Accreditation for residential services

Accreditation is a detailed assessment by the service provider and the Department of Housing of how well the registered residential service meets the accreditation standards.

You need to apply for accreditation within 3 months of registering your residential service.

To obtain accreditation, you must show that your residential service meets the minimum standards for each accreditation level in the Residential Services (Accreditation) Regulation 2018.

Levels of accreditation for residential services

You can apply for 3 levels of accreditation. All providers are required to apply for Level 1.

Accommodation service – Level 1 (compulsory)

Level 1 relates to a resident's right to:

  • privacy and confidentiality
  • agreement for residency
  • prevention of abuse and neglect
  • grievance mechanisms
  • access to external service providers
  • entitlement of residents to independence and freedom of choice
  • living environment
  • security and emergencies
  • business management
  • human resource management.

Food service – Level 2

Level 2 relates to a resident's right to:

  • food and nutrition
  • kitchens
  • food handling and storage.

If you apply for Level 2 accreditation (food service), you must apply for a Food Licence with the local council to meet your obligations under the Food Standards Code 3.2.3 and 3.2.2 in the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Act 1991 (Cwlth).

Personal care service – Level 3

Level 3 relates to a resident's access to:

  • human resource management
  • access to externally provided support services
  • financial and clerical support
  • assistance with medication
  • health care
  • clothing
  • hygiene management
  • preservation of social networks
  • choice and decision making.

Applying for accreditation

Once you have registered your residential service, we will send you an accreditation application kit, which includes a self-assessment checklist and a list of required documents.

To apply for accreditation, you must:

You can pay the application fee online via BPOINT payment.

Lodge your application by:

Regulatory Services will:

  • assess your application to check it is completed with the relevant documents attached
  • coordinate and conduct an accreditation site audit
  • make accreditation decisions based on the findings of the site audit and evidence provided to meet each accreditation standard
  • make the decision to grant accreditation for a period up to 3 years.

Conditions may be imposed if considered appropriate or we may refuse to accredit your residential service or accredit a level of service.

If your application for accreditation is successful

If your accreditation is granted, you will receive an accreditation certificate that must be placed in an area where residents can see it.

If your application for accreditation is not successful

If your accreditation is refused, you will receive a notice explaining why your application was not successful.

If you disagree with the accreditation decision, you have 28 days to apply to Regulatory Services for a review of the decision.

Your decision notice outlines how to apply for a review. This includes completing an application for review of decision form (PDF, 114KB).

If you disagree with the review decision, you can apply for a hearing with the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

If you do not apply for accreditation in time or fail accreditation, then your residential service will be automatically de-registered and must stop operating as a residential service.

It is important to note that if the Level 2 or Level 3 component of your accreditation is refused then you can no longer provide that service. You can continue to operate at Level 1, except if it is an aged rental residential service. If accreditation of a Level 1 service is refused, registration is automatically cancelled, and you cannot operate a residential service.

Renewing accreditation

You must lodge an application to renew your accreditation before the accreditation period expires, but not more than 3 months before the expiry date.

Your registration will be automatically cancelled if you do not apply for renewal of your accreditation before the accreditation period expires.

If your residential service meets all the standards, renewal of your accreditation can be granted for up to 3 years. If your residential service does not meet all the standards, renewal of accreditation can be granted for a shorter period of time and may include conditions you will need to comply with. To renew your accreditation you must:

If you need more information about residential service accreditation, you can:

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  • Last reviewed: 31 Jul 2022
  • Last updated: 7 Jul 2023