Get started with the federation

Start by connecting to the federation if your organisation undertakes or supports education, research or development including:
  • tertiary education institutions, such as universities or vocational education institutions
  • government, commercial research institutions and not-for-profit entities
  • commercial product and service organisations delivering products or services to the education and research sector
  • any other entity approved by the AAF Ltd. Board from time to time.

See a list of our current Subscribers.

All subscribers must be a legal entity or have a lead agent or similar represent them to become subscribers.

How to subscribe

1. Choose your subscription and connection options

Please visit our Pricing page to find options best suited for your organisation.

2. Free trial in the test environment

See if the Federation is right for you by trialling in the Test Federation. Learn more about the Test Federation or contact AAF Support for more information.

3. Complete the subscription form

After picking the correct subscription option for you, contact us to recieve the AAF online subscription form. Before signing the form, your organisation must comply with the Federation Rules.

4. Pay your invoice

Contact us if you need a purchase order or other requirements to pay an invoice.

5. Connect to the production federation

AAF Support can help you migrate from test to the production federation or view the Knowledge Base for more information.

Need help picking the right option for you?
Contact us

Connection Options

The best plan for you will depend on the connection option you chose. There are two connection options available to join the Federation:

  1. accessing and providing services
  2. providing a service only
Accessing and providing services
  • If your organisation has an authentication service and
    • is small to medium the Standard subscription is for you
    • is large the Enterprise subscription is for you. You can manage your own connection to the federation or we can manage it on your behalf for an additional fee.
  • if your organisation doesn’t have an authentication service
    • the Starter subscription is for you
Providing a service only
  • the Publisher subscription are for service or platform providers

Learn about your obligations as a subscriber.

View our subscription plans

International connectivity

EduGAIN is an international service connecting research communities and higher education identity federations globally. By subscribing to the Federation you can connect internationally.  It enables sharing of research tools and secure collaboration between researchers, educators and students around the world.

Connecting Australian researchers and services to international research facilities makes collaboration easy.

See the full list of Australian organisations and services connected internationally with eduGAIN.

Learn how to connect internationally in the FAQs.