Permit to Work in Mining: How It Works

What a permit to work is

The WA isolation guideline defines a permit to work as a formal written statement of the work to be undertaken, the safety precautions to be implemented, and confirmation that the associated risks and hazards have been identified. It says the system aims to reduce the risks of hazardous or non-routine work to as low as reasonably practicable, and that in its simplest form the system is a record of what has been done to prepare for the work, what will be done during the work, and how and why the work will be done.

The same guideline warns that if workers treat the system as just another administrative control, it will not be used effectively. It depends on the people responsible for preparing, supervising and carrying out the work.

When a permit applies

Your site decides which jobs need a permit. The WA isolation guideline says, as a minimum, the permit system should be applied to the following.

Minimum scope in the WA isolation guideline

Work that needs a group isolation
Work that affects critical safety systems or process controls
Routine work that cannot meet the criteria for a personal isolation
Work that is not routine

The NSW safety management systems code also lists a permit to work for high-risk work, such as erecting or digging, as an example control a mine can use. It is an example, not a full list. Our mining glossary has short definitions of the common terms.

Permit types

Mines run several kinds of permit, and the names and forms are set by the site. The WA isolation guideline says the permit must specify the scope of work it covers, and that any subsidiary permits, such as work-at-height, confined space entry or hot work permits, should be directly linked to it. The NSW code of practice also gives work permits for hot work as an example of something a mine and a contractor may need to line up so their work systems are consistent.

In WA, confined space entry is the best documented example. The WA confined spaces code of practice says a worker must not be directed to enter a confined space unless they have been issued an entry permit for the work, and sets out what the permit must contain. Each permit applies to one confined space. Our confined space ticket page and working at heights ticket page cover the courses that sit behind those permits.

What a WA confined space entry permit has to include

It is completed in writing by a competent person
It names the confined space it relates toEach permit applies to one confined space.
It records the names of people permitted to enter and the period of the work
It sets out the risk controls and the systems of workExamples in the code include isolation of plant and services, purging, ventilation and atmospheric testing.
It lists equipment and any rescue equipment required
It includes an acknowledgement the work is complete and everyone has left the space

The lifecycle

No regulator document we read gives one standard list of stages, and each site words them differently. The sequence below is built from what the WA isolation guideline says a permit system should do and from the confined space entry permit rules. Treat it as a general picture only.

What the permit system should record (WA isolation guideline)

The nature and extent of the job and the hazards involvedIncluding limits on the extent of the work and the timeline to finish it.
The precautions to be takenIncluding the method and list of hazardous energy isolations.
A record of controlThe methods, the checks and who authorised them.
How work that could affect other people or processes is controlled
A formal hand-over and hand-back
How change is identified, assessed and responded to

A general permit lifecycle

Request: describe the job, where, and for how longThe permit has to name the scope of work it covers.
Assess the riskThe WA isolation guideline says workers should take part in and review task-based risk assessments. Your site may use a JSA, a SWMS or both.
Prepare the job: isolations and other precautionsThe permit lists the method and list of isolations. See our LOTO guide for locks and tags.
Authorise and issueThe WA guideline says the system should promote review of the activities and controls by competent and authorised persons.
Brief and sign onEveryone on the job is told the scope, the isolated plant and where the isolation points are, then signs on to the permit.
Do the work within the scope on the permitCopies should be displayed and accessible at the task location, with the isolation list.
Change, suspension or shift hand-over: stop and re-checkIf the job changes, or a different shift takes over, the permit needs a process to handle it.
Hand back and close outWork complete, people clear, isolation removed by the site's method and authority, and the permit signed off.

For shift change, the WA isolation guideline says that when work is not finished and the plant must stay isolated, the outgoing shift gives a hand-over briefing covering the status of the work, known hazards, and the removal and replacement of personal locks and danger tags. For WA confined space permits, the code of practice says the permit must be re-validated if the person in control changes, work stops and restarts, the work adds hazards the permit does not cover, or new controls are needed.

Who does what

Roles and job titles are not standard across Australian mines. The WA isolation guideline refers to “authorised isolators or permit-to-work personnel” (who alone should open isolation locks, after all personal locks and danger tags are removed) and describes three groups responsible for a job: those who prepare the work, supervise it and carry it out. The NSW Resources Regulator refers to authorised permit holders and authorised isolators, and says their roles and responsibilities, and the control of the permit holder’s key in a group isolation, should be set out in the site’s isolation standard. In WA confined space work, a competent person completes the permit, and a competent person who directs and supervises the work should be nominated and authorised to complete it for the business.

You may hear titles such as issuer, receiver, holder or area owner on your site. We did not find a regulator source that standardises those, so ask what each role is called at your site, who holds it and how you contact them. Also ask how you sign on and off, because the WA isolation guideline lists the people authorised to do isolations and permits, and the requirement to sign on and off the documentation, among the things workers should be told before working on isolated plant.

Permits and isolation

The WA isolation guideline says the management of isolations is commonly part of a permit-to-work system, and that all group isolations should be done under one. A personal isolation is the exception: one trained person isolates, does the job and de-isolates in the same shift, with their own lock and danger tag. Where that is not possible, a permit applies. See our guide to the LOTO procedure for locks, tags, lock boxes and test for dead.

JSA, SWMS and Take 5

A permit authorises the work and records the controls. A JSA, SWMS or Take 5 is a risk assessment or check about how the task will be done and what could go wrong. The WA isolation guideline expects workers to take part in and review task-based risk assessments for work under a permit. How these documents connect is a site decision. Some sites attach a JSA to the permit, some require a Take 5 as well, and contractors may bring their own SWMS. Ask which ones your site requires, in what order, and who checks them. Our templates for the Take 5, JSA and SWMS show the usual layouts, and SWMS and JSA for mining explains how they are used.

Common failures

The NSW Resources Regulator inspected group isolation permit systems at coal mines and published what it found in December 2018. These are NSW findings. The lessons apply to any permit system.

What inspectors found

Several versions of a group isolation permit in use at one siteNSW SB18-19.
Permit holders and authorised isolators who could not say when they were trained or authorisedNSW SB18-19.
Permit form completed before the isolation steps on it were doneFound at one site, SB18-19.
Permit holders who did not know their responsibilities for control of the permit and the permit holder's keyNSW SB18-19.
Supervisors who knew of non-compliance with the site system and let the work continueNSW SB18-19.
The number of people locked on not matching the names and signatures on the permitNSW SB18-19.
People fitting locks who did not know what was actually isolatedNSW SB18-19.

Follow your site’s system

Everything above is general. Your site has its own permit types, forms, authorised people, signing rules and close-out steps. They override this page. If a permit does not match the job in front of you, or the job changes, stop and ask the person who controls the permit.

Questions to ask in your induction: which jobs need a permit, who issues them, how you sign on and off, where permits are displayed, how shift hand-over works, and who to call when the job changes.

Sources: WorkSafe WA isolation guideline, WorkSafe WA confined spaces code, NSW safety management systems code and NSW SB18-19.

Frequently asked questions

What is a permit to work?

A permit to work is a formal written statement of the work to be done, the safety precautions to be put in place, and confirmation that the risks and hazards have been identified. That is how the WorkSafe WA isolation guideline defines it. In practice it is a controlled record that the right people have checked the job is safe to start. Your site's permit system sets the forms and the steps.

What jobs need a permit to work?

Your site decides, but the WA isolation guideline says the system should apply at minimum to work that needs group isolation, affects critical safety systems or process controls, is routine but cannot meet the criteria for a personal isolation, or is not routine. The NSW safety management systems code gives permits for high-risk work, such as erecting or digging, as an example control. Confined space entry in WA also needs a written entry permit.

What types of permit are there?

Types vary by site. The WA isolation guideline names work-at-height, confined space entry and hot work permits as examples of subsidiary permits that should be linked directly to the main permit. Isolation is often managed through the permit system too. Check which permits your site uses and what each one covers.

What are the stages of a permit to work?

A typical permit moves from request and risk assessment, through preparation and isolation, authorisation, briefing and sign-on, the work itself, any change or hand-over, then hand-back and close out. The WA isolation guideline lists identifying the job and hazards, the precautions and isolations, a record of control, hand-over and hand-back, and a process for change as parts of the system. Your site's stage names may differ.

How does a permit to work differ from a JSA, SWMS or Take 5?

A permit authorises and controls a job. A JSA, SWMS or Take 5 is a risk assessment or check about how the job will be done. The WA guideline expects workers to take part in and review task-based risk assessments for work under a permit. Your site's system sets how these documents connect, so ask which ones you need to complete.

Does a permit stay valid if the job changes?

Not automatically. The WA isolation guideline says a permit system should have a process for identifying, assessing and responding to change. For WA confined space entry permits, the code of practice says the permit must be re-validated if the person in control of the work changes, work stops and restarts, the work introduces hazards the permit does not cover, or new control measures are needed. Stop and check with the permit authority if the job changes.

Who closes out a permit?

That depends on the site, but a permit should be closed out formally, not just walked away from. A WA confined space entry permit has to include an acknowledgement that the work is complete and everyone has left the space. The WA isolation guideline expects a formal hand-back process and says the permit or isolation list should define the method and authority for de-isolation and return of plant to service.

Sources

Last updated 10 October 2026. Facts on this page come from the sources below.

The sources are regulator and government documents read on 10 October 2026. We did not find a regulator document dedicated to permit to work in Australian mining, so this page draws on the permit sections of the WA isolation guideline, the WA confined spaces code of practice, the NSW safety management systems code and a NSW safety bulletin. The WA isolation guideline is a Department of Mines and Petroleum document dated 2015 that refers to the Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994, so its legislation references may be out of date. The WA confined spaces code applies under the WHS legislation in WA. The NSW documents are about NSW mines. Permit names, forms, roles and steps differ between jurisdictions, mines and employers. This page is not training. Follow your own site’s permit to work procedure and induction.

Permit to Work: How the System Works on Australian Mine Sites