Expiring and Expired Unit Standards
The difference explained.
Reviewed unit standards deemed no longer fit for purpose are designated 'expiring' and are removed from the National Qualifications Framework (NQF). They are no longer available for new education programmes but may continue to be used by providers in existing programmes until their status changes to 'expired'.
For example:
* With the review of the National Certificate in Tourism (Introductory Skills) [Ref: 0875], unit standards 9717, 9719, 18231, 18233, 18234, and 18236 now show on the NQF as 'expiring' however these unit standards can still be used until December 2010. (These unit standards will show as 'expired' after this date).
* With the review of the National Certificate in Tourism (Core Skills) (Level 3) [Ref: 0876], unit standards 5070, 18210, 18223, 18224, 18230, 18280, 18232, 18238, 20489, and 21231 now show on the NQF as 'expiring' however these unit standards can still be used until December 2009. (These unit standards will show as 'expired' after this date).
As a general rule the date the unit standard is to expire is normally a minimum of two years from the date of review, however the expiring period may be longer or shorter depending on the reason for and outcome of the review. The review report states the date that the unit standard will expire.
Review reports can be found on the NZQA website (click here) and are published monthly. The review report for the reviewed unit standards relating to the National Certificate in Tourism (Introductory Skills) [Ref: 0875] can be found under May 2008 and for the National Certificate in Tourism (Core Skills) (Level 3) [Ref: 0876] under January 2008.
Please also note that unit standards that show an 'expiry date' on the first page are in the old style layout and this date is not significant, it relates to an anticipated review date, rather than an actual expiry date. You will notice the new style unit standards reflect this by no longer displaying an expiry date but a planned review date instead.
We hope this information helps clarify the difference between expiring and expired unit standards. If you are unsure about when a unit standard is expiring please do not hesitate to contact us.
