If you are no longer practising as a registered social worker or intend to stop practising in this coming financial year (e.g. retirement, parental leave) you need to declare yourself as non-practising.

Go to your MY SWRB portal and declare that you are NON-PRACTISING.

NOTE: Once you have declared yourself as non-practising, you must not perform any social worker duties. It is an offence under the Social Workers Registration Act (2003) to practise as a social worker in Aotearoa New Zealand while you are registered as a non-practising.

You must have a Practising Certificate if your work falls under the Scope of Practice
You need to have a current and valid Practising Certificate if you are practising under the social work Hōkaitanga o ngā Mahi – Scope of Practice including: 

• working directly with clients, including whānau, hapū and community

• being involved with casework decisions at any level  
• managing and/or supervising other social workers
• applying your social work values, skills, ethics, and knowledge in your role 
• teaching social work practice or theory 
• developing policy that impacts upon social work practice. 

What is involved if you want to return to practice?

There is a process to go through when you want to return to practice. This process differs according to how long you have been away from practice.

For more information on the requirements, go to Return to Practice page.