Australian Consumer Law: what you need to know about the proposed changes

From 1 October 2026, Visa, Mastercard and eftpos can ban businesses from adding surcharges to card transactions, enforced through merchant agreements.

Misleading pricing occurs when a business creates a false or misleading impression about the true cost of goods or services, even where the advertised price is technically correct. Under the Australian Consumer Law, businesses must ensure consumers can understand the real price they will be required to pay, including any unavoidable fees, charges, surcharges or conditions affecting price.

Understanding how long unpaid debts remain on Australian credit reports is crucial for managing financial reputation and planning recovery from financial difficulty. This comprehensive guide examines retention periods for defaults, court judgments, bankruptcy information, and other credit listings, while explaining the regulatory framework that governs credit reporting in Australia.

Recent cases demonstrate the importance of ensuring that businesses do not mislead consumers. Tips on how to comply with the ACL.

In its judgement delivered on 14 May 2026, the Federal Court has found that Coles engaged in misleading conduct in relation to its long-running “Down Down” promotion, accepting the ACCC’s case that many advertised discounts were not genuine. The Court held that 13 of the 14 sample “Down Down” tickets examined in the hearing conveyed false or misleading price discount representations because the stated “was” price had not applied for a reasonable period before the promotion.

An 11-year-old student suffered a back injury during a long jump trial at a school athletics carnival, leading to a significant Court of Appeal decision that clarifies schools' duty of care obligations. The case examines whether basic safety measures like adequate sand depth and regular pit maintenance constitute reasonable precautions that schools must take to protect students during sporting activities.

A reminder that there is a Spam Act which sets out rules relating to spam messages as explained here.

Sometimes a third party who relies on misleading & deceptive conduct may be entitled to damages.

The ACCC has made it clear that misleading product descriptions will result in fines and orders for remedial action.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has initiated Federal Court proceedings against Amazon AU, alleging that subscription contracts for Amazon Prime contain unfair terms allowing significant service changes...

Australia's Privacy Act reform has reached a critical milestone with the release of exposure draft legislation proposing fundamental changes to how organisations handle personal information. The reforms introduce a new 'fair and reasonable' test for data collection and use, a right of erasure for large digital platforms, strengthened consent standards, a statutory controller/processor framework, restrictions on trading personal data, and enhanced data breach obligations. These changes come at a time when em

The Australian Government's exposure draft proposes a proactive, systems-based digital duty of care for online service providers, requiring them to ensure a 'safe online environment' so far as reasonably practicable.

The Australian Taxation Office has issued its final ruling on cross-border software payments, dramatically expanding what constitutes a royalty subject to withholding tax. With retroactive application to July 2021 and a broad interpretation of copyright law, multinational companies face significant compliance risks and potential exposure across software distribution, cloud services, and digital intermediation arrangements.

Australia's digital regulatory landscape is undergoing a fundamental transformation, with the proposed digital duty of care joining a complex web of reforms including Privacy Act amendments...

Australia's Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water has released consultation papers outlining the regulatory framework for the final phase of environmental protection reforms under the EPBC Act. With submissions closing on 13 October 2026 and implementation scheduled for 1 December 2026, these reforms will fundamentally reshape how projects are assessed and approved, introducing streamlined pathways...

APRA and ASIC have issued coordinated guidance on frontier AI risks, requiring financial services boards to demonstrate direct oversight of AI governance, cyber resilience and third-party dependencies. The regulators' expectations build on existing prudential standards and directors' duties, with enforcement signals indicating that proportionate action must be taken before incidents occur.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has issued an open letter to all AFS licensees and market participants calling for urgent action to strengthen cyber resilience in response to the evolving threat posed by artificial intelligence models (the ASIC Letter).

The Court of Appeal has upheld a landmark decision requiring the Australian Tax Office to return settlement payments totaling approximately $15 million that were funded by proceeds from a breach of fiduciary duty.

Prime Minister Albanese's speech on 15 July 2026 marked a decisive shift in Australia's approach to artificial intelligence, from voluntary guidance to mandatory national regulation. The announcement establishes Australian Standards for AI, copyright licensing requirements, a national planning framework for data centres, energy obligations, and workplace protections—all underpinned by the concept of sovereign AI.

Australia's privacy regulator has issued final guidance on new transparency obligations for automated decision-making systems. From December 2026, organisations using computer programs—including AI, algorithms, and everyday software—to make or inform significant decisions about individuals must disclose these practices in their privacy policies. The guidance reveals a broader compliance burden than many expect, particularly for businesses using automated tools across recruitment, pricing, credit