How to Become a Casual Relief Teacher in Victoria

To become a casual relief teacher (CRT) in Victoria, you need a recognised teaching qualification and registration with the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT). Once your registration is approved, you can teach in government, Catholic and independent schools across the state. CRTs in Victorian government schools earn $70.97 per hour, up to a maximum of $425.80 per day. Most CRTs build steady work by joining the CRT lists of several schools, keeping their availability current, and being easy to book. Here is the full path, step by step.

What does CRT mean in Victoria?

CRT stands for casual relief teacher. It is the standard Victorian term for a registered teacher who covers classes day to day when the regular classroom teacher is away. Other states use different names for the same job: casual teacher in NSW, relief teacher in Queensland and WA, TRT in South Australia. If you already hold teacher registration in another state and are moving to Victoria, our guide to teacher mutual recognition between states explains how the transfer works.

CRTs work across all three school sectors in Victoria: government, Catholic and independent. The registration requirement is the same wherever you teach.

What qualifications do I need to become a CRT in Victoria?

CRTs need the same qualifications as full-time classroom teachers. That means completing an approved initial teacher education (ITE) program. There are two common routes:

1. A four-year undergraduate teaching degree, such as a Bachelor of Education.
2. An undergraduate degree in another field, followed by a postgraduate teaching qualification such as a Master of Teaching.

The Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT) publishes a full list of approved ITE programs. If you completed your teaching qualification overseas, VIT requires a pre-assessment of your qualifications before you can apply for registration, which costs $285.

How do I get VIT registration?

Every teacher in a Victorian school must be registered with VIT, and that includes CRTs. There is no separate CRT registration category. You apply for the category that matches your experience, and the process looks like this:

1. Choose your registration category. Provisional registration suits new graduates and teachers returning after an extended break. Full registration is for experienced teachers who can demonstrate the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) at the Proficient level and meet VIT’s recency of practice requirements.
2. Apply through MyVIT. The application is completed online and includes proof of identity and a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check, which costs $75.30.
3. Pay the application fee. For 2025-26, initial registration costs $170.90 with Victorian qualifications, or $197.60 with interstate or overseas qualifications.
4. Renew every year. The annual registration fee is $127.80 if paid by 30 September. Paying between 1 October and 31 December costs $168.50, which includes a late processing fee. Set a reminder for early September and save yourself $40.

VIT’s Working With Children information page explains when a separate WWC clearance applies alongside your registration.

How do Victorian government schools engage CRTs?

Government schools engage CRTs directly as casual employees of the school council under the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (Victorian Department of Education). In practice, that means the daily organiser or business manager keeps a list of trusted CRTs and contacts them when an absence comes up. Getting onto those lists is the core of finding CRT work.

Schools can also engage CRTs through recruitment agencies. Since April 2021, government schools that use an agency must go through the Department’s Casual Relief Teachers Panel. Agencies typically take a percentage of the daily rate as a fee, and some contracts restrict where you can accept work. When a school books you directly, you are employed by the school and paid the full rate.

ClassCover connects you with schools directly. You create a free teacher profile, request to join the lists of schools near you, and booking requests come straight to you. The platform is completely free for teachers, so you keep your full rate for every day you teach.

How much do CRTs get paid in Victoria?

CRTs in Victorian government schools are paid $70.97 per hour, up to a maximum daily rate of $425.80, and must be paid for a minimum of three hours on any day they work. These rates apply from 1 July 2025 and are published on the Department of Education’s salary rates page, which has historically stepped rates up each January and July.

The government school CRT rate is flat: the same hourly rate applies whether you are in your first year of teaching or your twentieth. Catholic and independent schools set their own CRT rates, which can differ from the government rate, so it is worth asking when you join a school’s list.

For a full breakdown of what teachers earn across Australia, see our Teacher Salary Guide.

What about Catholic and independent schools?

Your VIT registration covers you for every sector, so working across government, Catholic and independent schools requires no extra accreditation.

Catholic schools in Melbourne operate under Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS), with diocesan education offices covering regional Victoria. CRT bookings are managed at the school level, so the approach is the same as with government schools: introduce yourself, get onto the list, and be easy to book.

Independent schools employ CRTs directly and set their own rates and conditions. Many CRTs build a full week by joining lists across all three sectors, which widens the pool of schools that can book them.

Is CRT work different in Melbourne compared with regional Victoria?

In Melbourne, there are many schools within a reasonable travel radius, and more CRTs competing for the same bookings. Agencies are also more established in the metro market. The strongest position is to become a known name at a cluster of schools near you: schools rebook the CRTs they know and trust, and a familiar face beats a CV in a pile.

In regional Victoria, the dynamics flip. There are fewer registered CRTs available, and schools lean heavily on a small group of regulars. It can take far less time to become a school’s first call, and a willingness to travel between towns widens your options considerably. Reliability carries even more weight where the pool is small.

In both settings, the same two habits drive bookings: being on multiple school lists, and keeping your availability up to date so schools can see when you are free.

What are the PD and mentoring requirements for CRTs?

Your obligations depend on your registration category.

If you are provisionally registered, you have two years to move your practice from the Graduate to the Proficient level of the APST. To move to full registration you need to have taught at least 80 days in one or more Australian or New Zealand schools, and demonstrate proficiency through VIT’s Inquiry process, presenting your evidence to a workplace recommendation panel. Days taught as a CRT count toward the 80 days. You will also need a mentor, an experienced fully registered teacher who gives you feedback as you build your evidence. That takes some planning as a CRT because you work across multiple schools, and VIT publishes a CRT-specific companion guide and evidence guide for exactly this situation.

If you hold full registration, you must complete at least 20 hours of professional learning each year, covering at least one descriptor in each of the three APST domains. Provisionally registered teachers are exempt from the 20-hour annual requirement.

Full-time classroom teachers often have PD paid for by their school. CRTs usually cover their own, so two options are worth knowing. CRTPD offers free professional development for CRTs, funded by the Victorian Department of Education. And ClassCover Learn has over 100 hours of on-demand, online teacher PD aligned with the APST, with unlimited access for $12 per month or $99 per year, plus a range of free courses.

How do I get consistent CRT bookings?

Registration gets you in the door. Steady work comes from being visible, available and easy to book.

1. Join multiple school lists. The more schools that can see you, the more booking requests you receive. Start with schools within your preferred travel radius and grow from there.
2. Keep your availability up to date. Schools book the CRTs they can see are free. An accurate calendar puts you at the front of the queue.
3. Be prepared for anything. One day you are teaching Year 9 algebra, the next it is Prep literacy. Build a bank of go-to activities with our relief teaching daily plans and activity ideas.
4. Have your resume ready. Some schools ask for one before adding you to their list. Download our free Victorian teacher resume template.
5. Be reliable. Turn up early, follow the plan left for you, leave a clear note for the returning teacher. Schools rebook the CRTs who make their day easier.

If you are newly graduated, our New Graduate’s Guide to Casual Relief Teaching covers how to build your school network from zero.

Ready to start?

Once your VIT registration is sorted, create your free teacher profile on ClassCover. From the Find New Schools page you can browse schools near you, request to join their CRT lists, and start receiving booking requests. You can also browse ClassCover Jobs for CRT callouts plus contract and full-time teaching roles across Victoria.

ClassCover is free for teachers. No subscription, no agency cut, no commission taken from your daily rate. Whatever the school pays you, you keep.