The NSW Government has launched the Digital Individual Contractor Licence in the Service NSW app, allowing tradies to easily access their work licences and contractors and consumers to quickly check credentials.
Minister for Customer Service and Digital Government Victor Dominello said after a successful trial of more than 1400 tradies the Digital Contractor Licence was now available free across the State for individual Contractor Licence holders who wanted to go digital.
“This is about a smart NSW making it easier for people to do business across the State and for consumers looking to check a tradie,” Mr Dominello said.
“Security is baked in to the digital licence which includes an animated NSW Government logo, auto-refreshing date and time, QR code that expires and reloads, and a Waratah hologram.
“But for those who want to keep using their existing card that will always be an option.
“And we have heard loud and clear from tradies during the trial that they also want access to digital Qualified Supervisor and Tradesperson Certificates and we are planning to roll these out in late April.”
The Digital Contractor Licence is the second trade licence and credential to be digitised following the launch of the Digital White Card in April 2021, which has more than 185,000 people using it in the Service NSW app.
Minister for Small Business and Fair Trading Eleni Petinos said the new licence app will strengthen consumer safeguards against prospective tradies.
“Digital contractor licences will make it convenient for consumers to assess the qualifications of a tradesman prior to entering into a contract,” Ms Petinos said.
“The Digital Contractor Licence is a quick and secure way for contractors to display their credentials on site and for consumers to check a licence when engaging a tradie.
“A digitised licence adds another layer of protection for consumers by allowing them to quickly check details such as name, date of issue and any conditions.
“This is a perfect case of a licensing regime keeping pace with modern technology, making it easier for tradies to do business while protecting consumers from dodgy scammers.”
Funded by the Department of Customer Service’s Digital Restart Fund, the NSW Government’s Licensing Program is working to digitise trade licences and create end-to-end licensing journeys with the aim of improving customer service, providing convenience and making compliance with legislation easier.
Customers can now add the Digital Contractor Licence in the Service NSW app, which is available to download from the Apple App Store or Google Play. It is currently available for individual contractor licence holders only and they will need a MyServiceNSW account.
