ASEAN MUTUAL RECOGNITION ARRANGEMENT ON TOURISM ...

• A regulated occupation is one that is controlled and governed by aprofessional organization or regulatory body. The regulatory body governingthe profession or trade has the authority to set entry requirements andstandards of practice, to assess applicants' qualifications and credentials, tocertify, register, or license qualified applicants, and to discipline membersof the profession/trade.• Requirements for entry, which may vary from one country to another,usually consist of such components as examinations, a specified period ofsupervised work experience, and language competency.• However, there are agreed standards across the profession, which can bebuilt into an MRA. Examples of sectors that comprise regulated occupationsinclude medicine, engineering or law.• A non-regulated occupation is a profession or trade for which there is nolegal requirement or restriction on practice with regard to licences,certificates, or registration. Tourism falls into this category and as a result,the design of an MRA for tourism professionals is more challenging.6.4.2 Equivalence Matrix of Tourism QualificationsThe MRA – TP is challenging because there are no agreed international tourismstandards which can act as a basis for conformity assessment for the MRA - TP. As aresult, it is essential to construct an equivalence matrix of tourism qualificationsfor the AMS to be used as the basis for conformity assessment. This is an essentialsupporting mechanism for a robust, reliable and transparent Mutual RecognitionArrangement for Tourism Professionals.6.5 Registration of Tourism Professionals onto ATPRSThe TPCB will be responsible for the registration of applicants onto the ASEANTourism Professionals Registration System (ATPRS). The ATPRS is a web-basedfacility designed to disseminate details about qualified tourist professionals inASEAN Member States.6.5.1 Management of ATPRSThe NTPB in each AMS will oversee the management of the ATPRS in their country.It will be the responsibility of the NTPB to ensure reliable means of recording,securing and storing relevant information about applicants. It is recommended thatthe following procedures be adopted:1. The NTPB will need to design an application form for registration onto theATPRS.2. To apply for registration under mutual recognition, individuals forward theirdetails to their home registration board for posting on the ATPRS.3. They also sign a consent form agreeing to their information being availableto the system, enabling the registration board in the importing country toP a g e | 50