Responsible service of alcohol (RSA) training and certification

All staff of licensed premises (regardless of age) who serve or supply alcohol must have a Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) certificate.

The following people must complete RSA training within 30 days of starting employment:

the licensee (if an individual), unless they're qualified in responsible management of licensed venues (RMLV)
all staff of licensed premises (including licensed restaurants or cafes) who are involved in serving or supplying alcohol at the premises—including bartenders, floor staff and room service staff.

If you're an individual licensee or an approved manager who holds a current RMLV certificate issued by the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (OLGR), you don't have to have an RSA certificate. An RMLV certificate expires 3 years after the date of issue.

Which RSA certificate you will need

You need a Statement of Attainment from the nationally accredited Provide Responsible Service of Alcohol course. The Provide Responsible Service of Alcohol course can only be delivered by a registered training organisation (RTO).

The current course code is SITHFAB021. Older courses might have a different course code, but they'll have the same course name and will always supply a Statement of Attainment. For example, SITHFAB009A was the active course code between 2009 and 2013. If you completed that course, it's still valid.

Search for your course code to see if it's an equivalent course code.

View an example Statement of Attainment.

If you haven't received a Statement of Attainment in the Provide Responsible Service of Alcohol course, you may not have completed the right course. You must ensure you complete a recognised course.

Note: In Queensland, you won't receive a card with your Statement of Attainment like you might in other states.

Expiry of your RSA certificate

You should only need to get your RSA Statement of Attainment once. As long as you completed the nationally accredited Provide Responsible Service of Alcohol course after 2002, the qualification doesn't expire, even though the course code (currently SITHFAB021) sometimes changes.

Your RSA Statement of Attainment remains valid no matter what the course code was when you completed it.

However, if you completed your RSA course before 2002, it won't be valid, so you'll need to complete it again.

How to know you're getting the right RSA certificate

These Queensland RTOs are currently delivering the nationally recognised Provide responsible service of alcohol course.

RTO name	RTO contact details	Course delivery method
Asset college	Suite 39, Level 3 207 Currumburra Road ASHMORE (GOLD COAST) QLD 4214 18 Flinders Parade NORTH LAKES QLD 4509 Unit 4, Campus Business Park 17–19 University Drive MEADOWBROOK (LOGAN) QLD 4131 Phone: 1300 731 602 Email: study@asset.edu.au	In-person training
Australian Institute of Food Safety (also trading as Food Safety First and InstaCert)	Level 4, 46 Edward Street BRISBANE QLD 4000 Phone: 1300 797 020 Email: support@foodsafety.com.au or support@instacert.com.au	Online training
Australian Training Institute	Shop 7, 51 Brighton Road SANDGATE QLD 4017 Phone: (07) 3269 5005 Email: admin@atiaustralia.edu.au	Online training
BARS Training Australia	2B, 677 Pine Ridge Road BIGGERA WATERS QLD 4216 Phone: (07) 5529 0834 Email: amanda@barstraining.com.au	In-person training
Clear to Work	21 Nundah Street NUNDAH QLD 4012 Phone: 0457 686 434 Email: support@cleartowork.com.au	Online training
Coal Train	6 Millroy Drive YEPPOON QLD 4703 Phone: (07) 4939 1445 Email: admin@coaltrain.com.au	In-person training
CTA Training Specialists	55 Holland Street NORTHGATE QLD 4013 Phone: (07) 3878 7291 Email: online@ctatraining.com.au	Online
Five Star Training Academy	Unit 7, 60 Nerang Street NERANG QLD 4211 Unit 7, 5-11 Noel Street SLACKS CREEK QLD 4127 Phone: 1300 718 005 Email: admin@fivestartraining.edu.au	Online theory with practical training provided online or in person.
Galaxy Training Australia	73 Tasman Boulevard FITZGIBBON QLD 4018 Phone: (07) 3062 7222 Email: info@galaxytraining.com.au	Online training
Industry Training Services	Paddington Tavern 186 Given Terrace PADDINGTON QLD 4064 Club Musgrave Corner Musgrave Road and Kumbari Avenue LABRADOR QLD 4215 Phone: 1300 798 948 Email: info@its.qld.edu.au	In-person training
North Queensland Security Training Academy	330 Bayswater Road GARBUTT QLD 4814 Phone: (07) 4775 1828 Email: admin@nqsta.com.au	In-person training
Prestige Service Training	30415/27 Garden Street SOUTHPORT QLD 4215 Phone: 1300 368 097 Email: learnmore@pst.edu.au	Online theory and online or in-person practical training
Queensland Hotels Association Union of Employers	QHA House Level 2, 160 Edward Street BRISBANE QLD 4000 Phone: (07) 3221 6999 Email: training@qha.org.au	Online and in-person training
Regal Security & Industry Training	Level 1, Suite 1 42 Nerang Street SOUTHPORT QLD 4215 Phone: (07) 5679 0110 Email: admin@regalst.com.au	Self-paced completion of workbook and in-person attendance for practical demonstrations
Urban E-Learning	17 Henry Street SPRING HILL QLD 4000 Phone: (07) 3118 6118 Email: sja@urbanelearning.com	Online training
Zealifi	PO Box 683 INDOOROOPILLY QLD 4068 Phone: 1300 122 287 Email: hello@zealifi.com.au	Online training or in-person group training at your venue

You can also search for other RTOs on Training.gov.au by entering the current course code: SITHFAB021.

Many online courses don't meet Queensland's RSA certification requirements even though they charge fees and claim to give you the right certificate. Critical issues may not be covered by these unaccredited courses, exposing your venue and patrons to the risk of poor or unsafe practices.
Some courses may issue a statement of attendance, but that's not the same as the Statement of Attainment competency in the nationally accredited training package.
Penalties apply if licensees fail to ensure their staff have the right RSA qualification.
If you have a formal qualification, such as a Certificate II in Hospitality, the Provide Responsible Service of Alcohol course could be 1 of the units of competency in your qualification.
The course code might be an older version of SITHFAB021 (e.g. SITHFAB002, SITHFAB009A or THHBFB09B), which is still valid.
Most RTOs provide a web search function to verify a certificate online. Usually, you can enter the Certificate ID or student number to check if a certificate is valid.
If the RTO doesn't provide the option to check your certificate online, contact them. Search for the RTO's contact details.
Otherwise, you can check your vocational education and training (VET) history online using a unique student identifier (USI). Anyone who undertakes VET training is required to have a USI. Use the website to check if you have a USI (or create one) and access a list of your previously completed training, including the Provide Responsible Service of Alcohol course.

Minimum age to get your RSA certificate

Some businesses—for example, hotels, restaurants and cafes—can employ under 18s to serve or supply alcohol. There are no minimum age restrictions under the Liquor Act 1992, unless the venue has an adult entertainment permit.

Regardless of age, all staff who serve or supply alcohol must have an RSA certificate. You must complete the course within 30 days of starting employment.

Lost RSA certificates

If you can't find your RSA Statement of Attainment, you'll need to have it re-issued. Contact the RTO that originally issued it.

If you can't remember which RTO certified you, you'll need to do the course again.

OLGR can't provide a replacement copy of your RSA certificate as we didn't issue it and don't hold those records.

Using an interstate RSA qualification in Queensland

You can only use your interstate RSA qualification in Queensland if it's a Statement of Attainment from the nationally accredited Provide Responsible Service of Alcohol course. This is the only nationally recognised qualification.

If you don't hold this specific Statement of Attainment, you'll need to complete the nationally accredited course through an RTO.

International travellers and students also need to complete the course within 30 days of starting employment in a licensed venue.

RSA exemptions for community-based groups and events

Community-based licensees or permit holders must ensure someone with current RSA training supervises volunteers who are serving or supplying alcohol.

Supervised volunteers don't need to hold a current RSA qualification if they're serving or supplying alcohol under 1 of the following liquor licences:

community club licence
community other licence
community liquor permit
restricted liquor permit.

Examples of the types of businesses that may hold these licences include:

sporting or ethnic clubs or RSLs
incorporated associations (e.g. charities)
non-proprietary organisations.

Keeping evidence of RSA certification on site

Licensees must keep copies on the premises of current statements of attainment for staff. You must make these available for inspection by OLGR compliance officers and the Queensland Police Service. You don't need to keep an RSA training register.

Past OLGR-issued RSA certificates

If you (or your staff) completed RSA training before 30 June 2013, OLGR may have issued you an RSA certificate that would have expired 3 years from the date of issue.

However, an old RSA course that was supported by OLGR included the nationally accredited Provide Responsible Service of Alcohol course. If you were issued a Statement of Attainment in that course, it would still be valid. You'll need to check your records.

Also consider…

Read more about when minors can be on licensed premises.
Take an online RSA refresher course.