All practising certificates issued in Victoria expire on 30 June each year. You must apply to renew your certificate if you want to continue to practise law after this date. This includes lawyers who received their first practising certificate any time before 30 June.
The renewal period for 2023/24 opens on 27 March. Please see the LSB Online FAQs for answers to frequently asked questions.
How to apply
Login to your LSB Online account and follow the prompts. The application process explains all the information we need from you, and the fees you have to pay.
View the 'Renewing my practising certificate' user guide to help you with your application.
Fees
There are three types of fees that may apply to your practising certificate. These are:
- a prescribed fee for your type of practising certificate;
- a contribution to the Fidelity fund; and
- professional indemnity insurance.
Please note: we can't process your application if you have not paid your fees. You cannot practise law without a current practising certificate.
Practising certificate fees for the 2023-24 practising year
The practising certificate fees for the 2023-24 practising year (from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024) are listed below.
How are payments made?
All payments are made through LSB Online and can be made by credit card or BPay. Organisations are no longer able to make bulk payments for their lawyers. We accept Visa, Master Card and Amex.
For assistance with paying practising certificate fees, please contact us via our Lawyer Enquiry form.
How much do you need to pay?
The table below lists the different fees payable for the different types of practising certificate.
Fees are scaled on a pro rata basis. Your fee will be based on when your certificate commences. Note: Fees do not attract GST.
If you are applying to renew your current certificate, your renewed certificate will commence on 1 July. You will need to pay the full fee for the whole year as shown in the fee column '1 July - 30 September' in the table below.
If you are applying for a new certificate (i.e. you are not renewing an existing certificate), your fee is based on the quarter that your certificate commences. For example, if your certificate commences on 10 February, your fee will be for the quarter commencing between '1 January - 31 March'.
| Practising certificate type (select which certificate type applies to you) |
Commencing between |
Commencing between |
Commencing between |
Commencing between |
| Principal of a law practice authorised to receive trust money (includes foreign lawyers) |
$669 |
$513 |
$342 |
$171 |
| Principal of a law practice not authorised to receive trust money (includes foreign lawyers) |
$467 |
$357 |
$238 |
$119 |
| Employee of a law practice with or without trust money authorisation (includes foreign lawyers) |
$436 |
$334 |
$223 |
$111 |
| Barrister |
$378 |
$289 |
$193 |
$96 |
| Corporate legal practitioner |
$262 |
$201 |
$134 |
$67 |
| Principal legal practitioner of CLS with or without trust money authorisation |
$240 |
$183 |
$122 |
$61 |
| Employee legal practitioner of CLS (includes foreign lawyers) |
$240 |
$183 |
$122 |
$61 |
| Government legal practitioner |
$240 |
$183 |
$122 |
$61 |
| Volunteer at a CLS / pro bono (includes foreign lawyers) |
Nil |
Nil |
Nil |
Nil |
Practising certificate fees for the 2022-23 practising year
The practising certificate fees for the 2022-23 practising year (from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023) are listed below.
| Practising certificate type (select which certificate type applies to you) |
Commencing between |
Commencing between |
Commencing between |
Commencing between |
| Principal of a law practice authorised to receive trust money (includes foreign lawyers) |
$656 |
$492 |
$328 |
$164 |
| Principal of a law practice not authorised to receive trust money (includes foreign lawyers) |
$458 |
$343 |
$229 |
$114 |
| Employee of a law practice with or without trust money authorisation (includes foreign lawyers) |
$428 |
$321 |
$214 |
$107 |
| Barrister |
$371 |
$278 |
$185 |
$92 |
| Corporate legal practitioner |
$257 |
$192 |
$128 |
$64 |
| Principal legal practitioner of CLS with or without trust money authorisation |
$235 |
$176 |
$117 |
$58 |
| Employee legal practitioner of CLS (includes foreign lawyers) |
$235 |
$176 |
$117 |
$58 |
| Government legal practitioner |
$235 |
$176 |
$117 |
$58 |
| Volunteer at a CLS / pro bono (includes foreign lawyers) |
Nil |
Nil |
Nil |
Nil |
Fidelity fund contributions for the 2023-24 year
There are different fidelity fund fee requirements for Victorian lawyers, foreign lawyers and approved barristers’ clerks. See below for the fee category that applies to you.
Please note: where we refer to the amount of trust money handled below, we do not include ‘controlled money’ or ‘transit money’ that your practice may handle.
| Trust money received for year ending 31 October 2022 | If you or your law practice received $0 - $750,000 in trust money | If you or your law practice received more than $750,000 in trust money |
|---|---|---|
| Principal, employee or foreign lawyer authorised to receive trust money | $310 | $616 |
| Principal NOT authorised to receive trust money | $310 | $616 |
| Employee NOT authorised to receive trust money | $150 | $150 |
| Foreign lawyer NOT authorised to receive trust money | $150 | $150 |
| Approved barristers’ clerks | $310 | $616 |
Exempt lawyers
- You do not have to pay a contribution if you are a barrister, a government lawyer, a corporate lawyer, an interstate lawyer, an employee or volunteer of a community legal service, or a principal or employee of a law practice that does not handle trust money.
Exempt foreign lawyers
- You do not have to pay a contribution if you hold a registration certificate that does not authorise you to receive trust money, and you work for a law practice that is not authorised to receive trust money.
- You do not have to pay a contribution if you hold a registration certificate that does not authorise you to receive trust money and you are not, and reasonably expect not to be, an associate of a law practice.
If you are a lawyer working in private practice or for a community legal service, you must be covered by a PII policy before you can practise law in Victoria. Corporate and government lawyers do not need to hold PII, except under certain circumstances.
Please view our professional indemnity insurance page for more information.
Deadlines and surcharges
You must renew by 30 June. If you don't renew by 30 June, you will need to apply for a new practising certificate. You will incur a 200% surcharge on the practising certificate fee if you apply between 1 July and 30 September. We may also ask you for a declaration that you have not practised law since your last certificate expired. We may refund all or part of a surcharge paid if there are special circumstances.
We cannot backdate practising certificates.
Not renewing?
If you don’t intend to continue to practise law, please log in to LSB Online and complete the ‘Not renewing’ form. This will take you off our follow-up and reminder mailing lists.
Need help with your renewal?
We have developed a range of resources to assist you to renew. Please visit the LSB Online resources page for more information.
