Here are the new laws that come into effect now that we’re in 2025

The new year has officially begun and so too has a handful of laws, slated to kick into gear in 2025.

Here’s a quick look at some of the changes that came into effect when the clock ticked past midnight last night.

Aged care workers will get a pay rise

All eligible workers in the aged care sector will see an increase to their pay packets.

Specifically, this applies to:

• direct care workers covered by the Aged Care Award including nursing assistants who were previously covered by the Nurses Award
• general care workers covered by the Aged Care Award
• aged care employees covered by the SCHADS Award, including nursing assistants who were covered by the Nurses Award

However, the pay rise will differ depending on what award people are on.

You can figure out how much more you’ll get by going through the pay guides available on the Fair Work Ombudsman’s website or by using using its online pay and conditions tool.

Some Centrelink payments will increase

A handful of Centrelink payments for young Australians will be increasing slightly, in line with indexation.

This affects the following payments:

• Youth Allowance
• Abstudy
• Austudy
• Disability Support Pension (Under 21 with no dependant children)

For example, the Maximum Basic Rate for someone aged 18 or older with no children living away from home will be going up by $24.30 per fortnight.

You can see a full breakdown of the increases at the Department of Social Services website.

Intentionally underpaying employees is a criminal offence

Before today, companies found to be deliberately underpaying their staff were dealt with under civil law — meaning no-one would be sent to jail if convicted.

But now that’s a possibility.

If an employee is found to be deliberately underpaying an employee, a court could impose a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

The maximum fine for individuals could be triple the amount of the underpayment or $1.65 million, whichever is higher.

And a company could cop a maximum fine of triple the amount of the underpayment or $8.25 million, whichever is higher.

But the Fair Work Ombudsman says honest mistakes are not considered criminal offences.

The laws are part of the Closing Loopholes legislation that was introduced into parliament in September 2023 and passed Parliament a few months later in December.

But they’ve been implemented in stages, with other aspects of legislation like the Right to Disconnect laws already coming into effect this year.

There are, of course, some nuances to this law, which you can find out more information about on the Fair Work Ombudsman website.

Mandatory climate reporting for big emitters

Big companies and major carbon emitters will be required to report detailed disclosures about their climate-related risks and opportunities from today.

This will affect companies that have any of the following:

• A consolidated revenue of $500 million or more
• Consolidated gross assets of more than $1 billion
• More than 500 employees

But they will only have to do this reporting once a year, so those reports aren’t due today.

Vehicle efficiency standards for new cars

The New Vehicle Efficiency Standard will apply to new cars sold in the Australian market, under legislation passed back in May.

From Wednesday, there will be a set average carbon dioxide target for each vehicle manufacturer, which will apply to the vehicles they produce.

And if they meet or beat these targets, they’ll get credits.

New car suppliers will still be able to sell any kind of vehicle they like but, under the new rules, they’ll have to make up for the less fuel-efficient models they sell by selling more fuel-efficient ones.

If they sell more polluting cars than their target, they’ll have to either trade credits with other suppliers or generate more credits on their own.

Passport fees will increase

The cost of applying for a passport will increase to keep pace with inflation.

From Wednesday, it’ll cost an adult aged 18 years and older $412 to have a 10-year passport — that’s $14 more than last year.

Victorian short stay levy kicks in

From today, Victorian property owners who accept bookings for accommodation for less than 28 consecutive days will have to pay a levy under a new state law.

They’ll have to pay 7.5 per cent of the total booking fees paid — which includes things like cleaning fees and GST.

However, this won’t apply to people who rent out their principal place of residence.

You can find out more details about this at the Victorian State Revenue Office website.

And we’re now officially in an election year

Australia’s federal election will be held this year.

That means we’ll be going to the polls to decide which party will control the federal government for the next three years.

But we don’t know exactly when we’ll be voting yet, because the current government has yet to set a date.