Now lawBusiness & Trade Introduced in the House of Representatives, 25 Mar 2026

Biggest fines on companies doubled to $100 million

This law doubles the biggest fines for price-fixing and for lying to customers. The government rushed it through as petrol prices jumped because of war in the Middle East.

Official name: Treasury Laws Amendment (Doubling Penalties for ACCC Enforcement) Bill 2026

Who it affects

• Companies that fix prices or mislead customers: They now face a top fine of $100 million or more each time they break the law.
• Shoppers and small businesses: The government says bigger fines will scare companies off cheating them, including at the petrol pump.
• Phone and internet companies: The top fine for breaking the fair trading rule for phone and internet went up by $50 million.
• People who break these laws themselves: Fines for people did not change. The rises apply to companies.

War pushed up petrol prices

In early 2026, war in the Middle East pushed up the world price of oil and petrol. The government worried that companies would use the chaos. It feared they would lift prices more than their costs had gone up.

On 11 March 2026, the Treasurer and other ministers announced a plan. The Treasurer is the minister in charge of the economy. It was meant to give people a fair go at the petrol pump. One part was to double fines for tricking customers and for cartels, across the whole economy.

A cartel is a group of businesses that secretly agree to fix prices or share out customers. Tricking customers can mean false claims in an ad, for example.

The rules sit in the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. Part of that law is the Australian Consumer Law, which protects shoppers.

The competition and consumer watchdog takes companies to court when they break these laws. Its full name is the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

How the biggest fines work

For the worst cases, a company's top fine is worked out three ways. The court uses whichever number is biggest.

The first is a set dollar amount. This law doubles it from $50 million to $100 million.

The second is three times what the company gained from breaking the law, if the court can work that out.

If the court cannot work out the gain, it uses the third way. That is 30 per cent of the company's sales during the time it broke the law. These last two ways did not change.

These are the most a court can order. A judge sets the real fine based on how bad the act was and how big the company is. The government says the top fines are meant for the very worst cases.

Price fixing and unfair competition

The $100 million figure now applies to the crimes of making or carrying out a cartel deal. It also applies to court fines for the same cartel acts.

It covers other banned business moves too. One is when a big company uses its size to crush rivals. Another is when two companies join up in a way that harms fair trade.

It covers the rules that make big tech companies pay news businesses for news. It also covers some rules for the gas market and banned acts in the power industry.

Say three fuel companies in a town secretly agree to keep petrol at the same high price. Each company could face a fine of $100 million. It could be more if their extra profit was large.

Phone and internet companies

Phone and internet companies have a special fair trading rule. It bans big network owners from misusing their power in that market.

If the rule is broken for 21 days or fewer, the top fine is now $100 million plus $1 million a day.

If it is broken for longer, the top fine is now $121 million plus $3 million for each extra day. Both starting figures went up by $50 million.

The law also makes sure these amounts stay as dollar figures. They are not turned into a different measure of fines that can be worth different amounts in different states.

Tricking or harming shoppers

The law doubles the top fine for a long list of ways to break the Australian Consumer Law. Some examples are false claims about goods or services, bait ads and pyramid schemes.

A bait ad is when a shop advertises a cheap item it does not really have enough of. It does this just to get you in the door. A pyramid scheme pays people mainly for signing up others.

The list also covers selling goods that break safety rules, and ignoring a recall. A recall is an order to take unsafe goods off sale. It covers showing only part of a price, and pushing customers around. It covers taking money for things you never mean to supply. It also covers unfair terms in standard contracts. These are take-it-or-leave-it deals given to every customer.

Say a company advertises a free gift with a purchase but never plans to give it. That company could now face a fine of up to $100 million.

What did not change

Fines that were not $50 million before stayed the same. That includes fines for breaking industry codes, which are rule books for one industry.

It also includes fines under the Consumer Data Right. That right lets you share your banking and power data with other businesses.

Fines for secondary boycotts also stayed the same, unless the boycott badly hurts fair trade. A secondary boycott is when a group blocks one business to put pressure on another.

Start date

The bill went to the House of Representatives on 25 March 2026. It passed the House on 26 March. It passed the Senate the same day. The Senate is the second house of Parliament, which checks bills.

The Governor-General signed it into law on 27 March 2026. The Governor-General is the King's stand-in in Australia. It became Act No. 19 of 2026. It started the next day.

The higher fines only apply to wrongdoing on or after that start date. Earlier cases face the old top fines.

How they voted

Its journey through Parliament

Official sources

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

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