This January update summarises the legislation and regulations flagged in our register for the month across Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales and the Commonwealth.
While the underlying amendments and commencement dates vary by instrument, this month’s register shows recurring activity across security & surveillance obligations (Federal), energy/infrastructure and resources (QLD), and courts/tribunals and procedural rules (VIC).
At a glance
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VIC — 2 instruments. Common subject-area signals (based on titles): Justice & courts (2).
Notable items include Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2025 and Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Rules 2018. -
QLD — 6 instruments. Common subject-area signals (based on titles): Energy & infrastructure (3), Transport safety (1), Health governance (1), Regional support (1).
Notable items include Greenhouse Gas Storage (Transitional) Regulation 2026, Energy (Infrastructure Facilitation) Act 2024, and Rail Safety National Law (Queensland) Regulation 2017. - Commonwealth (Cth) — 16 instruments. Common subject-area signals (based on titles): Security, intelligence & surveillance (8), Criminal law (4), Administrative law & review (2).
Notable items include Administrative Review Tribunal Act 2024, Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979, and the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism Acts (2026).
What this means for organisations
If any of the instruments below touch your operations (e.g., government contracting, aviation/maritime and transport environments, security-cleared workforces, border/immigration exposure, energy and infrastructure projects, or regulated surveillance/access to information), it’s worth:
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Confirming commencement dates and transitional arrangements (especially where “transitional” instruments or new 2026 Acts appear).
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Checking whether policies, procedures, contracts, or training need updating, including:
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workforce screening / onboarding requirements,
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incident response and evidence handling practices,
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recordkeeping and approvals for sensitive data access,
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transport-site security requirements (aviation / maritime contexts), and
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project governance controls for energy/infrastructure work.
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Documenting decisions for audit and assurance purposes (what changed, who assessed it, what you updated, and by when).
If you maintain a legal register in Anitech or in Lahebo, this is also a good month to ensure each item has an assigned owner, a review outcome, and evidence of any updates completed.
Quick reference
The table below lists the legislation and subordinate instruments recorded for January, grouped by jurisdiction for quick scanning.
| Legislation | State / Jurisdiction | Summary of changes (for your table) |
|---|---|---|
| Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act 1977 | Federal (Cth) | Consequential federal review-law updates linked to the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) reform package, including modernisation of tribunal-review references and review pathways following the AAT-to-ART transition. |
| Administrative Review Tribunal Act 2024 | Federal (Cth) | Establishes the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) to replace the AAT as part of the Commonwealth administrative review reform framework, with a new legislative structure and transition arrangements. |
| Australian Border Force Act 2015 | Federal (Cth) | Amended via the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Firearms and Customs Laws) Act 2026 (schedule-based amendments), supporting the broader federal package on firearms/customs-related extremism controls. |
| Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Act 1979 | Federal (Cth) | Amended under the Firearms and Customs Laws 2026 anti-extremism package (schedule amendments), with changes tied to the package’s national-security / enforcement architecture. |
| Aviation Transport Security Act 2004 | Federal (Cth) | Amended by the Firearms and Customs Laws 2026 package (schedule amendments), aligning aviation-security legislation with the package’s firearms/customs enforcement changes. |
| AusCheck Act 2007 | Federal (Cth) | Amended by the Firearms and Customs Laws 2026 package (schedule amendments), reflecting related screening / security-law alignment within the broader anti-extremism firearms/customs reforms. |
| Criminal Code Act 1995 | Federal (Cth) | Amended by the Combatting Antisemitism, Hate and Extremism (Criminal and Migration Laws) Act 2026, introducing/strengthening criminal-law measures in the anti-hate/extremism package. |
| Crimes Act 1914 | Federal (Cth) | Amended by the Criminal and Migration Laws 2026 anti-extremism package, with criminal procedure / enforcement-related consequential changes tied to the new federal measures. |
| Customs Act 1901 | Federal (Cth) | Amended by the Firearms and Customs Laws 2026 package, aligning customs controls and enforcement settings with the federal anti-extremism/firearms reforms. |
| Health Insurance Act 1973 | Federal (Cth) | Receives consequential amendments under the ART transition package to update tribunal/review references and administrative review pathways. |
| Intelligence Services Act 2001 | Federal (Cth) | Amended by the Firearms and Customs Laws 2026 package (schedule amendments), as part of the broader anti-extremism / national-security legislative changes. |
| Maritime Transport and Offshore Facilities Security Act 2003 | Federal (Cth) | Amended by the Firearms and Customs Laws 2026 package, aligning maritime/offshore transport security provisions with updated firearms/customs enforcement settings. |
| Migration Act 1958 | Federal (Cth) | Amended by the Criminal and Migration Laws 2026 anti-extremism package, introducing migration-law changes linked to the federal combatting antisemitism/hate reforms. |
| National Health Act 1953 | Federal (Cth) | Receives consequential ART-related amendments to update tribunal/review references as part of the Commonwealth administrative review reform transition. |
| Surveillance Devices Act 2004 | Federal (Cth) | Updated through recent federal omnibus schedule amendments (including anti-extremism/firearms-customs and/or ART consequential reform schedules), reflecting broader federal review/enforcement reform alignment. |
| Taxation Administration Act 1953 | Federal (Cth) | ART consequential amendments update review/tribunal references and administrative review mechanisms following the Commonwealth tribunal reform package. |
| Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 | Federal (Cth) | Updated via recent federal omnibus schedule amendments (including anti-extremism/firearms-customs and ART consequential schedules), reflecting federal enforcement/review framework alignment. |
| Energy (Infrastructure Facilitation) Act 2024 | QLD | Current in-force text shows the Act’s energy infrastructure facilitation framework (affordable/reliable/sustainable system) and indicates 2025 amending changes (e.g., long title/short title amendment markers in the current version). |
| Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2009 | QLD | January update context reflects Queensland’s recent GGS reform activity, including the Greenhouse Gas Storage Amendment Bill 2025 (e.g., EPQ10 well-to-water-bore conversion and transfer/approval streamlining) plus transition-related changes. |
| Greenhouse Gas Storage (Transitional) Regulation 2026 | QLD | New transitional regulation to facilitate the move from the Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2009 framework to the Energy (Infrastructure Facilitation) Act 2024 framework. |
| Hospital and Health Boards Act 2011 | QLD | Amended by Health Legislation Amendment Act 2025 (Part 2): changes to Hospital and Health Service board membership/eligibility (including clinician definitions, chair/deputy restrictions, and removal grounds), with commencement set for 1 April 2026. |
| Rail Safety National Law (Queensland) Regulation 2017 | QLD | The 2017 regulation is shown as discontinued/repealed, with the January update reflecting replacement/reform through the Rail Safety National Law (Queensland) and Other Legislation Amendment Regulation 2025. |
| Rural and Regional Adjustment Regulation 2011 | QLD | Latest reprint captures multiple late-2025 scheme amendments and a January 2026 amendment (including the Community Housing Energy Upgrades Rebate Scheme amendment), and shows expiry moved to 31 August 2026. |
| Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2025 | VIC | New remake of the Supreme Court general civil procedure rules (replacing the 2015 rules), commencing 8 September 2025; mostly unchanged overall but includes some substantive changes and formatting updates. |
| Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Rules 2018 | VIC | Amended by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Amendment Rules 2025 to create new Tribunal divisions, enable Presidential directions on divisions/practice areas, and update application/referral procedures, costs/remuneration scales, and miscellaneous/consequential matters; staged commencement 1 Jan 2026 / 1 Feb 2026. |
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