CPD and CBC - your questions answered (TNF2018/007)

There are only FIVE WEEKS TO GO in the CPD and CBC Compliance Year for you to complete your mandated thirty (30) CPD points and your mandated CBC activities. Are you ready? There is a bit of confusion about so let's take a look at some of the areas where people have been asking us questions about what they need to do:


How many CBC points do I need to obtain?
None. The Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (DAWR) have never used points for their CBC (Continued Biosecurity Competency) Scheme. They also don't use hours of CBC like they have done previously either. 
Instead they now ask that Licensed Customs Brokers (LCBs) complete specific activities or tasks that DAWR nominate at the start of the CBC year. In this current year there are two activities they have stipulated: Activity 17-18/01 (this is required to be completed for persons who are currently NCCC accredited and wish to retain that accreditation) and Activity 17-18/02 (this is required to be completed for persons who are currently AEPCOMM accredited and wish to retain that accreditation). 

Is the CBC year the same as the CPD year?
Yes. The Compliance Year for both of these Schemes is identical with the CY starting on 1 April and finishing on 31 March of the following year. 

During this current CBC year I attended the CBFCA's Regional Convention. Isn't  that enough?
Yes, for NCCC. This is the case if you are seeking only to retain accreditation in the NCCC Scheme (also known as "Approved Arrangement 19.1"). This is because the presentation by DAWR at those events provided for Activity 17-18/01. However, attendance at the CBFCA Regional Convention did NOT provide for Activity 17-18/02 (AEPCOMM  or "Approved Arrangement 19.2"). If you currently hold AEPCOMM accreditation and wish to retain it, you need to completed Activity 17-18/02. You can register for that through this LINK .

Do I get CPD points for completing these CBC Activities?
Yes. Activity 17-18/01 and Activity 17-18/02 will provide you with 3 CPD points in Stream A for each session. You can view your CPD/CBC status via the CBFCA website. Login using your member login to www.cbfca.com.au and choose "My CBFCA" from the main menu and then "My Account". Look for the "My CPD" tab on the blue menu bar. If you need to know more about this you can watch the video I created. 

How do I identify the CBC activities I have completed? Can I see those on the CBFCA CPD portal?
Yes. Once you access the CPD portal as shown above, just look for the actual Activities by number e.g. CBC session 17-18/01 or CBC session 17-18/02

I completed a CPD item from the CBFCA website called "Introduction to the Biosecurity Act" (CPD accreditation CBFCA049). Is this all I have to do to retain my NCCC accreditation?
No. The ONLY activities that allow you to meet your CBC requirements are Activity 17-18/01 (NCCC) and Activity 17-18/02 (AEPCOMM).  The above CPD event does NOT meet the criteria for either of these activities, although it does provide you with 3 points of CPD.

I know I had to complete Activity 17-18/02 (AEPCOMM) by 31 July last year. I did that. Does that mean I  have completed all of my CBC requirements now?
Yes for AEPCOMM. However if you didn't also complete Activity 17-18/01 to retain your NCCC accreditation then you need to ensure you complete that. We encouraged people at the time to complete BOTH Activities at the time and, in so doing, finalise their mandated CBC in total. However, we know a lot of people just did Activity 17-18/02 because it had an earlier deadline (31 July 2017) but then parked their NCCC requirement (Activity 17-18/01) for completion later. If that is the case, then NOW is the time to complete that  NCCC Activity.  

What happens if I don't meet my mandatory CBC requirement during this CBC year?
The DAWR have a process in place for gathering details of persons who have undertaken the specified Activities. They then data match that information against the details of personnel covered under the Approved Arrangements (AAs) to confirm all persons under that Arrangement have met their CBC requirements for one or both of the Schemes. If you have not met your mandated CBC acquirement you should expect to  hear from DAWR in due course. What action they take at that time will naturally be up to them but removal from the AA is a distinct possibility. 


Still have more  work to do to complete your accreditation/s? That's OK as we have you covered via our accredited programs which provide a simple and extremely cost effective  solution. We outlined those solutions in our previous Newsflash. Click HERE to view that.