Vehicle Inspection Schemes across Australia.

All across Australia there are multiple differing vehicle inspection schemes. If you’re planning on a move interstate, or maybe you’re selling or buying a car interstate, it’s easy to get caught out. Let’s take a quick look at how the vehicle inspection schemes across Australia vary.

You’re not wrong there! But we’ll break it down into the short and sweet version of what the regulations are for each state and territory. We won’t dive too much into heavily modified vehicles because in those cases you’ll likely need to go have a chat with an engineer to get your vehicle signed off, regardless of where you are in the country.

Scroll down to find your state or territory if you’re just after the bits that apply to you!

New South Wales: Perhaps the most infamous inspection scheme in the country belongs to New South Wales. For vehicles older than 5 years, each time you renew your registration your vehicle must be taken to an approved inspection station for a complete bumper to bumper assessment. Otherwise known as a Pink Slip inspection. The same inspections must be applied to vehicles moving from interstate.

Queensland: Thinking of selling your car? Queensland government requires your vehicle to pass a full inspection first. This proves to a buyer that the vehicle has been looked over by a qualified mechanic and that no major issues were found. Otherwise, transferring a vehicle registration from another state will be grounds for an inspection.

Tasmania: Super relaxed. You only need to get a roadworthy (or ‘roady’ as the locals call it) if you are transferring a car from another state, registering a car with a lapsed rego of more than 3 months or to clear a defect. As long as you keep paying your registration on time, no annual inspections are needed. If you’re buying or selling a vehicle then there’s no roady needed either. Simple.

Western Australia: Short and sweet - a standard vehicle inspection is needed to transfer rego to WA. But the catch is you’ll need the have an immobiliser fitted to your vehicle to be registered in WA. Though keep in mind that in WA, police tend to crack down on unroadworthy looking cars while driving about and hand out ‘call in’ notices, which is effectively the same thing as an inspection.

South Australia: SA is pretty relaxed. You won’t need to get an inspection for transferring registration from another state or territory. As long as you have your compulsory third party insurance you’re a-ok!

Victoria: In Victoria, if you wish to sell your vehicle it is highly recommended to get a roadworthy check (or RWC for short). While not mandatory for the seller to do, you need to have a completed RWC to register the car under the new buyer’s name. Transferring registration from another state will also require an inspection.

ACT: Rules in the ACT are very similar to Victoria. However, inspections are only needed if you are selling a vehicle older than 6 years. If a vehicle’s registration has elapsed for over 12 months you’ll need to book in for an inspection.

Northern Territory: No inspection needed for transferring from another state or territory for vehicles under 5 years old. Northern Territory does not require vehicle inspections until your vehicle is 5 years old and another inspection at 10 years old. Vehicles older than 10 years old require annual inspections, similar to New South Wales. Vehicles coming from interstate and being transferred to a NT registration will need to be inspected, and proof of ownership documentation is required.

Congratulations for slogging through that! Hopefully it helps to clean up some of the confusion about what you need to do to get your car transferred to another state or if you’re buying/selling a vehicle from interstate. Most car dealerships will help you through the process if you’re buying through a dealer network.

We’ve made sure this information is as up-to-date as it can be at the time of writing. However, you know the guv'ment, they keep changing things to keep us on our toes. Be sure to do your homework and check out the local state government pages to make sure you don’t get caught out!

That’s all for now! Keep your eye out for more fresh content coming out on Tyre Review!