Documents to gather before you apply: a checklist for OTs, speech pathologists and physios

Written by Callum Trevorrow. Last checked 28 October 2026 against official sources.

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For OTs and physios, the documents that trip people up are the ones that expire: Ahpra’s certificate of registration status and its international criminal history check are each valid for 3 months from issue (Ahpra). For speech pathologists the list is SPA’s, not Ahpra’s, and the MRA needs a letter of good standing, 1,000 hours of practice in the past 5 years, and colour photos of every document, emailed.

Use the section for your profession. Each item says who asks for it and the rule that catches people. Visa documents are separate: a registered migration agent will tell you what Home Affairs needs.

OTs and physios: what Ahpra asks for

Both professions register through Ahpra (the OT Board or the Physiotherapy Board), so these items are common to both.

• Certificate of registration status (CORS) from every overseas regulator you’ve been registered with. The regulator sends it directly to Ahpra, not to you. It’s valid for 3 months from issue. If it has expired but is under 6 months old, Ahpra may accept a declaration.
• International criminal history check (ICHC), if you’ve lived or been based outside Australia for 6 consecutive months or more as an adult, or you declare overseas criminal history. You arrange and pay for it through an Ahpra-approved supplier (AIS International or Fit2Work). Results are valid for 3 months, and Ahpra can’t register you until it has them. A statutory declaration is accepted only if no supplier covers your country.
• Identity, checked online with InstaID+. There’s no in-person check in Australia. The link arrives within 48 hours and you have 30 days to finish (if you don’t, Ahpra withdraws your application and refunds the registration fee): a selfie, document photos, facial recognition and a liveness test. You need a passport (an EU identity card isn’t accepted) plus at least two of: an overseas driver licence with photo and signature, a full birth certificate, an overseas identity card, or a credit or debit card. Ahpra uses the name on your passport unless you give a change-of-name document. You don’t need a visa to register.
• Certified copies of supporting documents, certified in person (not by video). Outside Australia that means a notary public, a justice of the peace, an Australian consular or diplomatic officer, or certain Commonwealth employees overseas; registered Australian health practitioners and Australian legal practitioners can certify anywhere. The certifier writes “I have sighted the original document and certify this to be a true copy of the original”, with the date, signature, name, phone number and occupation (plus registration number, and stamp if they have one). Every page of a multi-page document is initialled and numbered.
• Translations of anything not in English. Ahpra wants a full translation (not extracts), the certified copy of the original it was made from, and the translator’s signed statement that it’s accurate. In Australia the translator must be NAATI-accredited; overseas, approved by that country’s authorities. Translations by relatives or friends aren’t accepted.
• English evidence: test results, or the education pathway you’re relying on. South Africa came off Ahpra’s recognised-country list from 18 March 2026. See the English tests guide.

The timing trap. The CORS and the ICHC both last 3 months. Gather everything that doesn’t expire first, then request these two close to when you lodge with Ahpra.

OTs: add these

• Your testamur (degree certificate), checked word for word against the OT Board’s list. It must match the institution, qualification title and date of award exactly, or you’re on the portfolio route. The OT degree list has every program and year window.
• If you’re not listed: your qualification (portfolio) assessment comes before registration. The portfolio guide covers what it assesses.
• If your visa needs the OTC migration assessment: evidence that your qualification was WFOT-approved at the time you completed it. The OTC says to check this on the WFOT website.

Physios: the Council first, then Ahpra

Overseas-qualified physios complete the Australian Physiotherapy Council’s assessment before registering. What the Council checks depends on your route:

• Your entry-level physiotherapy qualification from the country your route is based on (for example, US FLYR applicants: a bachelor’s or DPT completed in Texas, Massachusetts or California).
• Express FLYR and FLYR: evidence of registration without restriction held within the past 5 years, in the place the Council’s criteria name (for example, the province or state where you studied).
• APEP: evidence that you meet the qualification requirement for registration, or hold registration without restriction, in the country where you trained.

For the Council’s exact document list, see its page for your country. I haven’t been able to verify the Council’s document fact sheet, so I’m not listing it here. The routes are in Express FLYR, FLYR or APEP. Once you have the Council’s outcome, you apply to Ahpra with the items in the first section.

Speech pathologists: SPA, not Ahpra

Speech pathologists aren’t registered by Ahpra, so the Ahpra items above don’t apply. SPA assesses you.

On the MRA:

• Application form, and the A$825 fee.
• Membership of a signatory association: ASHA (CCC-SLP), IASLT, NZSTA (full member; graduates from before 1993 can’t use the MRA) or RCSLT. SAC isn’t currently accepted.
• A letter of good standing, current at the time you apply. For IASLT, that letter comes after one full calendar year as a full member and renewal for a second year with no break, and full membership needs CORU registration.
• Evidence of 1,000 hours working as a speech pathologist in the past 5 years.
• Passport and photo ID showing both main pages.
• Format: every document photographed in full colour and emailed, with file names of 50 characters or fewer.

SPA’s full list is in its Guide for Applicants. Details are in the MRA guide.

On the OSQCA (stage 1):

• Application form, identity documents (passport and photo ID showing both main pages), English evidence, your speech pathology qualification details, and evidence of practice and association membership.
• Format: full-colour JPEG or PNG photos with every edge visible, file names of 50 characters or fewer, sent by email as a Dropbox link. Google Drive isn’t accepted.

The later stages are covered in the OSQCA guide.

What expires, at a glance

From the hiring side: I’ve been the inaugural director of a satellite hospital, leading GPs, emergency physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses and allied health, and today I run a multi-site paediatric practice where several clinicians came from overseas. Two of the Ahpra documents expire in 3 months, so the order you request them in matters as much as the list itself.

Cost and pay, by profession

• OTs: A$388 to register if your degree is listed (A$1,076 with a portfolio assessment). Queensland Health’s HP3 grade pays A$83,824–120,740 (from 1 Sep 2026); see the OT salary guide.
• Speech pathologists: A$825 on the MRA, or A$2,000 for the OSQCA if every stage passes first time. Queensland Health employs speech pathologists at HP3 and seniors at HP4; see the speech pathology salary guide.
• Physios: from A$2,414 (Express FLYR plus Board fees) to A$8,993 (APEP). The October 2026 Queensland Health listings showed physio roles at HP4 and HP5; see the physio salary guide.

Every fee, with its source, is in the move cost checklist.

Your next step

• OTs: check your testamur against the list, and find out whether you need an ICHC before you request your CORS.
• Physios: confirm your Council route, then open the Council’s page for your country for its document list.
• Speech pathologists: check whether you can get a letter of good standing from an MRA association and show 1,000 hours in 5 years; if not, it’s the OSQCA.

The pathway check asks those questions for your profession and tells you what to do next, including whether an info session is the right first step.