Shakeup to your pay and household budget

The new financial year is often a time for State and Federal governments to make regulatory and legislative changes and this year is no different. Changes from 1 July 2026 will affect every Australian State and Territory. In particular, reforms to wages, leave entitlements and superannuation will have an impact on Australian famililes.

Here’s what you need to know heading into the new financial year.

Nationally

• More protections against scam messaging will come into effect. Australian businesses will need to register their sender ID such as “myGov” or “AusPost” that automatically shows up on a recipient’s phone even when the number isn’t saved. From 1 July, any numbers that aren’t registered will appear under an “unverified” message thread in the next step to having all scam numbers automatically blocked.
• The National Minimum Wage that applies to anyone not covered by an award or enterprise agreement will increase by 4.75%. This means employees will earn $26.44 per hour or $1,004.90 per week for a 38-hour work week before tax. The Fair Work Commission also announced that minimum award wages would increase by the same amount. The changes will apply from the first pay period starting on or after July 1.
• Paid parental leave will increase from 120 days to 130 days, or 26 weeks, under the government-funded scheme. The change will only apply to children born or adopted from July 1, and the number of days reserved for partners will also increase from 15 to 20 days.
• From July 1, all employers will be required to pay their employees’ superannuation at the same time as their wages rather than quarterly. The change aims to reduce unpaid and late super and help employees build their retirement savings sooner.
• The concessional contributions cap to superannuation will also increase from 30,000 to 32,500 as a result of indexation in line with average weekly earnings.
• All businesses selling seafood, including for immediate consumption from restaurants, cafes, pubs, clubs, takeaways and food trucks, must have new country of origin labelling. Businesses will be required to clearly label seafood as either Australian (A), imported (I) or mixed origin (M). The changes come under Australian Consumer Law and aim to help customers make informed decisions about the food they buy.
• The $20,000 instant asset write-off will be made permanent. Small businesses turning over up to $10m will be able to immediately deduct eligible assets costing less than $20,000.
• Every Australian taxpayer will receive a tax cut of up to $268 from July 1, 2026, then up to $536 every year from July 1, 2027. For people earning a taxable income between $18,201 and $45,000, the tax rate will drop from 16 per cent to 15 per cent from July 1, 2026 and to 14 per cent from July 1, 2027. The government will also introduce a $1,000 instant tax deduction from 2026-27. The instant tax deduction allows workers to lower their taxable income from work by $1,000 without keeping receipts when they lodge their tax return (be careful though as many of our clients have claims in excess of this amount – we do not want you to be out of pocket).
• The minimum electricity disconnection amount will increase from $300 to $500 in the ACT, NSW, Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania. The new amount will strengthen minimum disconnection protections in the National Energy Customer Framework, giving consumers more protection from harm caused by disconnection amid changes in electricity costs and inflation.

ACT

• First-home buyers will no longer need to pay stamp duty in the ACT. The ACT will become the first state in Australia to fully abolish stamp duty for anyone entering the property market. Pensioners, some NDIS recipients and anyone who hasn’t owned a property for five years will also be exempt from paying stamp duty.

NSW 

• A staged transition to mandatory food organics and garden organics (FOGO) recycling will begin. Supermarkets, hospitality businesses and some institutions will be required to have a source-separated food organics collection service in place, starting with the largest generators and staggered to 2030 depending on how much waste is sent to landfill. Large supermarkets will also be required to record their food donations across six categories – meat, dairy, fruit and vegetables, frozen food and baked goods.
• New rules for tradies and building professionals will come into effect. All repair and renovation work on class 3 and 9c buildings, such as boarding houses, group homes, and some residential care facilities, will fall under the Design and Building Practitioners (DBP) regime. All registered building practitioners will also be required to hold professional indemnity insurance under the DBP.
• New anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws will come into effect for thousands of small businesses in NSW. A range of professionals including lawyers, real estate agents and property developers, accountants, conveyancers, trust and company service providers and dealers in precious metals and stones who were previously not regulated by Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre will be included for the first time. These reforms aim to strengthen Australia’s response to financial crime and provide clear guidance for businesses.

Queensland

• New child safety legislation will come into effect. Under the Reportable Conduct Scheme, organisations will be required to investigate concerns about an employee’s behaviour towards children and document the outcomes. This process aims to allow information to be shared between organisations to help prevent harm to children.
• E-mobility laws will come into effect under a crackdown on the most dangerous e-scooter and e-bike behaviors on roads and footpaths. Police will have the power to seize and destroy illegal devices and conduct random breath tests for riders in public places. E-bikes and scooters exceeding 25km/h unassisted will be banned and 12km/h speed limits will apply near pedestrians. Parental accountability for children under 16 riding illegally will also come into effect 1 July with further reforms will come into effect from August 31, 2026.
• Queenslanders’ power bills will drop, with the Queensland Competition Authority announcing a 6.9 per cent fall for regional households and an 8.1 per cent drop for businesses.

Victoria

• Victorian households are set to save on electricity after the Essential Services Commission announced an average 5 per cent or $84 drop in the annual reference price for five electricity networks. Victorians on flat rate plans can expect to save between $50 and $160 in the 2026-27 financial year depending on the network.
• Renters will no longer need to save for a new bond when moving house. Under the new Portable Rental Bond Scheme, Victorian renters will be able to move their existing bond to a new property. Renters can apply to transfer their bonds online through the residential tenancies bonds system rather than being out of pocket while waiting for a refund.

Western Australia

• Fuel support payments will be available for drivers in Western Australia. The government announced the one-off payment in the 2026-27 state budget as a cost-of-living measure. All WA driver’s licence, learner’s permit, provisional and extraordinary licence holders can apply for a one-off $100 payment through the ServiceWA app.
• Western Australia’s container deposit scheme will expand. The scheme will now include all fruit and vegetable juice, flavoured milk and cordial containers, glass bottles of wine and spirits, wine in plastic containers, sachets and casks and water casks. All of the new eligible containers must be between 150mL and 3 litres.
• New privacy changes will come into effect for the Western Australian government. From July 1, the Privacy and Responsible Information Sharing Act 2024 will set clear principles and standards for how government agencies collect, use, store and share personal information. Government agencies will only be able to share information if clear principles for risk, decision-making and transparency are followed.

South Australia

• Changes to eligibility for the Seniors Card will come into effect. The card will become available to an additional 80,000 SA residents, with everyone over the age of 60 now eligible regardless of how many hours they work. The Seniors Card will also be available to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 50 and over.
• While metroCARD fares will be maintained at 2025-26 levels until at least October 1, South Australian motorists will now pay $693.52 for 12 months registration of a four-cylinder car, an increase of 3.4 per cent.

Tasmania

• The temporary 100 per cent stamp duty exemption for established homes up to $750,000 will end on June 30 and not be renewed. This means from July 1, first-home buyers in Tasmania will only be eligible for the First Home Owner Grant, which has been reduced to $20,000 and is only available to new home purchases or people building a new home.