There are two Codes of Practice, namely the Australian and New Zealand Code of Practice and the International Code of Practice. The RTAC Scheme Rules defines the requirements for bodies providing audit and certification to these Codes of Practice, and is supported by the Scheme Supplement 1 which is an ART Unit application form for certification to the RTAC Code of Practice, and Scheme Supplement 2 which is an audit report template for use by Certification Bodies when assessing compliance with an RTAC Code of Practice.
RTAC CoP
Australian and New Zealand Code of Practice
The Australian and New Zealand Code of Practice is the standard against which ART Units in Australia and New Zealand are audited. In Australia, the Prohibition of Human Cloning for Reproduction and the Regulation of Human Embryo Research Amendment Act 2006 defines an accredited ART centre as a ‘person or body accredited to carry out assisted reproductive technology by the Reproductive Technology Accreditation Committee of the Fertility Society of Australia’. As a result, it is currently an offence in Australian Commonwealth law to use human embryos in any way without RTAC licensing. New Zealand has the HART Act 2004 which governs the delivery of ART services.
Accredited Units
International CoP
The International Code of Practice is the standard against which ART Units are audited in countries outside the jurisdiction of the regulatory laws of Australia and New Zealand, and was updated in 2023 to replace the previous version of 2018.
An ART organisation’s compliance with the RTAC Code of Practice must be reviewed on a regular basis, with the review being conducted as an audit by an independent Certification Body (CB) that is approved by the Joint Accreditation System of Australia and New Zealand (JAS-ANZ) or the Fertility Society of Australia.
Certified units
Technical Bulletins
From time to time RTAC will become aware of issues, questions or comments where it may consider assisting units enhance the quality of their service to patients. A Technical Bulletin is an educational communication to all units, and Bodies certifying units to the RTAC Code of Practice, offering advice and guidance. It is not enforceable.
Technical bulletins can be downloaded from the links below.
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 15
Not published
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 14
Not published
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 13
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 12
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 11
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 10
Not published
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 9
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 8
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 7
Superceded
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 6
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 5
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 4
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 3
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 2
RTAC Technical
Bulletin number 1