Frog keeper's licence
All frogs (and tadpoles) are protected in NSW under the National Parks and Wildlife Act, and it is against the law to take them from the wild to keep as pets. You can get a licence from the NPWS to keep frogs, but you must obtain the frogs from a licensed breeder or society. You can only keep frogs that have either been bred in captivity or for other reasons cannot be released back into the wild.
For educational purposes, schools in NSW have been licensed to enable children and their teachers to collect and keep a maximum of 20 tadpoles to watch them grow and transform into froglets. Tadpoles must never be collected from national parks or other reserves. Once tadpoles have transformed into froglets, they must be released back in the location where they were collected.
These webpages explain the very basic points about the law on keeping frogs as pets in NSW. However, they are not a full description of the law.
Getting an amphibian keeper's licence
Find out what sort of licence you'll need, and how much it will cost. Download licence application forms.
Obtaining and caring for frogs and tadpoles
Once you have a licence, you can acquire frogs - but only from other licence holders. It's a good idea to join a herpetological society, to benefit from others' experience.
Complete outline of the NSW amphibian licensing system (PDF - 26KB)
This gives you more details about keeping amphibians in NSW, including complete lists of all the species that can be held under the different types of licence.
More information
Contact the NPWS Wildlife Licensing Section if you have any further queries.