Australian Government Staffing Number (AGSN) Guidelines

Published

What are AGSNs used for and where do you obtain them

  • The Australian Government Staff Number (AGSN) is used as the unique identifier on the APS Employment Database (APSED).  APSED contains personal and employment information for each person who is or has been employed under the Public Service Act 1999 (PS Act) and is a major source of information for the annual State of the Service Report. The AGSN was first introduced in 1974.
  • Agencies are required to allocate each APS employee an AGSN under section 41(2)(c) of the PS Act. 
  • AGSNs may also be used for non-APS employees within an agency. 
  • AGSNs are distributed to agencies by the APSC. These can be obtained by sending an email to apsed@apsc.gov.au. When requesting AGSNs, make sure you provide the number of new AGSNs you require.
  • Agencies should never create their own AGSNs, nor reuse AGSNs previously allocated to other employees, as it is essential that each APS employee has a unique number.
  • Not all eight digit numbers are valid AGSNs. To identify data input errors, a check digit is used in the calculation of AGSNs. Agencies should have this algorithm incorporated into their HR Systems to ensure invalid AGSNs cannot be saved.  

When can an APS employee be reissued a new AGSN   

  • AGSN are integral for tracking an employee’s career history, therefore it is critical that employees retain the same AGSN throughout their entire APS career. 
  • There are two exceptions where a new AGSN must be re-issued to an APS employee. 
  1. The AGSN is also the unique identifier for employees in the CSS and PSS Superannuation schemes. For cases where an employee has a break in service and ceases contributing to their superannuation account, if they have a preserved account and re-join the APS, then they must be re-issued with a new AGSN. For more information, contact the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation (CSC).
  2. Employees who are working in multiple agencies at the same time or in multiple positions within an agency, must be issued a different AGSN for each occurrence. This is generally an issue for non-ongoing employees. 
  • For all other employees, including those in the current PSSap superannuation scheme, an individual must retain the same AGSN for their entire APS career irrespective of whether they have had breaks in service or not. 
  • Therefore, agencies should check with the APSC to see if a new employee has a previous AGSN prior to allocating them a new one. 
  • If an agency is aware that a commencing employee has had a previous AGSN but is unable to determine what that number is, contact us at apsed@apsc.gov.au . Please provide the employees full name, date of birth and previous agencies.

If you have any questions, please contact us:
apsed@apsc.gov.au

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