Allied health in Aged Care: screening AHPRA practitioners

Allied health practitioners are a core part of Aged Care. Physiotherapists, occupational therapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, dietitians and psychologists are often contracted in to deliver services in residential homes and under Support at Home. Many providers assume that because these practitioners hold current AHPRA registration, the screening box is already ticked. It is not.

AHPRA registration and worker screening answer two different questions. Registration confirms the practitioner is qualified and legally permitted to practise their profession. Worker screening confirms they are not barred from working with vulnerable people. From 1 November 2025, the Aged Care screening obligation applies to allied health practitioners just as it applies to personal care workers, nurses and kitchen staff.

AHPRA registration is not a screening substitute

This is the single most common gap in allied health onboarding. A registered practitioner has met their profession's standards and passed the Board's checks, but AHPRA does not run a worker screening assessment against state and territory disqualifying offences in the way a worker screening check does.

Under the Aged Care screening rules, there are only two accepted options for any Aged Care worker:

• A National Police Check (Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check) issued within the last three years, or
• An NDIS Worker Screening Clearance.

AHPRA registration is never a third option. A physio with current registration and no National Police Check or NDIS clearance does not meet the screening obligation, regardless of how senior or experienced they are.

What the two accepted screening options mean

A National Police Check issued within the last three years is the most common route for allied health practitioners who work only in Aged Care. It must be current at the time the worker starts and re-run before it ages past three years.

An NDIS Worker Screening Clearance is the alternative. It is a points-in-time clearance valid for five years and is well suited to practitioners who already work across NDIS and Aged Care. Worth noting: the police history component is built into the NDIS Worker Screening Check, so a practitioner with a valid clearance does not also need a separate National Police Check.

For practitioners who deliver both NDIS and Aged Care services, holding the NDIS clearance can simplify screening across both sectors. See dual Aged Care and NDIS compliance for how that overlap works in practice.

AHPRA registration is its own expiry to track

Even though registration is not a screening check, it is still a compliance requirement in its own right, and it has its own renewal cycle that providers and practitioners must keep current.

AHPRA registration renews annually. For most allied health professions, including physiotherapy and occupational therapy, the renewal date is 30 November each year, with a short late period after that. If registration lapses, the practitioner is removed from the national register and is no longer permitted to practise. A lapsed registration is a genuine compliance failure, separate from any screening gap.

The upside is that registration status can be verified against the register. The AHPRA register is a public, authoritative record, so registration can be confirmed directly against it rather than relying on a certificate the worker hands over. See how to check AHPRA registration for the detail.

So for a single contracted allied health practitioner, a provider is tracking at least three separate things:

• Current AHPRA registration (verified against the register, renews around 30 November annually)
• A National Police Check (under three years old) OR an NDIS Worker Screening Clearance, neither of which can be verified against a register
• Any role specific or mandatory training the provider requires

The subcontractor and agency trap

Allied health is frequently delivered through agencies, sole trader contractors or labour hire arrangements. This is exactly where screening gaps appear, because providers can assume the agency has done the checks and the agency can assume the provider has.

The Aged Care screening obligation does not shift with the employment arrangement. The registered provider remains responsible for ensuring every worker who delivers care to its recipients is appropriately screened, whether that worker is a direct employee, a contractor or engaged through a third party. A signed agency agreement does not discharge the provider's responsibility to be satisfied the worker meets the screening requirements before they start.

Practical steps for providers engaging allied health through third parties:

• Ask for evidence of both AHPRA registration and screening before the first visit, not after.
• Confirm screening type and expiry, not just that "a check exists". A two year old National Police Check is fine today but needs re-running before it turns three.
• Re-confirm at intervals, because contractors rotate and clearances expire mid contract.
• Keep your own record. Relying on the agency's record leaves you exposed if it is incomplete.

For the broader picture on third party arrangements, see subcontractor and labour hire screening obligations.

Authoritative sources

• Screening requirements for the Aged Care workforce - Department of Health, Disability and Ageing
• New ways of working in Aged Care - future Aged Care worker screening model
• NDIS Worker Screening Check - NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission
• AHPRA - national register and registration renewal

How Koora helps

Koora's Career Passport gives an allied health practitioner one portable, checked record of their credentials. AHPRA registration is verified by Koora against the national register and tracked to its annual renewal. National Police Checks and NDIS Worker Screening Clearances have no register to query, so the compliance engine checks them against the requirements for the role and tracks their expiry, surfacing an aged out check before it becomes a problem. A person reviews the documents themselves once a practitioner shares their passport with a provider, or across the provider's own records through the Crew service.

For providers, that means the screening status of every contracted practitioner, including those engaged through agencies, sits in one place rather than across a stack of emailed PDFs. Koora checks these credentials and flags gaps, but the provider keeps the legal responsibility for who they engage. Compliance reporting reflects the current state at the time the report runs, so you can see who is clear today without reconstructing a paper trail.

The result is fewer surprises at audit, and a clear answer to the question that catches providers out most often: registered with AHPRA is not the same as screened to work in Aged Care.

Frequently asked questions

Does AHPRA registration count as worker screening for Aged Care?

No. AHPRA registration confirms a practitioner is qualified and registered to practise, but it is not a worker screening check. An AHPRA-registered physio, OT or podiatrist working with Aged Care recipients still needs a National Police Check issued within the last three years or an NDIS Worker Screening Clearance.

Which screening does a contracted allied health practitioner need?

From 1 November 2025, every Aged Care worker needs one of two options: a National Police Check issued in the last three years, or an NDIS Worker Screening Clearance. This applies to allied health practitioners contracted to a registered provider, on top of their AHPRA registration.

Who is responsible if the practitioner is engaged through an agency?

The registered Aged Care provider remains responsible for ensuring every worker delivering care is appropriately screened, even when the practitioner is engaged through a labour hire firm, allied health agency or subcontractor. The provider should check evidence of both AHPRA registration and the relevant screening before the worker starts.