Starting a tutoring business

Fair Work Ombudsman guidance says time employees are asked to work is generally paid, including meetings, training and opening or closing.³ Check the applicable award, agreement, contract and role classification.

Employment New Zealand assesses work through factors including restrictions on freedom, responsibilities and employer benefit.⁴ Required duties outside the lesson should not simply be assumed unpaid.

Check provincial or territorial employment standards. Ontario, for example, generally counts actual work and time an employee must remain at the workplace, subject to exceptions; this is not a Canada-wide rule.⁵

In Great Britain, National Minimum Wage working-time rules differ by work and pay type. A flat lesson fee alone does not settle what hours must be counted.⁶

For covered non-exempt employees, federal FLSA guidance counts work the employer permits or allows, with fact-specific rules for waiting time.⁷ State and local rules may add protections.

Check permits at federal, state or territory and local levels.¹⁶ Child-screening rules are jurisdiction-specific; NSW’s Working with Children Check service summary includes education among examples of child-related work.¹⁷ Confirm the actual role and exemptions with the relevant screening authority, and the proposed premises use with the council. Do not treat another state’s answer as clearance for your centre.

School children’s-worker safety-checking guidance includes relevant contractors engaged by schools; it is not a blanket rule for every independent tutor.¹⁹ Establish which framework covers your operation. A building change of use may also require written notice to the council and Building Code consideration; confirm the current process with the territorial authority before committing to premises.²⁰

Check the province or territory and municipality. Ontario’s private-school requirements matter if the operation falls within that category; they do not automatically classify tutoring-only services as schools.²¹ Confirm worker-screening requirements and eligibility with provincial authorities and the relevant police service.

Also check the tax treatment of the offer. The Canada Revenue Agency’s GST/HST tutoring exemption applies only in defined educational circumstances, not automatically to every service described as tutoring.²²

In England and Wales, DBS eligibility and regulated-activity duties depend on the actual role.²³ Scotland requires its own screening enquiry; do not extend a DBS answer across the UK.

In England, most childcare providers caring for children under 8 must register with Ofsted unless exempt.²⁴ Establish whether your supervision and care arrangements fall within childcare rules. Check devolved requirements elsewhere and confirm premises use with the local planning authority.

The Department for Education’s February 2026 out-of-school safeguarding guidance provides a practical framework for tuition providers, but it is not a complete licensing determination.²⁵ In England, Scotland and Wales, a service introducing tutors and students may also fall within employment-agency or employment-business legislation, depending on its activities.²⁶

Check state education and child-serving-business requirements and local zoning, occupancy and premises approvals. The SBA notes that zoning can apply even to home businesses.²⁷ Federal background-check requirements described by ChildCare.gov concern licensed childcare staff; they should not be treated as a universal tutoring-only rule.²⁸ Ask the relevant state authorities to classify the actual service and identify applicable screening duties.