Founder Guide · Updated 18 May 2026
Practical, action-ordered, AU-specific. Covers your trade licence pathway, ABN, GST, White Card, insurance stack, tools and ute fit-out, pricing benchmarks by trade, and how to land your first ten clients.
In this guide
Trade licensing in Australia is state-administered, not federal — which means the path to legally trading as an electrician in Brisbane is different from Sydney or Perth. Pick your trade, then map the exact licence class, the prerequisite qualification (Certificate III is the baseline for most regulated trades), and the supervised hours required. Underestimating the licence step is the #1 reason new operators end up taking jobs they can't legally invoice.
Electrical
Cert III in Electrotechnology + state restricted/unrestricted electrical licence. Energy Safe Victoria, NSW Fair Trading, QBCC etc.
Plumbing
Cert III in Plumbing + state plumber's licence. Drainage, gas-fitting, roofing are separate endorsements.
Carpentry
Cert III in Carpentry. Building works >$3,300 (NSW) / $3,300 (QLD) need a builder's licence.
Painting
Cert III in Painting and Decorating. Licence required >$5,000 in QLD; trade contractor licence in NSW.
Tiling / waterproofing
Waterproofing is a separately licensed class in QLD and Victoria — critical for wet-area liability.
HVAC / refrigeration
Cert III + ARC refrigerant handling licence (Australian Refrigeration Council). Mandatory for any fluorocarbon work.
Landscaping / paving
Lower regulatory bar — but structural work (retaining walls >1m) typically needs a builder's licence.
Handyperson
Sub-licence-threshold work only. Watch the dollar caps closely — $3,300 NSW, $3,300 QLD, no cap in VIC but no regulated work.
An Australian Business Number (ABN) is mandatory before you can issue tax invoices, claim GST credits, or open a business bank account. Registration via the Australian Business Register is free, takes about 15 minutes, and you usually get the number on the spot. The bigger decision is structure — sole trader is fastest and cheapest, but a Pty Ltd company gives you limited liability protection that matters when you're cutting holes in load-bearing walls or wiring switchboards.
Sole trader
Free ABN, lodge income on your personal tax return. Unlimited personal liability — your house is on the table if something goes wrong.
Pty Ltd company
ASIC setup ~$576, annual review fee ~$321. Separates personal and business assets. Worth it once turnover >$120k or you take on staff.
Discretionary (family) trust
Used for income splitting between family members. Setup ~$1,500–$3,000 + corporate trustee. Talk to an accountant — not for first-year operators.
Partnership
Two-plus operators sharing profits. Cheap to set up, but each partner is jointly liable. Document terms before you start.
TFN for the entity
Pty Ltd companies have their own TFN separate from yours. Apply alongside ABN via the same online form.
Business name
Register via ASIC ($42 for 1 year, $98 for 3 years) if trading under anything other than your personal/company name.
GST registration is compulsory once your annual turnover hits or is reasonably expected to hit $75,000. Below that, registration is optional. Most tradies register from day one anyway because (a) you can claim GST credits on every tool, ute fuel and supplier invoice, and (b) commercial / builder clients expect to be invoiced with a GST-registered ABN. Failing to register after crossing the threshold means the ATO can backdate liability and bill you the GST you should have charged.
Threshold
$75,000 turnover in any rolling 12-month period. Once you can reasonably project it, you have 21 days to register.
How it works
Add 10% GST to invoices. Pay GST collected minus GST paid on business expenses to the ATO via a quarterly BAS.
BAS frequency
Quarterly is standard for tradies. Monthly is mandatory >$20m turnover; annual is allowed for some <$75k voluntary registrants.
PAYG instalments
ATO will assign quarterly income tax instalments once you've lodged a return showing business income — plan cash flow around BAS + PAYG together.
Cash vs accrual
Most small tradies use cash basis GST — you only pay GST on invoices that have actually been paid. Critical when builders pay 60–90 days late.
The General Construction Induction Card — universally known as the White Card — is the national entry ticket to any construction site in Australia. It's the CPCCWHS1001 unit of competency, issued via state-approved RTOs (Registered Training Organisations) under the model WHS regulations. Without one, principal contractors will legally refuse you site access. The card never expires, but Victoria voids it if you haven't worked construction for 2+ years, and you must carry it on every site.
Cost & time
$50–$150 depending on the RTO and state. Online course typically 6–8 hours. Issued within 60 days by the state regulator.
Who issues it
SafeWork NSW, WorkSafe VIC, Workplace Health & Safety QLD, WorkSafe WA, SafeWork SA, WorkSafe Tasmania, NT WorkSafe, WorkSafe ACT.
Reciprocity
Cards from one state are recognised nationally — but you must carry the physical (or digital) card on every site.
Trade-specific tickets
Working at heights, EWP (elevated work platform), confined spaces, asbestos awareness — each is a separate high-risk work licence under WHS Regulation Schedule 3.
First aid
Not strictly mandatory for a solo tradie, but commercial sites and principal contractor SWMS often require HLTAID011 Provide First Aid in every crew.
A tradie's insurance stack is non-negotiable and multi-layered. Public liability covers third-party damage and injury. Workers comp is compulsory the moment you hire anyone (even a casual). Tools and equipment cover the gear in your ute. Personal income protection covers you if you can't work. Builders / contract-works insurance applies when you're the head contractor on a job. Most builders, real estate agents and councils will demand a Certificate of Currency before they'll let you on site or onto their preferred-supplier list.
Public liability
$10m minimum for residential; $20m for commercial / strata work. ~$600–$1,400/year for a solo tradie depending on trade risk class.
Workers compensation
Compulsory once you have an employee. State schemes: icare (NSW), WorkSafe (VIC), WorkCover (QLD), iCare WA, ReturnToWorkSA. Sole traders can't insure themselves under WC.
Tools & equipment
Theft, fire, accidental damage on tools in transit/storage. $20k cover ~$300–$500/year. Specify high-value items individually.
Personal accident / income protection
Replaces income if injury stops you working. Critical for sole traders — workers comp doesn't cover you.
Professional indemnity
If you give design advice or take on D&C (design-and-construct) — covers errors and omissions. Most tradies don't need it; designers and certifiers do.
Contract works / construction insurance
Per-project cover for the works in progress. Often required by the principal builder under the head contract.
Your kit is half capital expense, half identity. A first-year solo tradie can be operational on $8,000–$25,000 of kit depending on trade — electrical and plumbing live at the top end, painting and handyperson at the bottom. Don't blow the budget buying everything new on day one. Pickles auctions, AllBids and Gumtree are full of 2–3-year-old ute kit-outs from operators upgrading. Cordless platform lock-in matters — pick Milwaukee M18, DeWalt 18V/20V or Makita LXT 18V and commit, because batteries don't cross-pollinate.
Cordless platform
Milwaukee M18 (heaviest user base in AU trade), DeWalt 18V/20V MAX, Makita LXT 18V/40V. Battery lock-in is permanent — choose once.
Power tools (electrician)
Drill, impact driver, hammer drill, multi-tool, recip saw, conduit bender, cable cutters, MFT (multi-function tester). ~$4,000 new.
Power tools (plumber)
Drill, impact, recip saw, press tool (Milwaukee M18 Force Logic ~$2,500), pipe threader, pipe locator. ~$6,000 new.
Ute or van
Toyota HiLux / Ford Ranger (work-horse), Isuzu D-Max (cheapest TCO), Toyota HiAce / VW Crafter (van for fitouts). Used 3–5yo with FSH saves $20k+ over new.
Ute fit-out
Toolbox, shelving, ladder racks, drawers, dual-battery + inverter for charging on-site. ARB, Rhino-Rack, ION 4x4 are common.
Signage & livery
Magnetic ute signs ~$150; full vinyl wrap $3,000–$6,000. Signage = passive marketing on every drive.
PPE
Safety boots (AS/NZS 2210.3), hi-vis (AS/NZS 4602), hard hat, safety glasses, hearing protection, cut-resistant gloves, dust mask P2.
Second-hand sources
Gumtree (private), Facebook Marketplace, AllBids (govt surplus), Pickles Auctions (ex-fleet utes & plant), Grays (deceased estates / liquidation).
Hourly rate is what you charge for time on the tools. Charge-out rate is your hourly rate plus overhead recovery and margin. Callout fee covers your unbillable travel and the first 30–60 minutes on site. The mistake most new operators make is benchmarking their hourly rate against their old PAYG wage — you need to charge roughly 3× your target take-home to cover super, leave loading, downtime, tools, fuel, insurance, BAS, and accountant fees. Use fixed-quote pricing on anything over half a day; T&M (time-and-materials) is fine for emergency call-outs and unknowns.
Electrician
$90–$140/hr charge-out solo. $120–$180/hr with apprentice. Callout $80–$150 (first hour usually included).
Plumber
$100–$160/hr charge-out. Emergency / after-hours 1.5–2× weekday rate. Callout $90–$180.
Carpenter
$70–$110/hr solo for piecework / hourly. Day rate $560–$880. Builder rate to head contractors typically $65–$85/hr.
Painter
$45–$70/hr or per-m² ($25–$40 per m² for two-coat interior). Fixed-quote almost always — hourly is a race to the bottom.
Tiler / waterproofer
$60–$120 per m² supply-and-lay. Waterproofing $25–$45 per m². Wet-area work is liability-heavy — quote with insurance and certifier costs built in.
HVAC / refrigeration
$140–$200/hr charge-out (refrigerant licence + truck stock). Split-system install $700–$1,800 + unit.
When to fixed-quote
Anything >4 hours, anything with defined scope (a deck, a bathroom, a switchboard upgrade). Removes scope arguments at invoice time.
When to T&M
Emergency call-outs (burst pipe, no-power), diagnostic jobs, anything where scope can't be defined in advance. State your rate in writing first.
The first ten clients are the hardest. You have no Google reviews, no Instagram portfolio, no word-of-mouth pipeline. Lean on the channels that don't require a track record: referrals from people who already trust you, Google Business Profile (free and high-intent), and pay-per-lead platforms like hipages and Oneflare to get jobs in the diary while organic channels compound. Builders and real estate agents are the long-term jackpot — one good relationship with a busy builder can fill 60% of your calendar.
Friends, family & ex-colleagues
Discounted intro rate in exchange for honest Google reviews + a referral if happy. Cheapest channel that exists.
Google Business Profile
Free. Verified address, photos of completed work, weekly posts. Reviews compound — ask every happy customer the day you finish.
hipages
Pay-per-lead ~$15–$60/lead depending on trade and metro vs regional. Useful for first-year diary, expensive at scale.
Service Seeking / Oneflare / Airtasker
Lower-cost alternatives to hipages. Smaller traffic but cheaper leads. Tradie listings on Airtasker work for handyperson / odd-jobs end.
Facebook trade & suburb groups
Local mums groups, suburb noticeboards, 'tradies of [suburb]' groups. Free, high-trust, recurring.
Local builders
Walk site, hand them a card, ask who they use for subbie work. Build relationships with 3–5 builders in your area — keeps the diary full.
Real estate agents
Property managers need reliable tradies for repair requests. One PM with 200 rentals = a steady drip of small jobs all year.
Strata managers
Common-area maintenance is recurring contract work — gutters, lights, locks, plumbing. Higher entry barrier (CoC, SWMS) but stickier revenue.
Trade-supplier branches
Reece, Beacon, Bunnings Trade Centre, MMEM Group — staff get asked for recommendations daily. Bring them coffee, hand them cards.
The avoidable problems that cost first-year operators the most money and the most sleep. Almost every long-running tradie made at least two of these.
Quoting in your head, invoicing from memory
The classic first-year mistake: you give a verbal quote, the job creeps, and you under-bill by 30% because you can't remember what you originally agreed. Every quote in writing, every variation in writing, every job costed against the quote before you invoice.
Mixing personal and business money
Paying for tools on your personal card, ute fuel on the business card, lunch on either — by EOFY your accountant charges you 4× more to untangle it. Open a business transaction account on day one, pay yourself a regular drawing, and run everything else through the business.
Skipping the licence and 'just doing cash'
Cash-in-hand under $75k feels harmless until a homeowner's insurer voids a claim because the work was unlicensed. The ATO data-matches bank deposits with declared income, and Fair Trading prosecutes unlicensed building work — fines start at $22,000 in NSW per offence.
No Certificate of Currency on file
Your insurer issues a CoC every year. Builders, real estate agents and councils ask for it before they let you on site. Not having a current PDF ready in 60 seconds costs you jobs. Set a calendar reminder for renewal date minus 14 days.
Charging mates' rates forever
Discounting the first few jobs is fine. Discounting friends' jobs at 30% off after you've been operating for 18 months is just leaving money on the table. Set a real rate, hold it, and let the people who can't afford it self-select out.
Not putting BAS money aside weekly
Every dollar of GST you collect belongs to the ATO. The same applies to PAYG instalments. Operators who treat it as 'their' money for 11 weeks then scramble in week 12 are the ones who go under. Sweep 10% of every invoice paid into a separate GST account, automatically.
If you already hold the trade qualification and licence: 2–4 weeks. ABN is instant, GST registration takes minutes, White Card is 6–8 hours of online training plus state-regulator processing (up to 60 days for the physical card). Insurance is same-day with most brokers. The real time-sink is getting your kit, ute fit-out and signage sorted — budget 3–6 weeks total from decision to first invoice. If you don't yet hold the trade qualification, add 3–4 years (Cert III apprenticeship) before any of this applies to regulated trades.
You can stay unregistered for GST under $75k, but that's not the same as working cash-in-hand. You still need an ABN, you still have to declare every dollar of income to the ATO, and you still need the relevant trade licence for any regulated work. The ATO data-matches business bank deposits against declared income via the Black Economy Taskforce, and Fair Trading prosecutes unlicensed building work regardless of dollar value. Penalties for unlicensed work in NSW start at $22,000 per offence (Home Building Act 1989). It's not a grey area — it's just a smaller-scale operation that's still fully on the books.
Sole trader is fine for the first 12–24 months while you're proving the business. Move to a Pty Ltd company once any of these are true: turnover is consistently above $120k, you're taking on staff (the limited-liability shield matters when employees are involved), you're working on high-value commercial sites where a builder demands a corporate entity on the contract, or your assets are growing (a house, an investment property) and you don't want them exposed to a worst-case lawsuit. Setup is ~$576 via ASIC plus an annual review fee of ~$321, and you'll pay an accountant $1,500–$3,000/year more for company tax returns vs sole-trader returns — but a single uninsured incident on a job can dwarf that cost overnight.
You can host an apprentice as soon as you're a qualified tradesperson in your trade and your business meets the supervising-host requirements set by your state's training authority (TAFE NSW, Skills Insight, VRQA in Victoria, Department of Employment Small Business and Training in QLD). You sign a Training Contract with the apprentice and a Registered Training Organisation, register it with your state, and the apprentice is bound to the relevant Modern Award (e.g. Electrical, Electronic and Communications Contracting Award MA000025). The Australian Government's Apprenticeships Incentive System currently pays employer incentives of $1,500–$5,000 across the apprenticeship. Workers comp and Modern Award compliance is mandatory from day one — Fair Work Ombudsman audits the trade sector regularly.
Yes — for the business-use portion. The ATO accepts the instant asset write-off (currently $20,000 per asset for small businesses with <$10m turnover, subject to ongoing budget extensions) for tools, ute fit-outs and equipment purchased and installed-ready-for-use in the same financial year. The ute itself is depreciated unless under the threshold; running costs (fuel, rego, insurance, servicing) are deductible by logbook (12-week ATO-compliant logbook valid 5 years) or cents-per-km method (5,000 km cap). PPE, trade qualification renewals, licence fees, insurance premiums, accountant fees, phone, internet and home-office portion are all deductible. Keep every receipt for 5 years from lodgement (TR 96/7).
A full website is optional in year one — a verified Google Business Profile and a clean Facebook page are the minimum viable presence. What homeowners actually do is search 'electrician [suburb]' on Maps, scan the top 3 results' reviews, and call whoever has 4.5+ stars and answers the phone. A one-page website with your services, suburbs, phone number and a photo gallery is enough to start. Once you're past the first 30–50 jobs and have a portfolio worth showing, upgrade to a proper site with quote-request forms and SEO content. Don't spend $5,000+ on a flashy site before you've proven the business is real — that's money better spent on tools, signage and lead-gen.
OneBookPlus is the all-in-one platform for Australian tradies — quotes, jobs, scheduling, invoices, GST, photo evidence. Free to start, no credit card required, AUD billing.
Last reviewed and updated: by Bishal Shrestha
About the author
Founder & CEO, OneBookPlus
Bishal has over a decade of experience in digital marketing, web development, and small business consulting across Australia. Bishal has guided new Australian tradies through licence pathway, ABN/GST setup, White Card induction, insurance stacking, kit choices and first-client channels covered in this 8-step guide.
More in this guide
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Read →ReferenceState-by-state thresholds, regulators, and invoice requirements for AU trade licensing.
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