Celebrant ongoing professional development (OPD) – what you need to know
Compulsory Professional Development (CPD), also known as Ongoing Professional Development (OPD), is a yearly requirement for Commonwealth-registered marriage celebrants. If you are a new Australian celebrant undertaking it for the first time (or you are an experienced celebrant who needs a refresher), here are the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about CPD.
Related article: 6 Tips for Completing Your Celebrant OPD
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What is CPD (Compulsory Professional Development)?
CPD is an annual requirement for celebrants to complete ongoing training set out by the Marriage Law and Celebrant Section (MLCS) at the Attorney-General’s Department (AGD).
The training usually focuses on the legal aspects of performing celebrant duties and may cover topics such as consent and competency, offences related to the Marriage Act, completing paperwork correctly, and/or general knowledge of the laws around marriage in Australia.
Who has to do CPD?
All Commonwealth-registered marriage celebrants in Australia are required to complete CPD each calendar year with a few automatic exemptions.
You are NOT required to do CPD if:
- It’s the first calendar year you have been registered AND you received a Certificate IV in Celebrancy no more than 12 months before you registered as a celebrant.
E.g. You received your Cert IV in Celebrancy in September 2024 and were registered as a celebrant in March 2025. You will not need to complete CPD in 2025, but you will in 2026. - If you are registered towards the end of a calendar year, the AGD may also exempt you from needing to do CPD in that year.
If you are automatically exempt from CPD, you will be informed in writing by the AGD. You can also check if you are required to complete it or not by logging into the Marriage Celebrants Portal.
How do you complete your celebrant CPD?
Each year, there will be 1-2 activities that are accessible via the Marriage Celebrants Portal. To complete them, you will need to log in to the portal, then answer the multiple-choice quiz for each activity.
You will get up to four attempts to get 100% on the quiz. But don’t worry if you don’t get all answers correct after all attempts – you cannot fail CPD. You just need to complete all necessary attempts.
Some activities will also include required reading via a workbook, which will be downloadable as a PDF via the Attorney-General’s website (the direct link for the topic will be in the portal). Other activities may require you to refer to the Guidelines, Marriage Act or Marriage Regulations.
How much does it cost?
How long does it take?
When does it need to be completed?
CPD must be completed by 11.59pm (AEDT) 31st December each year. However, we strongly recommend you do it much earlier than that.
CPD is usually issued around March or April each year, giving you months to find an hour or two to do it.
Every year, we receive panicked emails and calls from celebrants who have waited until the final few days, only to have technical issues when trying to log in to the portal. And with the AGD office being mostly shut between Christmas and New Year, you don’t want to get stuck!
Moral of the story: complete CPD early, then you can be smug for the rest of the year!
What happens if I don’t get 100% after four attempts?
Absolutely nothing bad! You will still have met your CPD requirements.
CPD is training, not a pass/fail exam. You are only required to complete CPD, which means either getting all questions correct or submitting four attempts.
Just make sure you check out what the correct answer is so you know for next time.
What happens if I don’t do it?
Unlike failing to pay the annual registration fee on time (which legally must result in deregistration), there are no automatic consequences for not completing CPD.
However, if you do fail to do your CPD by the due date, it may result in disciplinary action, including:
- A caution
- Additional professional
- development
- Suspension (eek!)
- Deregistration (double eek!)
For the sake of a couple of hours of work, it’s not worth risking suspension or deregistration.
Can I apply for an exemption?
If you are not already automatically exempted from CPD, you may apply for an exemption in exceptional circumstances. Any applications must be submitted prior to the CPD due date (i.e. 31st December) and can be done via the Marriage Celebrants Portal.
Examples where an exemption may be granted include a serious long-term illness or carer responsibilities of a family member with significant health issues. As part of your application, you’ll need to provide evidence showing that you were unable to complete CPD for a significant period of the year.
In general, remoteness, financial hardship, short-term or temporary illness, being inactive from your celebrant duties or a long-term absence from Australia are not considered grounds for granting an exemption from CPD.
There is also an application fee when applying for an exemption.
While exemptions are possible for people who need them, you may find that it’s simply quicker and easier (and definitely cheaper) to just complete the CPD than go through the exemption process.
Conclusion: celebrant CPD is compulsory but not scary
CPD is simple, free, accessible and designed to make sure you know how to fulfil your legal responsibilities as a celebrant. While it might seem daunting – especially if it’s your first time – it’s nothing to be scared of. You cannot ‘fail’ CPD – you just need to do it. And as a bonus, you can do it from the comfort of your own home, glass of wine and pyjamas optional!
So don’t stress or leave it to the last minute. Knock it out early, and pat yourself on the back for an awesome, educated, knowledgable marriage celebrant!
