If you completed the academic requirements for admission in a foreign jurisdiction (outside Australia), you must have your qualification assessed by the Legal Profession Admission Board (LPAB), before you apply for admission as a lawyer here.
If you have been admitted in a foreign jurisdiction (outside Australia), you must also have your practical legal training (PLT) assessed by the Board, before you apply for admission.
Information about applying for an assessment of your academic qualification can be found on the LPAB website.
Please allow between 10 to 12 weeks for assessment applications to be determined.
If the Board determine that you must complete further study in Australia, then you are able to apply to complete your subjects via the Diploma in Law.
The number of subjects you will be required to take will depend on a number of factors, such as the subjects you studied, the length and age of your studies and the jurisdiction in which you studied. You may be required to take only a few subjects, such as Australian Constitutional Law and Legal Ethics, to be eligible to be admitted in NSW or you may be required to complete more than half the course.
Please submit your application for assessment early to allow plenty of time for the Board to make a determination.
If you wish to be awarded the Diploma in Law, you must complete at least half (that is, 10 out of 20) of the subjects in the course.
It is important to note that the Diploma in Law course does not confer any visa entitlements for international students.
AUSTRALIA-UK Free Trade Agreement
The Australian-UK Free Trade Agreement, which came into effect on 31 May 2023, has established a Legal Services Regulatory Dialogue that, among other things, will consider enhancing the professional mobility of lawyers between Australia and the UK, but has not introduced mutual recognition arrangements that will immediately allow UK lawyers to be admitted as lawyers in Australia (or vice versa) without their having to undergoing the usual application for admission processes applicable in each Australian jurisdiction.