New financial year, new measures. Legal measures, that is. With law changes come everyday life changes, even if they’re small, so it’s never a bad idea to be up to date with what measures are taking effect at the start of year, and be aware of how they may impact you. Here are some of the biggest changes coming to Australia from today, July 1, 2025:
1. New traffic rules
Starting this Tuesday, July 1, nationally, speed limits will become stricter and mobile phone usage will be more harshly punished. Additionally, Queensland will also have some new rules of its own. Here are all the national and state-specific changes you need to know about.
2. Minimum wage
It’s not all bad news though! Minimum wage is set to increase by 3.5 percent, from $24.10 to $24.95 an hour (or from $915.90 to $948 per 38-hour week). The decision comes after the Fair Work Commission’s annual review of the minimum wage and award agreements and means a pay rise for millions of Australian workers!
3. Parental leave
Another bit of good news aimed at new parents-to-be is that parental leave pay will increase to 24 weeks (120 days) for children born or adopted from July 1, and will further go up to 26 weeks starting in 2026. And that’s not all, the number of days reserved for partners and the number of days both parents can take at the same time will also increase! You can read more about these changes here.
4. Superannuation
Along the same lines, the minimum amount of superannuation employers must contribute is also set to rise from 11.5% to 12%, meaning if you get Parental Leave Pay for a child born or adopted from 1 July, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will pay a 12% superannuation contribution on this payment.
5. Pensions
While pension rates themselves are not going up, increased income and asset thresholds do mean more pensioners will be entitled to benefits and inflation-adjusted payments, with asset-tested couples receiving $34.50 a fortnight increase, and $22.50 a fortnight for singles.
In addition, the cut-off point for pension reduction will decrease to $470,000 per couple and $314,000 for singles.
6. Power prices
Power prices in SEQ are set to increase per the Australian Energy Regulator, having announced a Default Market Offer (DMO) for the financial year, which is a cap on how much companies can charge for a basic, automatic plan each year. Changes will depend on location, power company and the plan that you’re on, but the AER has a tool so you can compare prices.
7. Home batteries
On the other hand, households looking to install battery systems will be able to so with a 30% discount on purchase and installation, which could save on energy bills.
Read more about the program and eligibility criteria for it here.
8. NDIS
The National Disability Insurance Scheme will be affected by a few changes from July 1 following the annual pricing review.
The biggest changes aim to address the maximum rates providers can charge NDIS participants, with some seeing their limits lowered. And, in other good news, disability support workers will get a 3.95% pay boost.
However, there will also be cuts to allied health services as well as a reduction of claimable travel time by 50 per cent, which some advocacy groups have taken issue with, warning these changes will result in fewer services being available for participants in rural areas.
All in all, physiotherapy, and podiatry and dietetics rates will decrease by $10 and $5 an hour, respectively, while psychology rates will increase to $10 an hour. As mentioned, travel claims for therapists will be halved, and therapy rates will be frozen.