- 08 Sep, 2026
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Documents for Tutor Verification: What Apex Requires
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Documents for Tutor Verification: What Apex Requires
The list is shorter than most applicants expect, and a fair number of good tutors talk themselves out of applying because they assume otherwise. Here is exactly what is required, what is conditional, and what is simply an advantage.
For new tutorsWhich documents for tutor verification does Apex require?
The documents for tutor verification are few. Two from everyone: an identity document or passport, and the qualifications for the subjects and levels you want to teach. The name must match across both. One more if you will teach in person: a valid police clearance certificate. Everything else, including SACE registration, is optional and treated as an advantage rather than a condition.
That is the whole required list. If you are reading this because you assumed you needed a teaching qualification or a SACE number, you do not.
Which two documents does every applicant need?
An identity document or passport, and the qualifications for the specific subjects, curricula and levels you have asked to teach. The identity document establishes who you are and provides the name everything else is checked against. The qualifications are checked against what you applied for, not against teaching in general. If your names differ, after a marriage or a legal change, include the supporting document at the same time.
| Document | What Apex does with it |
|---|---|
| Identity document or passport | Establishes who you are, and provides the name that everything else is checked against |
| Qualifications | The certificates behind the specific subjects, curricula and levels you have asked to teach, checked against what you applied for |
The name has to match
The name on your identity document is compared against the name on your qualifications. If they differ, for example after a marriage or a legal name change, include the supporting document at the same time. It is a common and entirely ordinary reason for a delay, and it is avoidable.
Qualified in what you are applying for
You are not asked to prove you are qualified in general. You are asked to prove you are qualified in the subject, curriculum and grade you want to teach. Apply for what your certificates actually support, and add subjects later if you want to extend.
Which document depends on how you teach?
A police clearance certificate, which is required to tutor in person and not required to tutor online. The reason is the risk rather than the paperwork: an in-person lesson puts a tutor and a child in the same room, while an online lesson runs on Apex’s Custom LMS and is logged. You can start online while a certificate is being processed and add in-person work once you have it.
The reason is the risk, not the paperwork. An in-person lesson happens in a home or a shared venue with a tutor and a child in the same room, so the requirement is strict and there is no flexibility on it. An online lesson runs on Apex’s Custom LMS, is logged, and can be reviewed.
Practically, that means you can start tutoring online while a clearance certificate is being processed, and open up in-person work once you have it. A great many tutors do exactly that.
If you already hold one, submit it. If not, the South African Police Service explains how to apply. It appears as a badge on your profile, and parents looking for in-person lessons filter for it.
What is optional, and worth submitting anyway?
SACE registration, a teaching qualification such as a BEd or PGCE, postgraduate qualifications in your subject, examiner or marker experience, and proof of professional experience in a relevant field. None is required. Each is verified where you supply it and shown on your profile, and parents do read them. SACE registers schoolteachers, so a graduate or subject specialist will not hold it, and that is fine.
- SACE registration. Apex confirms it exists and is current. It does not grant, approve or endorse it. SACE registers schoolteachers, so if you are a graduate, a postgraduate or a subject specialist you will not have one, and that is fine.
- A teaching qualification such as a BEd or PGCE.
- Postgraduate qualifications in your subject.
- Examiner or marker experience, or curriculum-specific training.
- Proof of professional experience in a relevant field.
Why the list is deliberately short. A long requirements list turns away exactly the people a parent would most want teaching their child. Some of the strongest tutors on the platform have never taught in a school. What is required is what Apex can actually verify and what genuinely protects a learner.
What else is needed beyond the documents?
Two things, and neither is a certificate. Your setup, which your profile records once Apex has confirmed it: stable internet, a laptop or desktop, a webcam and a quiet teaching environment. And your profile itself, meaning a photograph, a written introduction, and your subjects, curricula, grades and availability, all checked by Apex before the profile goes live. For online tutoring the setup matters as much as the qualification.
Your setup
Your profile records what Apex has confirmed about how you teach: stable internet, a laptop or desktop, a webcam, and a quiet teaching environment. Parents see those before they book, and for online tutoring they matter as much as the qualification.
Your profile itself
A photograph, a written introduction, and your subjects, curricula, grades and availability. Tutor profiles show information supplied by the tutor and checked by Apex before the profile goes live, so it is worth writing properly rather than filling in.
There is more on that in how to improve your bookings through your profile.
What happens after you submit?
Apex checks the documents, confirms the name matches across them, checks the qualifications against the subjects and levels you applied for, and reviews your profile before it is published. There is no published timeframe, and applying with everything to hand is what shortens it in practice. Verification then continues: you must tell Apex if your circumstances change, including police clearance status, and documents may be re-verified from time to time.
There is no published timeframe, and Apex does not invent one. What shortens it in practice is applying with everything already to hand rather than sending documents one at a time.
Verification also continues after approval. You agree to tell Apex immediately if your circumstances change, including your police clearance status, and Apex may re-verify documents from time to time. Under the Tutor Terms you warrant that you are not listed on the National Register for Sex Offenders or the National Child Protection Register, and Apex may terminate with immediate effect if you are.
Tutoring with Apex is done as an independent tutor contracted to Apex Academic Centre rather than as an employee, which clause 2.2 of the Tutor Terms sets out.
When you are ready, apply to tutor with Apex, or read what being a verified Apex tutor involves and the current tutoring opportunities first.
Frequently asked questions
What documents do I need to tutor with Apex?
An identity document or passport, and the qualifications for the subjects and levels you want to teach, in the same name. A valid police clearance certificate is required if you will tutor in person. Everything else, including SACE registration, is optional.
Do I need a police clearance certificate to tutor online?
No. It is required for in-person tutoring only, because the lesson happens in a home or shared venue. You can start tutoring online without one and add it later if you decide to teach face to face.
Do I need SACE registration?
No. SACE registers schoolteachers, and many Apex tutors are graduates, postgraduates or subject specialists who have never taught in a school. Where you hold SACE registration, Apex verifies that it exists and is current and shows it on your profile as an advantage.
What if my qualification is in a different name to my ID?
Include the supporting document, such as a marriage certificate or proof of a legal name change, when you apply. The name on your identity document is compared against the name on your qualifications, so a mismatch without an explanation is a common and avoidable delay.
How long does verification take?
Apex does not publish a timeframe and the Tutor Terms do not set one. In practice it is shortest for applicants who submit everything at once rather than sending documents one at a time. Verification also continues after approval, and Apex may re-verify documents from time to time.
Shorter than you think
Bring your ID and your qualifications.
Two documents to start, a police clearance certificate only if you tutor in person, and everything else optional. Apply once and let your profile do the rest.