Now lawMoney & Tax Introduced in the House of Representatives, 01 Apr 2026

Hidden fees and sneaky sales tricks are now banned

From 1 July 2027, businesses cannot use tricks that push shoppers around. They must show fees next to the price. And they must let you cancel a subscription as easily as you signed up.

Official name: Competition and Consumer Amendment (Unfair Trading Practices) Bill 2026

Who it affects

• Online and in-store shoppers: Fake countdown timers, hidden fees and confusing menus that push you into buying could break the law.
• People with subscriptions: You must be told the price, length and renewal terms before you sign. You get an easy way to cancel.
• Small businesses with fewer than 100 staff or under $10 million in sales: They get the same subscription protections as single shoppers on take-it-or-leave-it contracts.
• Businesses that sell to the public: They must check their websites, checkouts and cancel steps before July 2027, or risk big fines.

Dark patterns slip through rules

The Australian Consumer Law is the main set of rules that protect shoppers. It is part of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. It already bans lying to shoppers, treating them in very unfair ways and unfair contract terms.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is the competition and consumer watchdog. It has said for years that some harmful tricks slip through those rules. Many of these tricks happen online.

These tricks are often called dark patterns. They include fake countdown timers and false warnings that stock is low. They include buttons that shame you for saying no, and cancel options hidden deep in menus.

In 2022, the shopper ministers from every state and territory agreed the federal government would look into it. The Treasury, which runs the government's money, asked the public for views several times. The government said it would make the law in November 2025. Treasurer Jim Chalmers is in charge of it. The Treasurer is the minister in charge of the nation's money.

Unfair trading practices banned

The law adds a new ban on unfair ways of dealing with shoppers. A business breaks it when 2 things are true.

First, what it does pushes the shopper around, or unfairly twists the setting where the shopper decides. Second, that causes harm, or is likely to. The harm can be lost money. It can also be wasted time or other damage.

The law gives examples. These include making it hard to get a refund or use your legal rights. They include hiding key facts, or burying them in confusing detail. They also include pressure and design tricks.

Say a website shows a timer saying a deal ends in 5 minutes, but the deal never ends. If that pushes people into buying and costs them, it could break the new ban.

The government says normal marketing is still allowed. A true notice that stock is low is fine. A false one used to pressure people may not be.

The ban covers goods and services bought for personal or home use. It does not cover sales to companies, or to people buying for their business. The government says it will ask for more views on protecting small businesses.

Fees shown next to price

Drip pricing is when a business shows a low price, then adds fees you must pay as you go through checkout. This law adds new rules on these fees. The government calls them transaction based charges.

This is a fee you must pay at the same time as the item, on top of the item's price. Whenever a business shows a price, it must also show the amount of any such fee, or how it is worked out.

It must say the fee is charged on each sale and whether it always applies. It must also say whether the price shown already includes it. All this must be clear, easy to see and right next to the price. It cannot be hidden in fine print or a pop-up.

The government gives an example. A business shows a $20 price online and adds a 2% fee for city buyers. It must say so beside the $20.

This rule does not cover extras you can choose to skip. It does not cover extra fees for paying by card. It does not cover government taxes like the goods and services tax either.

Clear rules before subscribing

The law covers subscription deals. In these deals you keep paying by yourself until you cancel. They include deals that roll over after a set time. They include free trials that turn into paid plans, and cheap trials that jump to a higher price.

Before you sign up, the business must say plainly that it is a subscription. It must tell you what you will pay and how long it runs. It must say how and when it renews, any notice you must give and how to cancel.

Leases, hire-purchase, paying in parts, childcare and school fees are not covered. Hire-purchase means paying off an item bit by bit while you use it.

The government can also write detailed rules, without a new vote, that make businesses send reminders at key times. One example the government gave was a notice before a free trial ends.

Easy ways to cancel

Businesses must give people a way to cancel that is easy to find and simple. They can only ask you to take steps that are really needed.

If you signed up online, or the business lets people sign up online, you must be able to cancel online.

The government gives examples of what is likely to break the rule. One is a gym making a member who moved to another state come in person to cancel. Another is making you give long feedback before you can leave.

These subscription rules also protect small businesses on take-it-or-leave-it contracts. A small business here means fewer than 100 staff or under $10 million in sales.

The minister must have the subscription rules reviewed over their first 2 years. The report goes to Parliament.

Penalties

Breaking any of these rules can lead to a big fine set by a court. The Parliamentary Library works for all MPs and takes no side. It says the top fine for a company is the biggest of three amounts. These are $100 million, 3 times the gain, or 30% of sales during the time the law was broken.

For a single person, the top fine for breaking the broad ban is $2.5 million. The watchdog can also hand out on-the-spot fines. A court can order a business to tell the public it broke the law. It can also ban a person from running companies.

Start date

The bill went into the House of Representatives on 1 April 2026. That is the lower house of Parliament, where the government sits. It passed there on 14 May 2026. The Senate, Parliament's second house, passed it on 2 July 2026 with no changes.

The Governor-General, who stands in for the King, signed it into law on 6 July 2026.

The rules start on 1 July 2027. That gives businesses a year to get ready. The subscription rules apply to deals made, renewed or changed from that date.

How they voted

Its journey through Parliament

Official sources

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

Open the full interactive page