Gas work and compliance in NSW: what your plumber needs to hold
Why a plumbing licence does not cover gas, what the Gas Work Authorisation is, and the compliance certificate you should walk away with after any gas appliance is installed or altered.
Short answer: gas work in NSW is its own ticket. The plumber doing it needs a separate Gas Work Authorisation, the job needs to be tested to the standard, and you should be handed a gas compliance certificate at the end. Anything less is the cheap version that costs more later, when the insurer asks for the paperwork.
Plumbing licence versus gas authorisation
The two are not the same. A NSW Fair Trading plumbing licence covers water and drainage. Gas fitting is its own regulated activity under separate consumer-safety law, and the individual doing the work has to hold a Gas Work Authorisation in their own name. The business holds the plumbing licence. The person holds the gas ticket. Both should be on the quote and on the invoice.
If you are getting a gas hot water unit swapped, a new cooktop connected, or a bayonet moved, ask the plumber for the gas authorisation number before they start. A real gas fitter has it on a card in the van.
Before any gas job, do this
Ask for the NSW Fair Trading plumbing licence number, and the individual Gas Work Authorisation number of the person doing the work.
Ask whether a gas compliance certificate will be issued at the end. The honest answer is yes.
Confirm the quote includes the pressure test and the compliance test, not just the install labour.
Keep the certificate with your house papers. Your insurer will ask for it if anything ever goes wrong.
What you should get for the price of a gas job
Three things, in addition to the work itself. A pressure test on the line that proves there are no leaks. A test of the appliance under load, to confirm it operates inside specification. And a gas compliance certificate signed by the licensed fitter. Those are not optional extras. They are the work. A quote that does not include them is quoting only the easy half of the job.
✕When to stop and ring someone else
A "gas-safe" tradie who cannot show you a current Gas Work Authorisation in their own
name, a quote with no mention of the compliance certificate, or an offer to "just plumb
it in" without testing the appliance. That is unlicensed gas work, your home insurance
will not honour it, and you should ask them to leave the site.
!Smell gas, do this
Do not flick a switch, do not start the car in the garage, and do not stay in the room.
Open the windows, turn the gas off at the meter if you can do so safely, and ring us
immediately. A gas-smell call is the one that should never wait until business hours.
The honest price of gas, and why
A gas job has a higher labour rate than the equivalent water job for one reason: the authorisation, the testing, and the paperwork that follow. The price covers a fitter who has trained for the licence, the time to test the install properly, the certificate at the end, and the warranty behind the work. The cheap version of a gas job is not a cheap version. It is a different job, with the safety steps missing.
Get the price in writing, with the certificate named
Before any work starts on a gas appliance, you should have a fixed written price that names the compliance certificate as part of the deliverable, not a separate line item to be added later. Our gas quotes carry the certificate inside the price, every time, and you walk away with the paperwork the same day the work is done.
Common questions
Can any plumber do gas work in NSW?
No. A plumbing licence on its own does not cover gas. Gas fitting in NSW is regulated under the Gas and Electricity (Consumer Safety) Act, and the person doing the work has to hold a separate Gas Work Authorisation. The plumbing licence is held by the business, but the gas authorisation is held by the individual. Ask for both numbers before any gas appliance is touched.
What is a gas compliance certificate, and do I really need one?
A gas compliance certificate is a signed declaration by the licensed gas fitter that the work meets the Australian standard and is safe to use. For most gas work, including installing a new appliance, altering a gas line, or replacing a gas hot water unit, you are entitled to that certificate and your insurer will ask for it after any incident. A fitter who will not issue one has either not done the work to standard or is not authorised to.
Why is a gas hot water swap dearer than electric?
Two reasons. The unit itself is dearer, and the labour requires the gas authorisation, the compliance test on the connection, and the certificate at the end. None of that is padding. It is what makes the install legal, safe, and insurable. A gas swap quoted at the same price as an electric one has usually skipped one of those steps.
Mainline Plumbing Co.