the Authority either.

*Source: Labour Hire Authority, labour hire law changes 2026.*

How to check if a labour hire provider is licensed?

All licensed providers appear on the Labour Hire Authority’s public register, updated hourly. Over 5,700 active licences are currently listed.

Step-by-step check (under two minutes):

1. Go to labourhireauthority.vic.gov.au and select “Check a provider’s licence status.”
2. Search by licence number, business name, ABN, or trading name.
3. Confirm status shows “Active” (green icon).
4. Note the licence expiry date and check renewal 30 days prior.
5. Verify industry classifications match your work needs.
6. Review any conditions listed on the licence.
7. Record the licence number, expiry date, and save a dated screenshot.

What to put in your procurement file:

• Certified copy of the current licence
• Licence number and expiry date
• Industry scope covered
• Certificate of currency for WorkCover and public liability insurance
• ABN and company details matching the register
• Screenshot of the register search with date/time

This documentation becomes your primary defence in an Authority audit.

 

The industry scope catch (important)

A Victorian labour hire licence does not authorise supply to every industry. Each licence specifies the industries the provider is authorised to supply into. Supplying outside that scope breaches the Act for the provider and exposes the host.

Example scenario: a provider holding “meat processing” scope receives a request from a Truganina warehouse to supply forklift drivers for general goods distribution. The provider lacks warehousing or logistics scope. Both parties face exposure.

How to verify scope matches your need:

• Open the industry classifications section on the provider’s register entry.
• Match the listed industries to your intended work.
• Request written confirmation from the provider that the workers will perform work within the licensed industries.
• Include that confirmation in your contract.
• If a scope gap exists, the provider must apply for a licence variation, which takes weeks, not days.

Wise Recruitments and Consulting’s Victorian licence (VICLHL10427) covers warehouse, logistics, food processing, and manufacturing.

What happens if you use an unlicensed provider by accident

Provider licences can be suspended and scope restrictions can change. Procurement shortcuts happen. The Act permits pathways for good-faith hosts, though not automatically.

Exposure assessment. If investigated, the Authority considers:

• Whether the host checked the register before engagement
• Whether written labour hire agreements reference licence numbers and expiry dates
• Whether the host continued the engagement after discovering the licensing issue
• Whether internal procurement controls mandate licence verification
• Whether the host acted on Authority notifications

A host that can demonstrate documented, reasonable diligence is in a materially stronger position than one without evidence.

Notification obligation. A host that becomes aware of, or reasonably suspects, unlicensed operation or an avoidance arrangement must notify the Labour Hire Authority. Failure to notify is a separate offence carrying up to 800 penalty units for corporations. The Authority publishes its notification channels at labourhireauthority.vic.gov.au.

Due diligence checklist for procurement teams:

• Written policy requiring licence verification before any labour hire engagement
• Supplier onboarding forms capturing licence numbers and scope
• Pre-engagement register checks with dated screenshots stored in supplier files
• Contract templates referencing licence numbers and scope as warranties
• Annual re-verification for rolling or long-term arrangements
• Monthly checks of LHA enforcement notices for engaged providers
• A named accountability owner within procurement, operations, or HR
• An escalation pathway for supplier verification failures

This framework should slot into your existing procurement procedures immediately.

Common exemptions

Not every arrangement triggers the Act. The Authority publishes exemption guidance at labourhireauthority.vic.gov.au, and none of these should be relied on without verifying your specific facts.

Genuine subcontracting. Genuine subcontracting falls outside labour hire classification. The determinative test is whether the subcontractor controls how the work is performed, provides their own tools and materials, carries their own risk, and is engaged for a defined outcome. If you direct day-to-day tasks, set hours, supervise the work on site, or supply the equipment, labour hire classification applies regardless of what the contract calls it.

Internal secondments within corporate groups. The Act does not apply to secondments within a genuine corporate group (parent, subsidiary, related bodies corporate) sharing workers internally. Exercise caution: separate service entities supplying related trading entities have been treated as in-scope in enforcement action.

Short-term executive placements by specialist firms. Certain executive search arrangements, where the worker engages permanently with the host via a one-off placement fee, fall outside the Act. Ongoing temporary supply does not qualify.

Genuine independent contractors. Bona fide independent contractors working under their own ABN, directing their own work, invoicing directly, and bearing commercial risk are not labour hire workers.

Exemptions are narrow doorways, not wide exits. Engaging a licensed provider resolves the ambiguity.

Cost of compliance for Victorian hosts

Compliance carries minimal cost; non-compliance carries substantial expense.

Compliance step	Time	Cost
Register check per new provider	10-15 minutes	Nil
Written supplier onboarding	30 minutes	Nil
Annual re-verification	10 minutes per provider	Nil
Contract template with licence warranty	One-off	Legal review typically under $500
Training one procurement/HR staff member	1 hour	Nil

Total annual cost for a business using three providers: under two hours a year. Against maximum penalties in the hundreds of thousands, this is not a finely balanced calculation.

What to ask a labour hire provider before you sign?

The 60-second compliance screen:

1. What is your licence number?
2. What industries does your licence cover?
3. When was the licence granted and when does it expire?
4. Are you willing to warrant in the contract that you hold a current licence and will notify us within two business days of any status change?
5. Do you maintain current WorkCover and public liability certificates of currency?
6. Will you provide monthly compliance updates within the agreement?
7. Can you confirm no relevant person in your business has an undisclosed compliance, workplace-law or licensing history in the last five years?

A provider that hesitates on any of these is not prepared to operate in Victoria.

What this looks like in practice?

A Melbourne food manufacturer engaging labour hire providers for 2026 production line work should have these on file before workers arrive: a copy of the current licence certificate, written scope confirmation for meat or food processing, workers compensation certificates of currency, public liability certificates (minimum $20 million is the industry standard), and a signed engagement agreement including a licence-status warranty. The file should record the register-check date, licence expiry date, and provider signatory details. In an Authority audit, this documentation is the file investigators ask for first. Five minutes of preparation per engagement eliminates the evidence gap later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a labour hire licence in VIC?
Host businesses (those using the workers) do not need a licence. The licence requirement applies to providers. A Victorian host must verify that any provider it engages holds a current licence covering its industry. Engaging an unlicensed provider is an offence under the *Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018* (Vic).

What is the ‘fit and proper person’ test? 
A character and compliance check the Labour Hire Authority applies to a licence applicant’s nominated officers and other relevant persons. Strengthened from 1 June 2026 to also cover professionalism, integrity, and hidden control or influence by an undisclosed third party.

How much is a labour hire licence in Victoria?
Licence fees depend on the provider’s turnover and are indexed annually. For 2025-26, application fees range from $1,815.48 (tier 1, turnover under $2 million) to $8,942.92 (tier 3, turnover over $10 million), with annual fees from $1,260.75 to $6,186.08. Current fees are published at labourhireauthority.vic.gov.au.

What is the penalty for using an unlicensed provider in Victoria?
Corporations face up to 3,200 penalty units per offence, which is $669,120 at the 2026-27 rate. Individuals, including executive officers, face up to 800 units, or $167,280. Penalties apply per engagement, not per organisation. Current figures are published on the Labour Hire Authority’s penalties page.

How do I check a labour hire licence in Victoria?
Use the Labour Hire Authority public register at labourhireauthority.vic.gov.au. Search by licence number, business name, or ABN. Confirm the status is Active, verify the industry scope covers your work, and note the expiry date. Save a dated screenshot to your supplier file.

Which states require a labour hire licence?
Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, and the ACT require state labour hire provider licences. NSW and WA currently have no state regime, though both have faced policy pressure to introduce one.

What if the provider’s licence expires during our engagement?
Providers must renew before expiry. If a licence lapses and supply continues, both parties face exposure. Request written renewal confirmation 30 days before expiry and check the register the day after expiry. If the status is not Active, cease the engagement and contact the Authority.

Need labour hire workers in Melbourne or Victoria?

Wise Recruitments and Consulting is a licensed Victorian labour hire provider (VICLHL10427) supplying warehouse, logistics, food processing, and manufacturing workers across Melbourne, Geelong, and regional Victoria. Every engagement comes with licence verification, a written agreement including licensing warranties, and ongoing compliance updates. Request a quote or call 1300 021 673 to discuss your staffing needs.