Decision Regulation Impact Statement – Legislative and Governance Forum on Consumer Affairs
The Legislative and Governance Forum on Consumer Affairs has endorsed an Australian Government proposal to amend the Australian Consumer Law to regulate the expiry period for retail gift cards and vouchers. The Treasury Laws Amendment (Gift Cards) Act 2018 has been passed by the Parliament and was given Royal Assent on 26 October 2018. It will apply to gift cards supplied on or after 1 November 2019.
The proposal introduces a minimum three-year expiry period, requires expiry date information to be prominently displayed and bans the charging of post-purchase fees. It responds to the issue of loss of value on a gift card which expires unexpectedly or otherwise before it can be used. As the majority of gift cards are bought by someone other than the end user, the recipient may not be adequately informed of the terms and conditions of the card.
The Australian Government Department of the Treasury prepared the Decision RIS. The RIS was assessed as compliant with Council of Australian Government RIS requirements by the Office of Best Practice Regulation. The Treasury previously released a Regulation Impact Statement for Consultation.