Now lawFirst Nations Introduced in the House of Representatives, 05 Feb 2026

First Nations children's commission moved to its own Act

This short partner law made sure nothing was lost when the national commission for First Nations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) children moved to its own Act. The same head, staff, contracts and files carried straight over.

Official name: National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People (Transitional Provisions) Bill 2026

Who it affects

• The head of the commission: Her job just carries on under the new law until the end date already set.
• Staff of the commission: They stay in their jobs on the same pay and conditions.
• Outside advisers working for the commission: Their contracts keep going as if they were signed under the new law.
• People whose details the commission holds: Those details now fall under the new law's rules on use and sharing.

Commission created by order

The National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People started on 13 January 2025. Its job is to stand up for First Nations children and young people under 25. It looks at big problems. One is the high number of these children taken out of their homes into care. Another is the high number in youth jails.

At first it was set up by an order of the Governor-General. The Governor-General is the King's representative in Australia. Set up this way, the government could change or close it without a vote of Parliament. Its first head, Sue-Anne Hunter, started on 1 September 2025.

A main law passed at the same time. It set up the commission under its own Act of Parliament. That main law gives its head powers to run investigations, demand information and report to Parliament.

This second law deals with the move from the old setup to the new one. Without it, the old office could have just ended. Jobs and contracts could have been thrown into doubt.

Commissioner keeps her job

Normally, when a body set up by order is closed, the job of its head ends too. This law overrides that rule.

The person who led the old body just before the change carries on as head under the new Act. Her job runs to the same end date set in her first papers. That date can be no more than 5 years away.

Under the new Act, no one can be head for more than 7 years in total. This law says the time she already served under the old setup counts toward that 7 years.

Same body, nothing lost

The law says the new body is the same body as the old one. It does not become something new.

Anything the old body did stays valid. So does any official paper it made. This applies under the main law on public servants. It also applies under the main law on how federal bodies spend and track money.

Say the old body had signed off on a budget plan or a staff policy. That plan or policy keeps working after the change. No one needs to redo it.

Staff, files and contracts

Every public servant at the old body stays on at the new commission. Their pay and conditions keep applying before, on and after the change.

Outside advisers hired by the old body keep working, as if they had been hired under the new Act.

Information the old body gathered for its work is now treated as information under the new Act. So the new Act's rules on using and sharing it apply. Those rules say when it can be shared to keep someone safe. They also set the punishment for leaking it.

All files the old body held stay with the new commission.

Rules to fill gaps

Part 3 lets the minister write extra rules for the changeover. These can cover anything else needed for a smooth switch.

The rules have limits. They cannot make crimes or fines. They cannot give powers to arrest people or search places. They cannot set a tax or spend extra public money. They cannot change the wording of the Acts themselves.

Start date

This law starts at the same moment as the main Act. That was 1 July 2026, because both were signed into law before that date. If the main Act had never started, this one would not have started either.

The House of Representatives passed both bills on 11 February 2026. That is the house of Parliament where the government sits. The Parliamentary Library works for all MPs and takes no side. It says the Liberal and National parties and One Nation, a small party, voted against them. Labor, which runs the government, voted for them. So did the Greens, the small Centre Alliance party and 10 MPs outside the big parties voted for them.

The Senate passed this bill on 25 March 2026. The Governor-General signed it into law on 26 March 2026 as Act No. 15 of 2026.

How they voted

Its journey through Parliament

Official sources

• Bill page on aph.gov.au
• Text of the bill
• Explanatory memorandum
• Bills Digest

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