Registered Aboriginal Party
A Registered Aboriginal Party (RAP) is a recognised representative body of an Aboriginal Australian people per the "Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006" (Vic.), whose function is to protect and manage the Aboriginal cultural heritage in the state of Victoria in Australia. Function. Registered Aboriginal Parties act as the "primary guardians, keepers and knowledge holders of Aboriginal cultural heritage" in Victoria. They are the approximate equivalent to land councils (mostly in the Northern Territory) or Aboriginal or Indigenous corporations in the other states. If the body registers a claim with the National Native Title Tribunal under the "Native Title  Act 1993" (Cwth), they are referred to as a prescribed body corporate (PBC) until such time as a determination is made, when they become a Registered Native Title Body Corporate, or RNTBC, registered with the Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations under the "Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006" (Cwth). According to the Department of Premier and Cabinet: Current RAPs. Aboriginal people apply to the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council (VAHC), who determines which applicants will be registered as Registered Aboriginal Parties (RAPs). , there are 11 registered parties, covering about 74% of Victoria: