A bump to minimum wage, a change to how often superannuation is paid and more paid parental leave days are among the changes coming into effect on 1 July.<\/p>\n
The end of financial year is typically when state and federal governments introduce a range of new policies. So what\u2019s new and who will be affected?<\/p>\n
Minimum wage rise<\/p>\n
About 2.8 million Australians on award and minimum wages will get a pay increase of 4.75%<\/a>. The lowest-paid workers \u2013 about 100,000 people who are on minimum pay and entry-level rates \u2013 will receive a 5.97% bump.<\/p>\n The national minimum wage will rise to $26.44 per hour, or $1,004.90 a week before tax. The changes apply from the first full pay cycle in July.<\/p>\n Payday super starts<\/p>\n Superannuation must now be paid at the same time as wages<\/a>, rather than quarterly.<\/p>\n Payday super was announced under reforms cracking down on the more than $3bn of super that goes unpaid each year<\/a>.<\/p>\n Contributions will need to reach funds within seven business days of payday, making it easier for workers to track retirement savings.<\/p>\n Paid parental leave expanded <\/p>\n Government-funded paid parental leave (PPL) will increase<\/a> from 24 to 26 weeks, providing a full six months of leave at the national minimum wage.<\/p>\n Days reserved for partners will also rise from 15 to 20.<\/p>\n SMS sender ID<\/p>\n Businesses that send branded text messages must register their sender ID<\/a> \u2013 the name that appears at the top of a message instead of a phone number.<\/p>\n From July, messages from unregistered senders will be labelled \u201cunverified\u201d<\/a> when they appear on your phone, with all unverified messages grouped in one thread.<\/p>\n The change is designed to protect people from scams by making it harder for fraudsters to impersonate legitimate organisations.<\/p>\n Tax cuts<\/p>\n The lowest marginal tax rate drops from 16% to 15%<\/a> for income between $18,201 and $45,000. The government says a person earning $45,000 or more will save $268 annually.<\/p>\n Pending legislation, a proposed $1,000 instant work-expense<\/a> deduction will also benefit 6.2 million workers, according to the government.<\/p>\n Grocery price gouging crackdown<\/p>\n New laws targeting price gouging<\/a> will be enforced by the ACCC, prohibiting any supermarket with revenue exceeding $30bn from charging a price for a grocery product that is ruled excessive compared to the cost of supply, plus a reasonable margin.<\/p>\n Only Coles and Woolworthscurrently fall under these new rules; both have been under scrutiny over pricing and profits<\/a>. Breaches will be subject to financial penalties.<\/p>\n Anti-money laundering laws expanded<\/p>\n Anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism laws<\/a> now apply to more businesses, including real estate, law, accounting, conveyancing and jewellery sectors.<\/p>\n These businesses must register with the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (Austrac), verify customer IDs and report particular transactions.<\/p>\n Changes to the NDIS<\/p>\n Under expanding rules rolling out for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), providers who work in support roles \u2013 including supported independent living and NDIS digital platform providers \u2013 must register with the NDIS quality and safeguards commission<\/a>.<\/p>\n Centrelink indexation <\/p>\n There will be a small increase to payments for Centrelink recipients as regular indexation<\/a> is applied, although advocates regularly say the high cost of living far outpaces the extra money.<\/p>\n Medicare levy surcharge (MLS) thresholds increase<\/p>\n The base income thresholds at which the MLS starts will increase<\/a> by $4,000 to $105,000 for singles, and by $8,000 to $210,000 for families.<\/p>\n The surcharge is an extra tax \u2013 in addition to the 2% Medicare levy \u2013 that applies if you earn over a certain income and don\u2019t have private hospital cover.<\/p>\n Instant asset write-off for small businesses <\/p>\n An instant write-off<\/a> for assets less than $20,000 will continue permanently for small businesses with annual turnover of less than $10m.<\/p>\n Country of origin seafood labelling <\/p>\n Businesses that serve seafood for immediate consumption must label<\/a> it: Australian (\u2018A\u2019), Imported (\u2018I\u2019) or Mixed origin (\u2018M\u2019).<\/p>\n Child safety reforms (Queensland) <\/p>\n The Reportable Conduct Scheme<\/a> (RCS) starts in Queensland.<\/p>\n Organisations caring for children must follow new reporting protocols, notifying the Queensland Family and Child Commission when handling allegations of inappropriate behaviour.<\/p>\n Energy consumption labelling for light vehicles <\/p>\n Under federal road rules, updated<\/a> energy consumption labelling is mandatory for new light vehicle models supplied for the first time from 1 July 2026.<\/p>\n No more double rental bonds (Victoria)<\/p>\n In Victoria the portable rental bond scheme<\/a> will be introduced, allowing renters in the state to move their exisiting bond to a new property so they are not out of pocket while waiting for a refund.<\/p>\n 10 cent refund for wine and spirit bottles (WA)<\/p>\n The Containers for Change program in Western Australia, which offers 10 cent refunds for drink containers, will expand<\/a> to include wine and spirit bottles. The expansion includes cask wine, flavoured milk, cordial, and concentrated fruit and vegetable juices.<\/p>\n Fuel support payments (WA) <\/p>\n Fuel support payments will be available for all WA driver\u2019s licence, learner\u2019s permit and provisional and extraordinary licence holders, who can apply for a one-off $100 payment through the ServiceWA app.<\/p>\n New L and P-plate motorcyclist rules (NSW) <\/p>\n NSW learner and provisional riders must wear<\/a> protective gloves and learners also must wear an approved hi-vis vest or jacket. Non-compliance results in a fine and the loss of at least two demerit points.<\/p>\n Stamp duty axed for first homebuyers (ACT)<\/p>\n First home buyers in the ACT will no longer have to pay conveyance duty \u2013 also known as stamp duty. While some states have stamp duty concessions in place subject to certain conditions, the ACT will become the first jurisdiction in Australia to completely abolish the tax for first home buyers.<\/p>\n Homebuyers who have not owned a property for at least five years, pensioners and eligible NDIS participants will also benefit from expanded stamp duty exemptions.<\/p>\n Default electricity prices reduced (Victoria) <\/p>\n The Essential Services Commission announced a reduction in Victoria\u2019s default electricity prices<\/a> to apply from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027.<\/p>\n The approximately 17% of households (512,000) and 21% of small businesses (62,000) that are now on the Victorian default offer will save $84 a year and small businesses on the offer will save $241 a year.<\/p>\n New e-rider laws (Queensland) <\/p>\n