Who regulates my Australian provider in 2026 — TEQSA, ASQA or the Secretary?

Plain-language guide · general information, not immigration advice

Under section 6C of the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 (ESOS Act), the answer is decided by what kind of provider you are enrolled with: a registered higher education provider comes under TEQSA, a registered VET provider comes under the National VET Regulator, and an approved school provider comes under the Secretary. That default table does not end the matter, though — where a provider falls into more than one category, or where it only delivers an ELICOS or a Foundation Program, the ESOS agency can instead be set by a determination the Minister makes by legislative instrument. This reflects the text of the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 published on the Federal Register of Legislation, as of the September 2026 official page.

Which agency regulates my provider?

Section 6C(1) sets out the default allocation, subject to subsections (3) and (4).

To the extent that a provider or registered provider is…	The ESOS agency is…
a registered higher education provider	TEQSA
a registered VET provider	the National VET Regulator (ASQA — Australian Skills Quality Authority)
an approved school provider	the Secretary
a person or entity that provides an ELICOS or a Foundation Program	the entity determined under subsection 6C(2)
a provider not covered by any other item	the entity determined under subsection 6C(2)

The wording "to the extent that" is the part readers usually miss. The Act does not ask "what brand is this institution?" — it asks what the provider is, in relation to the activity in question. That is why a single well-known institution can legitimately appear under more than one row.

What counts as a "provider" in the first place?

Section 6E(1) defines a provider as one of five things: a registered higher education provider, a registered VET provider, an approved school provider, a person or entity that provides an ELICOS or a Foundation Program, or another person or entity (other than one specified under subsection 6E(2)) that provides, or seeks to provide, courses to overseas students. The Minister may also specify a person or entity for the purposes of that last category.

So the classification is legal, not marketing. A college that describes itself as a "university pathway college" is not automatically a higher education provider in the Act's sense; what matters is which of these five descriptions it actually meets.

Can one provider have more than one ESOS agency?

Yes, and this is the situation most students never expect. Under section 6C(3), if a provider is covered by more than one item of the table, the Minister may, by legislative instrument, determine that one or more entities are the ESOS agencies for that provider, and specify the circumstances in which each of those entities is the ESOS agency.

In practice that means a multi-sector institution — say, one delivering both higher education and VET courses — is not automatically consolidated under a single regulator. The split, and the circumstances in which each agency acts, are set out in the instrument rather than in the Act itself. For a student comparing offers, the useful consequence is that "who regulates this provider?" can have two correct answers depending on which course you are looking at.

What if the provider only teaches ELICOS or a foundation program?

Then the Act's table does not name an agency at all. For item 4 (an ELICOS or Foundation Program provider) and item 5 (anything not covered elsewhere), section 6C(2) provides that the Minister may, by legislative instrument, determine that an entity is the ESOS agency for that provider. The regulator exists, but it is identified through a determination instrument rather than by reading section 6C alone, and the current position should be confirmed against the official latest version of that instrument.

Why does the "Secretary" appear in the list?

The Secretary appears for two different reasons, and it helps to keep them apart. First, under item 3 of the table, the Secretary is the ESOS agency for an approved school provider — the schools sector. Second, under the guide in section 8A, the Secretary is required to cause a Register to be kept containing specified information about the registration of all registered providers, and to ensure that Register is kept up to date.

In other words, the Secretary can be both a regulator in the schools sector and the keeper of the register across every sector.

Does the ESOS agency also register the provider?

Yes. The section 8A guide states that Division 3 provides for the registration of providers by the ESOS agency for that provider: a provider may be registered — for a period of up to 7 years — to provide one or more courses at one or more locations to overseas students if it meets the registration requirements, and conditions may be imposed, varied or revoked. Division 3 also covers renewal of registration, adding one or more courses at one or more locations, and the extension or continuation of registration periods in certain circumstances. Division 5 allows the Minister to suspend the making or processing of applications for registration, or for adding courses to a registration.

The course-and-location framing matters for your decision: registration is not a blanket approval of an institution, it is approval to deliver specified courses at specified places.

Is teaching without registration an offence?

Yes. Under the section 8A guide, a person who provides a course at a location to an overseas student must be registered to provide that course at that location, or do so under an arrangement with a provider who is so registered. Division 2 creates an offence for contravening that requirement, and it is also an offence for a registered provider to offer courses, or hold itself out as able to provide a course, to overseas students without being appropriately registered (or acting under an appropriate arrangement).

Can the answer change depending on which provision is being applied?

It can. Section 6C(4) says that if subparagraph 83(2A)(d)(i) or (2B)(d)(i), or paragraph 83(2C)(c), applies in relation to a registered provider, that subparagraph or paragraph is disregarded when determining the ESOS agency for the purposes of subsection 83(2A), (2B) or (2C). The practical reading is narrow but real: the agency identified as the provider's ESOS agency is not automatically the agency addressed in every reporting-related provision of the Act.

How to use this when comparing providers

The regulator follows the provider's legal category and the activity, not the name on the building. Registration runs per course and per location, for a period of up to 7 years, with conditions that can be varied or revoked; a provider covered by more than one category can have its oversight divided between agencies by Ministerial instrument. This article is general information about how the ESOS Act allocates regulators and is not personalised advice about your enrolment, your provider or your visa — for your own situation, rely on the official text and, where it matters, on a qualified professional.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is my provider regulated by TEQSA or ASQA?

It depends on the provider's category under section 6C(1). A registered higher education provider is regulated by TEQSA; a registered VET provider is regulated by the National VET Regulator (ASQA). Neither name is a general default — the classification drives the answer.

Can one institution really have two ESOS agencies?

Yes. Under section 6C(3), where a provider is covered by more than one item of the table, the Minister may determine that one or more entities are its ESOS agencies and specify the circumstances in which each one acts. The split is recorded in a legislative instrument.

Who regulates a provider that only offers an ELICOS or foundation program?

The Act does not name an agency for that case. Under item 4 of the section 6C(1) table and subsection 6C(2), the ESOS agency is the entity the Minister determines by legislative instrument, so the current answer has to be confirmed against the official instrument.

What does the Secretary actually do under the ESOS Act?

The Secretary is the ESOS agency for an approved school provider, and separately must cause a Register to be kept containing specified information about the registration of all registered providers and keep it up to date. That makes the Secretary both a sector regulator and the register keeper for every sector.

How long does a provider's registration last?

Under the section 8A guide, registration may be granted for a period of up to 7 years, covering one or more courses at one or more locations. The same Division provides for renewal, for adding courses or locations, and for extending or continuing registration periods in certain circumstances.

Does registration cover every course and campus a provider advertises?

No — registration is expressed as approval to provide one or more courses at one or more locations, and conditions may be imposed, varied or revoked. A provider offering a course it is not appropriately registered to deliver at that location commits an offence under Division 2.

Can the Minister stop new registrations?

Yes. Under Division 5, as summarised in the section 8A guide, the Minister may suspend the making or processing of applications for registration, or of applications to add courses to a registration. This is a power over the application pipeline, separate from the regulator's day-to-day oversight of registered providers.