Apply to be an approved security industry association

All security firms in Queensland must join an industry association. You must be approved by us before you can take on security firms as members.

Your association will need to be a legal entity. It could take the form of:

• an incorporated association
• a company
• some other type of legal corporation.

Application

Your application must:

• be in writing to the chief executive of the Office of Fair Trading
• be on your organisation’s letterhead
• specify the sector (or sectors) of the industry that you represent
• indicate if you limit membership to firms who work in these sectors
• include proof of each of the requirements below.

Requirements

Your industry association will need to meet a wide range of requirements. Your association may already meet some of these requirements.

You need to provide us with proof that you meet these requirements when you apply.

Incorporation

Your association must be a form of corporation. Usually, this will be as:

• an incorporated association
• a company.

Decide which structure suits your needs best. For example, a company might be a better option if you operate in multiple states. This is because the registration for a company applies nation-wide.

You will need to elect your office holders. They will form your managing body—the management committee or the board of directors.

	Incorporated association	Company
Managing body	Management committee	Board of directors
Mandatory office holders	President Secretary Treasurer	Chairperson Secretary Treasurer
Term of office	1 year	1-2 years

You need at least 1 security firm on your committee or board.

Business plan

Your association must have a business plan that:

• describes how the association is to be funded
• includes details of the services the association provides to members
• adopts a whole-of-business approach to planning by including, for example, marketing, financial and risk management plans.

Financial viability

Your association must be financially viable. This means that you must be able to pay debts on time.

You will need to declare your viability when you first apply for approval. This must be:

• completed by your
  • management committee (for an incorporated association)
  • board of directors (for a company)
• written, signed and dated.

We will also need copies of your financial statements. These must cover:

• the last 3 years
• the time since you established (if this was less than 3 years ago).

You must hire an accountant to audit these statements. Their report must:

• include their name and business address
• confirm that they agree with your declaration of financial viability, based on
  • your financial statements
  • their completed audit
  • your business plan.

Services to members

Your association must offer genuine, accessible and relevant services to your members.

This includes:

• programs to help your members develop their skills and expertise
• information or advice about laws and obligations applying to security firms.

Statements of ethical standards

You will need to give us details of how you will promote high standards of ethics and conduct in the security industry. This will include:

• a plan to develop the professional competence of your members
• your code of conduct (PDF, 42KB), including how you will take remedial or disciplinary action
• your complaints policy (PDF, 48KB).

Statement to acknowledge duties

The key duty of an approved security industry association is to help us maintain high standards of professionalism and ethical conduct in the security industry.

You must acknowledge that you will carry out this key duty.

You do this by acknowledging that you will appoint an accountant to audit your members. This accountant must:

• be independent and certified
• audit how each member complies with your code of conduct
• complete an audit of each member once every 3 years.

You must also acknowledge that you will give us all documents we may require. These might include:

• financial statements
• statements about your compliance audits
• statements regarding any complaints made against members
• any updated copies of your code of conduct or complaints policy
• details of any members who have cancelled their membership (or had their membership cancelled).

Consent statement

You must consent in writing for us to put your association’s details on our website. This gives security firms a full list of associations from which they may select one to join.

Appeal our decision

If we reject your application, you can appeal to the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal. You will need to apply for a review of an administrative decision.