In Australia, there is very little Government regulation of the martial arts industry. There is some regulation of combat sports which regulates promotions, fighters and titles; and the use and possession of some martial arts weapons is regulated. But overall the Government has very little say in what is taught to who, and when and there is no central licensing body or authority.
Quite often you will see people advertise that they are fully ‘authorised’ or ‘accredited’ by some Government body or association. This usually means they have done a coaching course, such as the free online coaching courses run by the Australian Institute of Sport. These courses in no way confer any authority or authorisation to do much at all. As for the associations, they relate mostly to rules and policies for sport martial arts – they do not reflect the art or the quality of the instruction.
So in short, aside from regulating things like working with children, OHS and general business practices, the government has very little to do with martial arts.
Sadly it continues to be a case of ‘buyer beware’.
That’s why we do our special intro pack. So you can check us out with no risk. It’s also why we offer our 30 satifaction guarantee.