If you held a practising certificate for only part of the CPD year
If you did not hold a practising certificate at all
The CPD year runs from 1 April to 31 March. The process for seeking an exemption is different depending on whether you held a practising certificate for the entire CPD year.
If you held a practising certificate for a full CPD year
You can seek an exemption from completing some or all of your CPD activities for the year under certain circumstances. Some reasons to seek an exemption include:
- If you have a period of absence, for example for parenting leave
- if you work part time, or reduced hours
- if you have a disability or you have suffered an illness
- if you have experienced hardship or other exceptional circumstances.
Applying for an exemption
The LIV and the Victorian Bar manage applications for exemption on our behalf under a delegation. To apply for an exemption, please contact the LIV for solicitors or the Victorian Bar for barristers.
You will be required to provide evidence in support of your application. This may include a letter from your employer, a statutory declaration or a medical certificate.
Our CPD policy contains some more detailed information about exemptions.
If you held a practising certificate for only part of the CPD year
If you have only practised for part of the CPD year you only need to obtain CPD points for the time that you held a practising certificate. For example you might have only received your first practising certificate in December, or you may have not renewed your certificate while you were on parental leave.
The table listed below shows you how many points you need to obtain.
| Commencing month | CPD points |
|---|---|
| April | 10 |
| May | 9 |
| June | 8 |
| July | 7 |
| August | 6 |
| September | 5 |
| October | 4 |
| November | 3 |
| December | 2 |
| January | 1 |
| February | 0 |
| March | 0 |
If you have met the CPD points requirements in the table for the time you held a practising certificate you do not need to seek an exemption. When you are applying to renew your practising certificate you can select 'Yes' to the continuing professional development question on the renewal application.
If you did not hold a practising certificate at all
If you are applying for a new practising certificate after a career break (for example you did not renew your certificate while on parental leave for the entire 12 months of the CPD year, or while working in a job that did not require you to have a practising certificate) you don’t need to have completed any CPD or seek an exemption.
When you apply for your practising certificate on LSB Online you can select ‘I did not hold a practising certificate during this period’ and your application will proceed as normal.