​As an affiliated Chapter of the International Association of Arson Investigators (IAAI), the NSWAFI is generally bound by the IAAI's Code of Ethics. The IAAI Code of Ethics is reproduced below:

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IAAI Members will:

• as fire and arson investigators, regard ourselves as members of a vital and ethical profession;

• conduct both our personal and official lives so as to inspire the confidence of the public;

• regard it our duty to avail ourselves of every opportunity to learn more about our profession;

• encourage and support professional standards for fire and arson investigators;

• assist our members in obtaining world class training and professional qualifications;

• avoid alliances with those whose goals are inconsistent with an honest and unbiased investigation;

• bear in mind always that we are truth-seekers; that it is important to protect the innocent, hold accountable those responsible, and convict the guilty.

 

The IAAI Code of Ethics reflects the fire investigation industry in the United States, where fire investigators often take on supplementary investigative duties such as interviewing witnesses. This is not the case in Australia, where the role of the fire investigator that of an expert witness for the courts. The Association does not consider itself to be one of arson investigators who aim to convict the guilty. Instead, Association members aim to represent all available evidence truthfully and impartially, as defined by the NSW Expert Witness Code of Conduct.