Your Trade

Setting up as a self-employed electrician — the licence and the AS/NZS 3000/3017 testing every job needs, the non-negotiable MFT test kit, indicative 2025 rates and work sources, the NSW CCEW and VIC inspection rules, and what an audit looks like.

Setting up as a self-employed plumber/gasfitter — why there's no UK "unvented ticket" (it's your licence plus water-heating and gas endorsements), the ~$10-14k starter kit, indicative rates and turnover, and the hot-water and gas audits to expect.

Setting up as a self-employed HVAC/refrigeration tech — the ARCtick refrigerant licence and A2L transition, the two-tier $3-8k starter kit, indicative install and service rates, and the sole-trader income tax brackets and super.

Setting up as a self-employed carpenter — when framing needs a builder licence (the state thresholds and the subbie-vs-contractor rule), the ~$4-7k tool kit, day rates and income, and the White Card and frame-inspection compliance.

Setting up as a self-employed concreter/formworker — the PB licence for placing booms and the formwork SWMS, the starter kit, m²/m³ rates, the material-price and tax traps, and the footing-and-slab inspection.

Setting up as a self-employed roofer — the work-at-height rules (why a full re-roof needs scaffold or edge protection, not just a harness), the SWMS, the starter kit and what to hire, and how to differentiate from the storm-chasers wrecking the trade's reputation.

Setting up as a self-employed painter — the lead-safe certification (CPCCPD3031) and pre-1970 "assume lead" rule, the low-capital starter kit, the year-two tax sting, and how rates differ across platforms, builders, strata and commercial.

Setting up as a self-employed tiler — the "can I legally tile this?" licensing by state, AS 3740 wet-area waterproofing (shower walls to 1800mm, falls 1:80-1:50, the certificate), the starter kit and rates, and the wet-area failures that wipe months of profit.

Setting up as a self-employed landscaper — the soft-vs-structural licence line, the pesticide licence you need the moment you spray for money, the own-vs-hire machinery rule, the quote anatomy, and the council compliance encounter.

Setting up as a self-employed bricklayer — the state licensing thresholds and the unlicensed trap (you can't sue for payment), the AS 3700 standards every inspector checks, the starter kit, and day-rate vs piece-work pricing.

Setting up as a self-employed general builder — the first-year income picture (subcontract day rates vs project-managed reno pricing), kitchen/bathroom/granny-flat benchmarks, the compliance failures that wipe profit, and what a building surveyor visit actually checks.