Practicing Certificates
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Under Section 35 of the Lawyers Act 1986, it is a criminal offence for a person to practise as a lawyer without being the holder of a practising certificate. It is also improper conduct for a lawyer to practise without holding a certificate.
Application for a certificate is made to the Secretary who submits applications to the Council of the Society for decision. The Council may grant or refuse an application. If the Council refuses an application, it must provide reasons. The decision of the Council may be reviewed by the National Court.
A practising certificate may be withdrawn where the lawyer’s right to practise is suspended, where his name is removed from the Roll of Lawyers, where he is declared insolvent or of unsound mind, where he is convicted of a serious offence which provides for the penalty of imprisonment, and where an offence involves dishonesty or moral turpitude.
Pursuant to the amended Practising Certificate Rules, Practising Certificate will only be issued for the period commencing 1 January 2026 and ending on 31 December 2026 if valid applications including fees and supporting documents are received by the Law Society before 1 January 2026, including where relevant, evidence of appropriate Professional Indemnity Insurance cover for 2026.
If applications are received after 1 January 2026, Restricted Practising Certificates will only be issued for the period commencing on the date the applications are received by the Law Society if fees and supporting documents are in order. For Unrestricted Practising Certificates because the date when a practising certificate commences must be the same as the date when the professional indemnity insurance cover commences, the commencement date will be either the date when the valid application with fees and supporting documents is received by the Law Society or the date when professional indemnity insurance cover commences as advised by the insurer or broker, whichever is the later.
If an application for a practising certificate is made after 1st January 2026, it could mean that a lawyer would be practising without a certificate for a period of time which is an offence under the Lawyers Act. In order to overcome this problem, applications for 2026 should be lodged promptly before the end of 2025.
(a) Restricted Practising Certificate
You should apply for a Restricted Practising Certificate if you practise as a lawyer but you DO
NOT do any of the following:
- practise on your own account
- practise in partnership with another lawyer
- hold monies in trust for another person who is a client.
(b) Unrestricted Practising Certificate
You should apply for an Unrestricted Practising Certificate if you fall into one or more of the
following categories:
- you practise on your own account.
- you practise in partnership with another lawyer.
- you hold monies in trust for another person who is a client.
- you are a non-citizen resident overseas.
If you are applying for a UPC for the first time or have not had a UPC for at least a year, please provide requirements under Practice Direction No. 001 of 2001 and No. 001 of 2013 (enclosed).
Applicants are expected to fully comply with the requirements set out under the (UPC) application process.
Please note that if an application is found to be incompetent and subsequently refused by the Council, and the applicant intends to re-apply by way of a new application, a processing fee of K200.00 will be charged per resubmission.
Practising Certificate Fees
Fees, which include GST, for Practising Certificates are fixed under the PNG Law Society Practising Certificate Rules 1990 as amended, and for 2026 are as follows:
| Restricted | Unrestricted | |
|---|---|---|
| Citizens | K2174.00 | K4675.00 |
| Non-Citizens Resident in PNG | K2891.00 | K5663.00 |
| Non-Citizens Resident Overseas | K8018.00 |
The Practising Certificate Fee to be paid by a Direct Deposit into the PNG Law Society’s bank account number 805324 with the ANZ Bank Corporate Centre, Waigani, BSB# 018801 / Swift Code – ANZBPGPX.
A copy of the Bank Deposit slip must be enclosed with the application form.
Only Government Cheques with an account with the Bank of PNG, will be accepted.
Non-Citizen Lawyers Resident Overseas
Application
Non-Citizen lawyers resident overseas who wish to apply for a practising certificate in PNG must apply for an Unrestricted Practising Certificate in accordance with the Lawyers Act.
Professional Indemnity Insurance
As an applicant for an Unrestricted Practising Certificate, a non-citizen lawyer resident overseas must provide evidence of professional indemnity insurance for a minimum of K500,000. If you already have this insurance, it must be for that minimum amount or greater and it must be applicable in PNG. A copy of the policy should be provided with your application so that the Society can consider whether the insurer should be approved under Section 43 of the Act, if not already approved. You must also complete a Statutory Declaration under the Lawyers (Trust Account) Regulation 1990.
