Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations consultation

Share Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations consultation on Facebook Share Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations consultation on Twitter Share Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations consultation on Linkedin Email Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations consultation link
Veterinarian with puppy

The Veterinary Practice Regulations 2022 have now been amended to incorporate the outcomes of consultation undertaken since 2022. These regulations are now in effect.

The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) would like to thank all stakeholders for their contribution to the development of the Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations 2025.

Background

The Veterinary Practice Act 2021 (VP Act) and first tranche of the Veterinary Practice Regulations 2022 (VP Regulations) came into effect on 18 June 2022. The VP Act repealed the existing Veterinary Surgeons Act 1960 (VSA) and Veterinary Surgeons Regulations 1979 (VS Regulations).

To enable the VP Act to commence as soon as possible, and to expedite processes, the VP Regulations have been implemented in two tranches, as follows:

  1. The first tranche of the VP Regulations contained essential provisions to support the operation of the VP Act. It did not significantly change the day-to-day practice of veterinarians and others providing those services in Western Australia.

  2. The second tranche of VP Regulations incorporate the Amendment Regulations, which implement modern provisions and practices and supports the operational requirements of veterinary practice.

Consultation processes

The Amendment Regulations have been developed through consultation with stakeholders and the Veterinary Practice Board of Western Australia (Board).

DPIRD undertook three consultation processes seeking feedback from stakeholders to inform the development of the Amendment Regulations.

The first consultation took place between 25 February to 25 March 2022 and addressed:

  • proposed acts of veterinary medicine
  • regulatory options for pregnancy testing of cattle
  • regulatory options for spaying of cattle

The second consultation took place between 27 June to 2 August 2022 and addressed:

  • acts of veterinary medicine that required additional consideration from the preceding consultation
  • acts of veterinary medicine that could be undertaken by authorised persons, veterinary students and veterinary nurse students
  • proposed acts that were not acts of veterinary medicine
  • level of supervision requirements
  • record-keeping and prescribing, sale, and supply of veterinary chemicals
  • requirements for veterinary premises and veterinary practice businesses, including house call vets
  • professional standards including advertising
  • continuing professional development
  • complaints and investigations: unprofessional conduct and professional misconduct.

DPIRD published a Consultation Report which details the first two consultation processes and outcomes.

The third round of consultation took place between 3 January 2025 and 24 February 2025 and provided stakeholders with the opportunity to review the draft Amendment Regulations. The consultation requested other feedback not already provided during preceding consultations, which may significantly impact the draft Amendment Regulations.

Accompanying the draft regulations, a Policy Considerations Paper provided further information on provisions that received diverse stakeholder feedback during the preceding consultations. This paper described how these policy issues were addressed in the draft Amendment Regulations and provided additional details on the principles of operation of the veterinary practice legislation.

A Final Consultation Report is now available which provides further details on the consultation process and outlines the amendments to the regulations.

Next steps

Feedback received during all consultations was carefully reviewed and considered during the drafting of the Amendment Regulations. The second tranche of VP Regulations, incorporating the Amendment Regulations, are now in effect. Regulation 24, containing the requirements for cattle spaying technicians, comes into effect in 6 months. This is in recognition of the need to successfully complete a registered training organisation unit on cattle spaying (Willis dropped-ovary technique) as part of the requirements of a cattle spaying technician. The regulations for cattle spaying technicians can be found in the Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations 2025 and will be included in the Veterinary Practice Regulations 2022 when in effect.

Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations Final Consultation Report

Previous consultation documents

Important links

The Veterinary Practice Regulations 2022 have now been amended to incorporate the outcomes of consultation undertaken since 2022. These regulations are now in effect.

The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) would like to thank all stakeholders for their contribution to the development of the Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations 2025.

Background

The Veterinary Practice Act 2021 (VP Act) and first tranche of the Veterinary Practice Regulations 2022 (VP Regulations) came into effect on 18 June 2022. The VP Act repealed the existing Veterinary Surgeons Act 1960 (VSA) and Veterinary Surgeons Regulations 1979 (VS Regulations).

To enable the VP Act to commence as soon as possible, and to expedite processes, the VP Regulations have been implemented in two tranches, as follows:

  1. The first tranche of the VP Regulations contained essential provisions to support the operation of the VP Act. It did not significantly change the day-to-day practice of veterinarians and others providing those services in Western Australia.

  2. The second tranche of VP Regulations incorporate the Amendment Regulations, which implement modern provisions and practices and supports the operational requirements of veterinary practice.

Consultation processes

The Amendment Regulations have been developed through consultation with stakeholders and the Veterinary Practice Board of Western Australia (Board).

DPIRD undertook three consultation processes seeking feedback from stakeholders to inform the development of the Amendment Regulations.

The first consultation took place between 25 February to 25 March 2022 and addressed:

  • proposed acts of veterinary medicine
  • regulatory options for pregnancy testing of cattle
  • regulatory options for spaying of cattle

The second consultation took place between 27 June to 2 August 2022 and addressed:

  • acts of veterinary medicine that required additional consideration from the preceding consultation
  • acts of veterinary medicine that could be undertaken by authorised persons, veterinary students and veterinary nurse students
  • proposed acts that were not acts of veterinary medicine
  • level of supervision requirements
  • record-keeping and prescribing, sale, and supply of veterinary chemicals
  • requirements for veterinary premises and veterinary practice businesses, including house call vets
  • professional standards including advertising
  • continuing professional development
  • complaints and investigations: unprofessional conduct and professional misconduct.

DPIRD published a Consultation Report which details the first two consultation processes and outcomes.

The third round of consultation took place between 3 January 2025 and 24 February 2025 and provided stakeholders with the opportunity to review the draft Amendment Regulations. The consultation requested other feedback not already provided during preceding consultations, which may significantly impact the draft Amendment Regulations.

Accompanying the draft regulations, a Policy Considerations Paper provided further information on provisions that received diverse stakeholder feedback during the preceding consultations. This paper described how these policy issues were addressed in the draft Amendment Regulations and provided additional details on the principles of operation of the veterinary practice legislation.

A Final Consultation Report is now available which provides further details on the consultation process and outlines the amendments to the regulations.

Next steps

Feedback received during all consultations was carefully reviewed and considered during the drafting of the Amendment Regulations. The second tranche of VP Regulations, incorporating the Amendment Regulations, are now in effect. Regulation 24, containing the requirements for cattle spaying technicians, comes into effect in 6 months. This is in recognition of the need to successfully complete a registered training organisation unit on cattle spaying (Willis dropped-ovary technique) as part of the requirements of a cattle spaying technician. The regulations for cattle spaying technicians can be found in the Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations 2025 and will be included in the Veterinary Practice Regulations 2022 when in effect.

Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations Final Consultation Report

Previous consultation documents

Important links

  • CLOSED: This survey has concluded.

    Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations submission form

    Feedback received during two previous consultations, Consultation on acts of veterinary medicine in Western Australia (25 February to 25 March 2022) and the Veterinary Practice Regulations 2022 – tranche 2 (27 June to 29 July 2022), has been considered in the drafting of the Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations.

    Before completing the submission form, please read: 

    This submission form is intended to capture new feedback not provided during the two previous consultations and which may significantly impact the draft Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations.

    To complete the survey, you must first register (if you have already registered for a previous consultation on Talking Biosecurity or DPIRD YourSay, just sign in).

    Submissions close at 4pm (AWST) on 24 February 2025.

    Share Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations submission form on Facebook Share Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations submission form on Twitter Share Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations submission form on Linkedin Email Veterinary Practice Amendment Regulations submission form link
Page last updated: 12 Jun 2025, 03:15 PM