How to check a tradie or builder before you pay: ABN, GST and licence in every state
Before you sign a quote or pay a deposit, three free checks tell you a lot about who you're dealing with: whether the ABN is active and belongs to the business named on the quote, whether the business is registered for GST if the quote adds GST, and whether the person or company holds the licence the work needs in your state. The ABN and GST checks are national. Licences are issued by each state and territory, so the register you need depends on where the work is done. This guide links them all.
1. Get their details in writing first
Access Canberra's advice on choosing a tradesperson says you have a right to know the tradie's full name (not just a first name), a physical address (not just a PO box), their registered business name and their Australian Business Number. Ask for the licence number too, and make sure the same details are on the quote.
If the quote only shows an ACN (a 9-digit company number), that's enough to find the company's ABN.
2. Check the ABN and the name
Look the ABN up on the Australian Business Register. ClearABN's free ABN lookup (clearabn.com.au/abn-lookup) takes an ABN, an ACN or a business name and shows whether the ABN is active, the entity's legal name, its registered business names and its GST registration. For a sole trader, the entity name is the person's own name.
Check that the name on the quote matches the entity name or one of the business names the register shows. A cancelled ABN, an ABN that isn't on the register, or a name that doesn't match anything is worth a question before you go further.
3. If the quote adds GST, check GST registration
Only a business registered for GST can charge GST. If a quote or invoice adds 10% GST, check that the ABN is registered for GST, and for an invoice, that it was registered on the invoice date. ClearABN's free GST check (clearabn.com.au/gst-check) shows the GST registration periods the register holds for an ABN and compares them with a date you enter.
If GST is added but the register shows no GST registration, the guide to a supplier that charged GST but isn't registered covers the usual innocent explanations and what to ask.
4. Check the licence on the state or territory register
Each state and territory runs its own licence registers, and electrical work is often licensed by a different regulator from building and plumbing. Search the register for the state where the work will be done. The table below links the official search for each one; check the licence status, the licence class or type of work it covers, and any conditions.
A few things the registers themselves point out: Service NSW says a licence is needed for residential building work, wiring, plumbing, draining, gasfitting, air conditioning and refrigeration work (except plug-in appliances), and you can search by name, licence number, ABN, ACN or location. WA's Building and Energy says practitioners and contractors can share a registration number, so check the name, number and licence type together, and notes that it does not publish business or trading names. Queensland's QBCC says that if a second search finds no licence you may be dealing with an unlicensed person, and its full history report shows any disciplinary record. Tasmania's register only shows current licence holders, and also lists interstate licensees who have notified under automatic mutual recognition.
| State or territory | What the register covers | Official search |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | Builders and tradespeople, including electricians, plumbers, drainers, gasfitters and air conditioning and refrigeration (Service NSW) | |
| Victoria | Builders, plumbers and building practitioners (Building and Plumbing Commission, which also has a compliance and enforcement register); electricians and electrical contractors (Energy Safe Victoria) | |
| Queensland | Builders, trade contractors, plumbers and drainers, plus suspended, cancelled and excluded lists (QBCC); electrical contractors (Electrical Safety Office, linked from WorkSafe Queensland) | |
| Western Australia | Builders, painters, building surveyors and engineers, electricians, plumbers and gas fitters (Building and Energy); registers updated daily | |
| South Australia | Builders, plumbers, electricians and gas fitters, among other licences (Consumer and Business Services) | |
| Tasmania | Building services providers and electrical, plumbing and gas fitting licences; current licence holders only (Consumer, Building and Occupational Services) | |
| Australian Capital Territory | Builders, electricians, plumbers, drainers, gasfitters and other construction occupations, including expired, suspended and cancelled licences and disciplinary action (Access Canberra) | |
| Northern Territory | Building contractors and certifiers (Building Practitioners Board); electrical contractors (NT WorkSafe); plumbers and drainers (Plumbers and Drainers Licensing Board) |
5. Make sure the licence and the ABN belong to the same business
A licence can be held by a company or by a person, so the name on the licence won't always be the name on the quote. Compare the licence holder with the ABN's entity name and business names. If they don't line up, ask who holds the licence and who you're contracting with.
QBCC's guide says to make certain the person you search is the lead contractor responsible for the work and the contract. NT WorkSafe explains that a licensed electrical worker must be employed by someone else and can't invoice a customer; the business that invoices you needs an electrical contractor licence.
6. Before you pay a deposit or new bank details
Access Canberra suggests asking for a certificate of currency for public liability insurance, getting more than one quote without feeling pressured, and paying when the job is complete against an itemised invoice.
If an email or invoice asks you to pay into a new or changed bank account, call the business on a number you found yourself, not the one in the email. Scammers copy real businesses' names and ABNs onto fake invoices, so a clean ABN check doesn't prove the bank details are genuine; the fake invoice guide explains why.
The ACCC's page on checking a business is genuine makes the same point more broadly: having the right registrations and licences doesn't guarantee a business is trustworthy, and scammers can fake registration numbers. The checks above are a good start, not a guarantee.
Register facts, not advice
ClearABN reports what the Australian Business Register shows for an ABN. It doesn't check trade licences or insurance; use the official registers above for those, and contact the regulator in your state if you can't find a tradie or something doesn't add up.
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Official sources
- Access Canberra: Choosing a tradesperson
- ACCC: Checking a business is genuine
- Service NSW: Check a builder or tradesperson licence
- Building and Plumbing Commission (VIC): Find and check a practitioner
- QBCC: Checking the record of a QBCC licensee
- WA Building and Energy: Licence and registration search
- NT WorkSafe: Find a licensed electrical contractor
- ABN Lookup
ClearABN shows Australian Business Register facts and the result of an ABN checksum. It does not provide tax, legal or financial advice. Links go to the ATO and the Australian Business Register so you can read their pages yourself.