How long does a first aid certificate last?
Your Statement of Attainment does not expire, but workplaces treat first aid as current for 3 years and CPR for 12 months. Here is why.
Written byEdway
The short answer
Your Statement of Attainment does not expire. In practice, workplaces usually treat first aid as current for 3 years and CPR as current for 12 months.
This means you normally refresh CPR each year and complete the full first aid course again every 3 years.
Staying current is simple. A quick CPR refresher each year and a full First Aid course when your 3 years come round keep you ready to help when it matters.
Certificate and currency differ
HLTAID011 Provide First Aid gives you a nationally recognised Statement of Attainment. It remains a record of what you completed and when; there is no licence card or regulator register to renew.
The 3-year period is about currency—how recently a workplace expects you to have trained. Safe Work Australia’s first aid code recommends renewing first aid qualifications every 3 years.
Your First Aid certificate includes the CPR unit, so one course keeps both skills fresh at the same time.
Book your refresher a little before your dates come round. That way your skills stay sharp and your workplace always has a trained first aider ready to step in.
CPR is refreshed every year
The same code recommends CPR refresher training each year. CPR is unit HLTAID009, which is included when you complete HLTAID011.
After 12 months, your first aid can still be within its 3-year period while your CPR needs refreshing. That is when the shorter CPR course is the perfect booking.
In the CPR course you practise recognising an unconscious casualty, performing CPR to current Australian Resuscitation Council guidelines, using the recovery position and responding to airway obstruction. You also learn to protect yourself and minimise infection risk.
It suits anyone whose role calls for yearly CPR currency, as well as parents, carers, and fitness and aquatic staff.
If your first aid training is out of date
Check the dates and unit codes on your Statement of Attainment, then confirm the requirement with your employer.
If only CPR is due, book CPR. If your full first aid training is approaching or past 3 years, complete First Aid again so both first aid and CPR are current.
First aid renewal means completing the full Provide First Aid course again. You refresh everything from CPR and bleeding control to burns, fractures, choking, bites and stings, asthma and anaphylaxis.
The course is hands-on and practical. You also practise communicating incident details and reviewing how an emergency was handled, so you go back to work confident and ready.
It is the First Aid course for workplace first aiders, teachers, carers, trades, hospitality, fitness and retail staff, and anyone who wants to help in their community.
Both accredited courses are delivered and issued by Training Aid Australia (RTO 91411).
Next step
If your first aid is approaching 3 years, see First Aid. It includes CPR, so both are refreshed together.
If first aid is still current and only CPR is due, see the CPR course.
Keep your skills current and be the person your workplace can rely on when it counts.
Sources
- Safe Work Australia — Model Code of Practice: First aid in the workplaceThe recommendation that CPR refresher training is done annually and first aid qualifications renewed every three years, and that first aiders hold a nationally recognised Statement of Attainment
- Safe Work Australia — First aid (managing health and safety)The employer's duty to provide access to trained first aiders at all times, including night shifts and overtime
- training.gov.au — HLTAID011, HLTAID010 and HLTAID009Unit codes, official titles and superseded codes
