DIBP revises course for intending customs brokers  (TNF 2016/027)

The Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) has provided a Notice (2016/16) advising of changes to the approved course of study for persons seeking to become licensed customs brokers. As is often the case when there is a change to the "approved course of study" as prescribed under the Customs Act, many current and past students are concerned about where such a change leaves them in terms of their pathway towards licensing. The CBFCA has been in close contact with DIBP during the drafting of the Notice and we are in a position to provide further explanation around the Notice should members still have any concerns about the intent and the outcome of it. Below is our brief to members on this Notice:

New or intending students from 1 July 2016
The new Diploma of Customs Broking (national course code TLI50816) replaces the previous Diploma (TLI50813) as part of a regular, scheduled review of courses conducted within the national training system. If you are enrolling for this semester you will enrol directly into the new Diploma as the CBFCA will be offering this new course immediately, with the semester starting on Monday 11 July 2016. 

Current or existing students studying TLI50813
The changes to the revised Diploma of Customs Broking (TLI50816) are relatively small and have mostly come about in terms of code changes for study units or through some minor changes to learning outcomes. It has been determined that TLI50816 replaces and is equivalent to TLI50813 which means that if you are currently studying TLI50813 you will automatically be switched over by the CBFCA to the new course under a process of recognition and all study units you have studied to date will be accepted into the new course.  This also means that you will graduate with the latest Diploma of Customs Broking (TLI50816) even though you originally enrolled in TLI50813. You do not need to do a thing in this situation as the CBFCA will take care of this recognition process for you and adjust your academic transcript in recognition of the units you have completed to date. As the Notice stated, the number of study units in the new Diploma remains at 18 and so there will be no negative impact on you as a result of this change. 

Current students studying the Certificate IV in International Freight Forwarding
This was the previous course of study approved before TLI50813 came into force in 2014. Some of you may still be working your way through this program, particularly if you may  have been studying under Traineeship. Now the CBFCA has undertaken a process over the last 12 months of transitioning many of its Certificate IV students into the previous Diploma of Customs Broking (TLI50813) - and therefore by extension, these people will automatically be enrolled now in the latest Diploma as per above. However, there may be some people who are still under Traineeship and who therefore need to complete the Certificate IV. If you are in this situation, please contact the CBFCA so we can discuss your specific situation. 

Previous students who have completed an older course (Certificate IV or Diploma) and are working through their "acquired experience" period
In discussions with DIBP, we raised the point that there may well be some of you who have completed what was then the "approved course" of study prior to 2014 and are still working through the process of completing your application for a customs brokers licence including the development of the "acquired experience" required under the Act. We can advise that while the DIBP is not going to formally recognise such older courses from this point onwards (an example of which was the previous "National Customs Brokers Course"), your previous study in this area has not been in vain. The CBFCA will work with you to ensure that your previous study is recognised and that you have a recognition pathway into the latest Diploma. Keep in mind that the NCBC was an eleven unit course of study so to meet the requirements of the latest Diploma with 18 study units, there will be additional units to attain. The pathway we will provide is to have you undertake these additional units via classroom mode OR we can work with you on a Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) to bring you up to the required Diploma level. 

Hopefully, the above has been of assistance in determining where you stand in terms of your current, future or past study experience on your journey towards becoming a licensed customs broker. As always, your CBFCA stands ready to assist you find the most suitable pathway and we are committed to working with you to get there in the shortest time possible. Even if you have not studied with the CBFCA before, we will recognise all of your previous study from other institutions. 

So feel free give us a call or drop us a line via email to discuss your particular situation. 

Regards

Bill Murphy
Manager Professional Development and Training