Going out on your own as a gas fitter in QLD
Checked against QBCC for contracting, and the Petroleum and Gas Inspectorate for the gas work licence on 8 August 2026.
To take jobs in your own name
QBCC gasfitting contractor licence
Two separate approvals from two different places, and this is the thing people get wrong. The gas work licence lets you touch the gas; the QBCC licence lets you contract for it.
And underneath it, to do the work
Gas work licence
Issued under the Petroleum and Gas Act. There are several types: interim, full, servicing, servicing and caravan certification, and hydrocarbon refrigerant.
This is the one people get wrong: the licence that lets you DO the work and the one that lets you CONTRACT for it are different. Working for a boss you only need the first. Going out on your own you need both.
- What you need before you apply
- The qualification requirements for the gas work licence, then the QBCC contractor licence on top, which also tests your finances against a revenue class.
- What it costs
- Gas work licence, 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027: $55.23 application, $165.54 for a 3 year licence, $36.77 annual fee. The QBCC contractor licence is charged separately by revenue class.
- How long it takes
- QBCC says most applications are fully processed within a few weeks, with a guide of around 8 weeks.
- What you can do without it
- Very little, and no dollar threshold on either side. Business Queensland: you need a licence or authorisation before you do any gas work in Queensland, whether it is residential, commercial or industrial.
- Insurance the regulator requires
- No insurance is imposed as a condition of either licence. QBCC only requires professional indemnity for a short list of design and certifying classes, and gasfitting is not one of them.
Read this before you rely on it
- The exact qualification for the gas work licence sits in a Resources Safety and Health Queensland document we could not open. Ring them before you assume your ticket qualifies.
- Queensland indexes these fees every 1 July. Confirm before you budget.
Where this came from
Read off QBCC for contracting, and the Petroleum and Gas Inspectorate for the gas work licence on 8 August 2026. Fees and processing times usually change on 1 July, so check before you budget.
Once you are up and running, we also have a page on what ONARA Ops does for gas fitters.
When you are ready to take the first job
Once the licence is sorted, you need to look like you have been doing this for years: a website people can book from, and quotes and invoices with your logo that go out the same day you finish. That part is us.
We are not accountants, lawyers or insurance brokers, and none of this is advice. It is what the regulators and the ATO publish, gathered in one place with links to the source, so you know what to go and ask about. Rules and fees change, so check with the authority before you act on anything here. Government fees shown are for the 2026-27 year and are indexed every 1 July.