White card vs site induction in Queensland: what is the difference?

Short answer: In Queensland they are two different things. The white card is the general construction induction training card: a course with a registered training organisation that covers work health and safety laws, common site hazards, and how to control those risks. A site induction is the briefing for one workplace, covering that site's rules and, on a construction project, the WHS management plan. A worker can need both. One does not stand in for the other.

General information only, checked against official sources on 20 October 2026. It isn't legal advice. Always check the current law and WorkSafe Queensland guidance for your job.

What each one is

The white card

WorkSafe Queensland says that if you are working in the construction industry, you need to complete a general construction induction training course with a registered training organisation (RTO). The unit WorkSafe names is CPCCWHS1001 Prepare to work safely in the construction industry. WorkSafe says the training is face-to-face with an RTO, and that it gives a basic knowledge of work health and safety laws, common site hazards, and how to control the associated risks.

Once that unit is completed, WorkSafe says the RTO issues a general construction induction training card. In Queensland that card was previously known as a white card, and before that as a blue card. WorkSafe says you must keep the card with you whenever you are on site.

The Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld) uses the same name. In Schedule 19, general construction induction training means training delivered in Australia by an RTO for the specified VET course for general construction induction training. That specified VET course is "Work Safely in the Construction Industry", or a corresponding subsequent VET accredited course. Part 6.5 (sections 316 to 327) sets the duties.

The site induction

WorkSafe's site specific induction page says a person must have a site-specific induction before starting construction work, other than housing construction work. The induction needs to address the contents of the work health and safety (WHS) management plan. The plan includes any site-specific health and safety rules, and the arrangements for telling people at the workplace about those rules.

The current Regulation does not use the phrase "site-specific induction". On a construction project it talks about the WHS management plan and the site rules. WorkSafe calls that briefing the site-specific induction. What the plan has to include, what to record, and a practical checklist are in the Queensland site-specific induction guide. A printable briefing list is the Queensland site induction checklist.

Who is responsible

White card: the businesses that engage, direct or allow the worker

Section 316: a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) must ensure general construction induction training is provided to a worker engaged by the person who is to carry out construction work, if the worker has not successfully completed that training, or completed it more than 2 years previously and has not carried out construction work in the preceding 2 years. Maximum penalty: 36 penalty units.

Section 317(1): a PCBU must not direct or allow a worker to carry out construction work unless the worker has successfully completed general construction induction training and, if the worker completed the training more than 2 years previously, the worker has carried out construction work in the preceding 2 years. Maximum penalty: 36 penalty units.

Section 317(2): the PCBU must ensure the worker holds a general construction induction training card. If the worker has applied for a card and it has not been issued yet, the worker must hold a general construction induction training certification issued within the preceding 60 days.

Section 316 places the training duty on the PCBU that engages the worker. Section 317 applies to any PCBU that directs or allows a worker to carry out construction work, which can include a principal contractor. Neither section sets out a housing exception.

Section 326(1): a worker carrying out construction work must keep their general construction induction training card available for inspection under the Act. If they are still waiting on a card in the circumstances in section 319(4), they keep the certification available until a decision is made. Maximum penalty: 36 penalty units.

Site induction: the principal contractor, on a construction project

Section 292: a construction project is a project that involves construction work where the cost of the construction work is $250,000 or more. WorkSafe says this went up from $80,000, that GST is excluded from the cost, and that work valued at less than $250,000 is not a construction project. WorkSafe also says a principal contractor cannot be appointed for that smaller job.

Section 293: the PCBU that commissions the construction project is the principal contractor, unless they engage another PCBU as principal contractor and authorise that business to have management or control of the workplace and to discharge the principal contractor's duties. A construction project has only one principal contractor at any specific time (section 293(4)).

Section 309: the principal contractor must prepare a written WHS management plan for the workplace before work on the project commences. The plan must include any site-specific health and safety rules, and the arrangements for ensuring that all persons at the workplace are informed of these rules. It must also cover the named safety roles, how the businesses on site will consult, cooperate and coordinate, how incidents will be managed, and how safe work method statements will be collected, assessed, monitored and reviewed.

Section 310: the principal contractor must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that each person who is to carry out construction work in connection with the project is, before commencing work, made aware of the content of the WHS management plan and of their right to inspect it. Maximum penalty: 36 penalty units. WorkSafe also says a person entering a part of the workplace where construction work is being done must have had a site-specific induction, or be accompanied by the principal contractor or someone who has had one.

WorkSafe says site-specific induction is not compulsory where housing construction work is being carried out. The Regulation defines housing construction work in section 306A, for Part 6.3, Division 4 (construction work to erect, construct, extend or structurally alter certain dwellings). Sections 316 and 317 apply to construction work generally and contain no housing exception, so the white card duties still apply on a house. WorkSafe's housing sentence is about the site-specific induction.

WorkSafe says the principal contractor should keep a record of the people inducted and the date it was given. "Should" is WorkSafe's word. The duty in section 310 is to make people aware of the plan before they start.

What each one covers

• White card course. WorkSafe says the training gives a basic knowledge of work health and safety laws, common site hazards, and how to control the associated risks. The Regulation defines it as the specified VET course, delivered in Australia by an RTO. It is not a briefing on your site's rules.
• Site induction. WorkSafe says it needs to address the WHS management plan, including the site-specific health and safety rules. Section 309 lists what that plan must include. It is about the workplace the person is about to work on.

Does a white card expire in Queensland?

Part 6.5 does not give the card an expiry date. Section 320 says the card must state that the holder has completed general construction induction training, the holder's name, the date the card was issued, a unique identifying number, and the jurisdiction that issued it. It must also contain the holder's signature. An expiry date is not on that list.

What the Regulation does require is a gap rule, and both parts of it have to be true. Sections 316 and 317 apply the extra training condition when the worker completed general construction induction training more than 2 years previously and has not carried out construction work in the preceding 2 years. If both are true, the PCBU must ensure the training is provided, and must not direct or allow the worker to carry out construction work until that is done. A worker who finished the course years ago and has kept doing construction work in the last 2 years is not in that category.

Lost card, interstate cards, and old cards

Lost, stolen or destroyed

WorkSafe says to replace the card by contacting the RTO that issued it. Keep a note of that RTO and a copy of the card, because you need them for a replacement. If that RTO is no longer operating, contact another Queensland RTO that delivers general construction induction training. They will say how to apply and about any fees. You need to provide a statement of attainment for CPCCWHS1001 Prepare to work safely in the construction industry, or the previous course CPCCOHS1001A Work safely in the construction industry, and a declaration stating how the card was lost, stolen or destroyed.

If the card was obtained outside Queensland, WorkSafe says to contact the work health and safety authority in that state or territory.

Section 321 is the regulation path: if a general construction induction training card issued by the regulator is lost, stolen or destroyed, the card holder may apply to the regulator for a replacement. The application includes a declaration about the circumstances and is accompanied by the relevant fee. The regulator may issue a replacement if satisfied the original card was lost, stolen or destroyed. Section 325 lets the regulator enter an agreement that authorises an RTO to exercise the regulator's functions under sections 319, 321 and 322. A card issued by that RTO is taken to have been issued by the regulator.

Section 326(3): the duty to keep the card available for inspection does not apply if the card is not in the worker's possession because it has been lost, stolen or destroyed, and the holder has applied for a replacement under section 321 but has not received it.

Interstate cards

WorkSafe says construction workers can work in Queensland using general construction induction training cards issued by other states and territories. Queensland general construction induction training cards, white cards, and the former blue cards are also accepted throughout Australia.

Section 318: in Part 6.5, other than Division 2, a reference to a general construction induction training card includes an equivalent card issued under a corresponding WHS law. That does not apply to a card that is cancelled in the corresponding jurisdiction. Section 318's recognition of interstate cards does not extend to Division 2 (sections 319 to 325), and the section 321 replacement process covers cards issued by the Queensland regulator. WorkSafe says to contact the authority in the state or territory that issued the card.

WorkSafe's note on old cards: old style New South Wales green cards (that are green in colour) are no longer valid in New South Wales or recognised anywhere else in Australia. WorkSafe says a person with a green card needs to complete CPCCWHS1001 to obtain a valid general construction induction training card.

Queensland blue cards

WorkSafe says blue cards were previously issued in Queensland as proof of training in the construction industry. If you already have a blue card, WorkSafe says you don't need to change to a general construction induction training card unless you have lost the card, you have not carried out construction work in the previous two years, or you are enrolled in training that requires CPCCWHS1001 as a prerequisite. WorkSafe gives CPCCDE3014A Remove non-friable asbestos and CPCCDE3015A Remove friable asbestos as examples.

If a blue card is lost, damaged or destroyed, WorkSafe says it can't be replaced. You complete CPCCWHS1001, and the RTO issues a general construction induction training card.

How Set2Go fits the site-specific part

Set2Go runs the site induction you already have. It does not issue a general construction induction training card, and it does not replace one. It also does not write your WHS management plan. The white card check stays a separate step. The checklist includes a line for sighting the card. The site-specific induction guide sets out what WorkSafe and the Regulation say that briefing has to cover.

• Your PowerPoint, one slide at a time. Workers see the deck you upload. Set2Go timestamps when each slide was viewed. The quiz stays locked until every slide has been seen, and a certificate is issued when they pass.
• Inductions without a gate. Contractor inductions run the phone induction with no QR check-in. You can set how long a pass lasts. The records view shows current, expiring soon, or expired. When a pass is about to expire, or has expired, the worker gets an email. You can export the register to CSV.
• Gate check-in. Site sign-in is for sites that do run a gate. Invited workers with a current induction scan the site QR code and enter their PIN. A live board shows open check-ins, so you can see who is on site.

Pricing is published at settogo.com.au/pricing. There's a 14-day free trial with no card required.

Important: Set2Go is safety administration software. It is not a statutory WHS system. Using it doesn't by itself mean you've met your obligations under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld) or the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld). You're still responsible for the white card check, the content of your WHS management plan and site induction, and for meeting your duties as a PCBU or principal contractor.

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FAQ

Sources (checked 20 October 2026)

• WorkSafe Queensland, General construction induction (page last updated 4 October 2022)
• WorkSafe Queensland, Site specific induction (page last updated 25 January 2019)
• WorkSafe Queensland, Principal contractors (page last updated 2 May 2017)
• Queensland Legislation, Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (in-force compilation viewed 20 October 2026): sections 292, 293, 306A, 309, 310 and 316 to 327, and Schedule 19 definitions of general construction induction training, general construction induction training card and specified VET course. Section 306A defines housing construction work

Related

• Site-specific induction requirements for a QLD commercial job
• Site induction checklist for Queensland construction sites (free template)
• Turn a PowerPoint induction into a phone induction
• Contractor inductions
• Site sign-in
• All guides

Set2Go is operated by Actual Training Pty Ltd trading as Actual IT, ABN 60 626 629 454.