• Optometrist
• Provisional optometrist
• Dispensing optician
• Specialist Optometrist – Ophthalmic Laser Surgeries

Optometrists already registered in Australia with the Australian Health Practitioners Regulatory Authority (AHPRA) must apply using the TTMR application.

For registration i n any of the above scopes of practices, the applicant must hold a qualification prescribed by the Optometrists and Dispensing Opticians Board (ODOB) for registration. You can view descriptions of each scope of practice, the corresponding prescribed qualification, and which qualifications are recognised under each registration pathway here.

You are applying for registration under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (HPCA Act). The purpose of the HPCA Act is to protect the health and safety of the public. One of the mechanisms to ensure this is the registration process which assesses whether an applicant is fit for registration, holds the necessary prescribed qualification(s) and is competent to practise.

For more information, please spend time reading material related to the Act. You can find information on the Act on the Board’s website.

Section 16 of the HPCA Act sets out grounds for assessing fitness for registration and outlines the circumstances in which an applicant may not be registered as a health practitioner. In accordance with this, the registration process requires evidence to ensure the applicant:

• can communicate effectively, and is proficient in English
• has no concerning criminal history (convictions) in New Zealand or elsewhere
• has no health (mental or physical) conditions that may impact their ability to practice their profession
• has no professional disciplinary proceedings in New Zealand or elsewhere
• has no investigation against them into matters that may lead to professional disciplinary proceedings in New Zealand or elsewhere
• has no professional disciplinary tribunal orders made against them in New Zealand, or another country or orders of an educational institution accredited by the ODOB or similar body/authority in another country
• has no concerns that the applicant may endanger public health and safety.

 

Documents required with the application

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL DOCUMENTS MUST BE CERTIFIED COPIES, IN COLOUR and will need to be in digital format (e.g., doc, pdf) less than 50MB.

The ODOB reserves the right to ask for original or the certified copies to be supplied in hard copy as part of the application.

A certified copy is a photocopy of a document that someone has verified as a true and accurate reproduction of the original. The certification must be done within the past three months.

If you are in New Zealand, copies of your documents can be certified by an approved person, such as a:

• Justice of the Peace
• Lawyer
• Court Official, such as a Court Registrar or Deputy Registrar
• Notary Public

To complete this application, you will need to provide information about the following:

• Evidence of Identity (two forms)
• Proof of name change (if applicable)
• Qualifications (academic transcripts must be a certified digital transcript from the University)
• English language test results (if applicable)
• Criminal conviction history
• Registration history (if applicable)
• Resume/ Curriculum Vitae (if applicable) (does not need certification)
• Two references (professional and character) (does not need certification)
• Supervisor and therapeutics course information (for Provisional optometrist applicants only) (does not need certification)

 

Evidence of Identity

You must provide two forms of identification documentation. One of these documents must have a photograph. Your passport, birth certificate or driver’s licence are accepted. If you have changed your name since birth, you must provide evidence of the name change (e.g., marriage certificate, deed poll change).

Provisional Registration

If you are applying for provisional registration, you must nominate a supervisor, outline the nature of your intended work and supervision plans and upload evidence of acceptance into a therapeutics course.

Qualifications

You must upload proof of your qualifications including all relevant qualification certificates or an official transcript of your academic record, which confirms that your qualifications are conferred. The ODOB may request you to get an international qualifications assessment from the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA).  A list of examination results is not sufficient evidence.  

If you do not hold a prescribed qualification, and require an assessment of your international qualification, the following applies:

• For optometry, if you have completed the Optometry Council of Australia and New Zealand’s (OCANZ’s) Competency in Optometry Examination (COE), you must upload your pass certificate.
• For optical dispensing, you may be required to completed Association of Optical Dispensing New Zealand’s (ADONZ’s) Competency in Optical Dispensing Examination (CODE). If so, you must upload your pass certificate.

If you have additional qualifications that you would like included on your registration, then these can also be uploaded. This includes your original/base qualifications that qualified you to do OCANZ’s COE or ADONZ’s Competency in Optical Dispensing Examination (CODE).

Records of training (ROTs)

Dispensing opticians with relevant prescribed qualifications must also upload a record of training (ROT).

English language test results

Where English is not your first language, AND your relevant qualification was not taught and examined in English (a minimum of 2 years full-time), you must submit a copy of your test results from one of the following organisations:

1. The International English Language Testing System (IELTS): Academic level, with the following minimum pass marks:   

• A minimum of 7.0 in each band in one sitting/examination.

2. The Occupational English Test ( OET), with the following minimum pass marks:

• A minimum of B pass in each of the four components in one sitting/examination.

3. The Pearson English Test ( PET), with the following minimum pass marks:   

• A minimum of 65 in each section.

 

Criminal conviction history

All applicants must submit a Criminal Record Check, or equivalent, from every country in which you have resided from the age of 16. The document must have been issued within the six (6) months from the date of your application. A conviction will not inherently prevent registration from being granted. The ODOB will consider any convictions on an individual basis. If you have a conviction, please provide a letter about the conviction to accompany your application.

Applications residing in Aotearoa New Zealand:

Applicants who have previously resided or are residing in New Zealand must obtain a Record of Criminal Convictions from the New Zealand Ministry of Justice. This lists only convictions and sentencing from court appearances and does not include Youth Court charges.

An application form for your record of criminal convictions can be obtained from your local district court. Alternatively, a copy can be downloaded from the Ministry of Justice website or contact the Privacy Assistant, Ministry of Justice (ph. +64 4 918 8800).

Applications not residing in Aotearoa New Zealand, or who travelled:

Applicants who have lived outside of New Zealand must provide a Record of Criminal Convictions or equivalent from each country they have resided in since the age of 16. Other countries may have different local, state, and federal authorities; ensure that the conviction record is conducted at the appropriate level to include any and all conviction records.

The Board’s preferred provider for international Checks is Fit2Work. You can apply for a Fit2Work check online using the following link. A fee is payable to Fit2work for this check.

Registration history

The ODOB requires evidence of good standing from any equivalent body that you are registered with in any other country or jurisdiction. You will need to request certificates/letters of good standing from all registration authorities or professional associations you have been registered with in the last 10 years (within the same profession). This must be sent directly from the authority to registrations@odob.health.nz; you can upload documentation that the request was made.

A certificate/ letter of good standing must be dated within the last 6 months when received by the ODOB, and it should state that you are of good character and reputation with no disciplinary action pending or proceeding against you.

Note : Optometry graduates in the United Kingdom must request letters of good standing from the General Optical Council and, if a member, the College of Optometrists be sent directly to the ODOB at registrations@odob.health.nz.

Resume/ Curriculum Vitae

Australian and Aotearoa New Zealand optometry graduates are exempt from this requirement; all other applicants must supply this information.

You must provide details about your relevant work experience (including practice names, your job description/ role, and evidence of recent practise), as well as your educational background. Evidence (original or certified copy) is required from all employers you've had in the past three years, including start and end dates of employment and your capacity in which you were employed.

References

You must supply the name and contact email address of two individuals who will provide a reference for your application. Please advise your referees to expect an email from ODOB. 

Both references must have known you for a minimum of one year and cannot be related to you. In addition, your:

professional reference - must be a registered optometrist or registered dispensing optician, or recent employer in an optometry or optical dispensing business, who has known the applicant for at least 1 year, and who is not a relative or a friend. This person is also required to give a clinical reference.

character reference – must be a person who is of good standing in the community, who has no involvement in the optometric or optical dispensing profession, who has known the applicant for at least 1 year, and who is not a relative or a friend.

• The Board considers a person of good standing to be a person of good repute, who has no criminal convictions and holds a position of responsibility in a community or professional organisation.

For instance, this could be:

• other registered health professional (not a dispensing optician or optometrist)
• other registered professional (e.g., a lawyer, accountant, teacher)
• Justice of the peace
• Police officer
• Community leader, like a kaumātua at a marae, a minister of a recognised religion, a leader of a community club, and the like.

 

Fees

All applications must be accompanied by the non-refundable application fee before they can be processed. Visa and Mastercard are accepted as methods of payment for application fees.

• For Aotearoa New Zealand or Australian trained graduates and provisional optometrist applicants registering within 12 months after graduating, the registration fee is $265.00.
• For all other applicants the registration fee is $379.00.    

Board process

The Board will not process any application that is not duly completed, until it is declared by the Registrar. The Board may, if it thinks fit, receive any information from, or question the applicant, or any other person in respect of an application being considered by the Board. For the purposes of any such questioning, the Board may administer an oath to any person. Before the Board questions any other person about the applicant, the Board must advise the applicant about the identity of the persons to be questioned and the nature of the questions.

The Board timeframe guide for processing complete applications is 10-20 working days. In the event that there are any anomalies in the documentation provided, processing time is likely to increase.

Please fully submit your application with all relevant documentation. Should an application be incomplete one year after the Board initially receives it, the Board will require a new registration application, updated documentation and a new fee to be supplied.

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