What Is REPs Registration, and Do You Need It?The industry standard.
Registration is voluntary, and it is the standard almost every serious gym hires to. Here is what it gives you, what it costs, and the three ways in.
What REPs actually is
REPs registers three kinds of thing: individual exercise professionals, facilities, and providers of ongoing education. It sets a code of ethical practice, holds a public register of who is current, and connects New Zealand to the international system through ICREPs.
It does not employ you, pay you, or find you clients. It verifies that you are qualified, insured, first aid current, and keeping your education up to date, and it gives a client or an employer one place to check.
Do you have to be registered?
Personal training is not a licensed occupation in New Zealand, so there is no law that says you must be.
The industry has set its own standard instead, and REPs is it. That is the useful way to think about registration. It is not a hoop. It is the shorthand a gym, a client and an insurer use to see that you know what you are doing.
Three reasons it is worth having
Gyms hire to it. REPs registered facilities are expected to use registered professionals, so for most employers registration is the first filter, not a bonus.
Insurance. REPs states that registration includes insurance cover at all contractor levels. ACC covers medical treatment for injuries, but not legal or defence costs if a claim or a complaint lands on you. For anyone charging their own clients, this matters more than most new trainers realise.
It travels. Through ICREPs, registration in New Zealand can be carried to partner registers overseas with a Letter of International Portability. If you ever plan to coach in Australia, the UK, the UAE or anywhere else on the ICREPs list, this is the piece that makes your qualification portable.
The registration levels
REPs registers at several levels rather than one blanket category. The main ones are:
Exercise prescription
- Personal Trainer, as a contractor or an employee
- Exercise Consultant Level 2
- Exercise Consultant Level 1
- Exercise Assistant
Group exercise
- Own Choreography, where you design the class
- Pre-choreographed, where you deliver a programme designed for you
Yoga Teacher
Your qualification determines which level you can register at. If you qualify at more than one, you register at the highest and are only charged the higher fee.
How you get registered
Three pathways.
- A recognised qualification. Complete a qualification REPs recognises, supply your first aid, and apply on graduation.
- Global recognition. Already registered with an ICREPs partner register? Supply a current Letter of International Portability, or a current certificate of full registration with an approved partner.
- Independent verification. For qualifications REPs does not recognise, or overseas study that does not meet the portability test. REPs assesses your knowledge, skills and experience against New Zealand standards. You will need certified English translations of your transcripts, an English CV, and two contactable referees.
What it costs
Registration is annual, and the fee depends on your level and whether you work in a REPs registered facility. For the year ending 30 September 2027:
| Level | In a registered facility | Elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| Personal Trainer, contractor | NZ$392 | NZ$544 |
| Personal Trainer, employee | NZ$242 | Not available |
| Exercise Consultant Level 1 or 2 | NZ$148 | NZ$242 |
| Group Exercise, pre-choreographed | NZ$88 | NZ$148 |
| Group Exercise, own choreography | NZ$88 | NZ$148 |
First time applicants also pay a one off NZ$57.50 admin fee. Always check reps.org.nz for the current year before you budget.
Staying registered
Registration is not a certificate you frame and forget. You re-register each year, and you are expected to keep learning, which REPs tracks as ongoing education through registered CPD providers. Let it lapse and you drop off the public register.
Where CoachOne Method fits
CoachOne Method is provisionally registered by REPs New Zealand as a provider of quality education for the exercise industry, while we finalise the rollout of our full personal training programme. Our Exercise Fundamentals certificate is already fully live.
Graduates who also meet REPs individual requirements are registered at the appropriate REPs New Zealand level, and we pay your first year of registration.
Two pathways:
Exercise Fundamentals Certification, NZ$999. 29 lessons. Registers you with REPs as a Group Coach and a Gym Instructor, working with pre-designed programmes.
Personal Trainer Certification, NZ$2,499 at the founding rate. All four areas, 80 plus lessons, the complete personal trainer pathway.
Every lesson is listed publicly before you pay, with sample videos open to anyone.