Fava was to complete the second season of a two-year deal with NSW Rugby in 2010, however his recovery from a back injury sustained early in this season has prematurely ended his career.
"It's been really hard being on the sidelines for so long, working so hard to get back but not seeing much progress," said Fava. "Over the last few months it's become clearer that I won't be able to get my body back to the point where it needs to be to play professional Rugby and so I've come to the decision to retire from the game.
"It's not a decision that I've taken lightly, but at the end of the day I need to make sure I can lead a normal life post-football both professionally and for my family."
Hailing from the NSW south coast town of Kiama, Fava started his professional Rugby career with Queensland in 1999 before making his Super Rugby debut with the Reds in 2000. Fava then moved to the Brumbies before becoming a foundation member of the Western Force in 2006 where he scored the province's first ever Super Rugby try.
Fava made his international debut for the Wallabies in 2005, going on to play five Test matches, and also played for the Australian Sevens team at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. He is the only player to win the Ken Catchpole Medal three times, voted as the most outstanding player in the Tooheys New Shute Shield in 2002, 2003 and 2004.
When he debuted for NSW at No.8 in the opening round of the 2009 season, Fava became the first player to take to the field for each of Australia's four Super Rugby teams.
"We signed Scott largely due to the great experience he brought to the squad, and unfortunately we're losing that," said head coach Chris Hickey. "It would have been a tough decision for him to make, but after sitting back and looking at the big picture I think he's comfortable with the call he's made.
"He's the only player so far to have played for all four Australian Super 14 teams, and no one else has been voted the best and fairest player in the Shute Shield three times either.
"He was also a foundation member at the Western Force, after playing for the Reds and Brumbies, so for someone from Kiama he certainly took the long way around before finally making it on the field for the Waratahs."
Fava has already laid down the first steps in his post-playing career with the launch of www.myrugbystar.com, a website allowing players to provide unscripted and uncut content to converse with their fans on the internet.
Scott Fava
Position: No.8/Flanker
Physical: 189cm, 103kg
Born: 19.01.1976 in Auburn, NSW
Club: Eastwood
Provincial Caps: 98 (QLD 13, ACT 48, WA 45, NSW 2)
Provincial Points: 50 (10t)
Provincial Debut: 1999 v NSW (QLD)
Super Rugby Caps: 87 (Reds 5, Brumbies 46, Force 34, Waratahs 2)
Super Rugby Points: 40 (8t)
Super Rugby Debut: 2000 v Hurricanes (Reds)
Test Caps: 5
Test Points: 5 (1t)
Test Debut: 2005 v England