Key messages
- Environmental health officers (EHOs) provide a variety of public health services to the community.
- Under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008, the qualifications necessary for appointment as an EHO are published in the Victoria Government Gazette.
- The enHealth Environmental Health Officer Skills and Knowledge Matrix forms the basis of the qualifications required and services provided.
Environmental health officers provide a variety of public health services to the community in the following areas:
- safe and suitable food
- prevention and control of notifiable and communicable conditions
- water management
- environmental management
- land use management
- built environment
- Aboriginal environmental health
- sustainability and climate change
- emergency and incident management.
The enHealth Environmental Health Officer Skills and Knowledge Matrix provides more detail on each of these areas.
The Secretary delegates the Chief Health Officer to the Department of Health the power to declare the qualifications necessary for appointment as an Environmental health officer in Victoria. The current schedule of qualifications was declared and published in Victoria Government Gazette G42 on 16 October 2025.
Schedule of qualifications necessary for appointment as environmental health officers
International environmental health officer qualifications
If you have worked as an environmental health officer/practitioner overseas and hold an international environmental health officer qualification that is not listed in the Victorian Government Gazette, your qualification must be assessed before you can work as an environmental health officer in Victoria.
The Chief Health Officer can assess international environmental health officer qualifications to determine if they are substantially equivalent to those listed in the Victoria Government Gazette.
For an assessment, you will need to provide details and proof of your qualification including an academic transcript. Once your qualification has been assessed, you will receive a letter from the Chief Health Officer advising you of the outcome of the assessment.
To request an assessment of your international environmental health qualification, please email the completed application form to environmental.healthunit@health.vic.gov.au, or call 1300 761 874 for further information.
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