New Infringements Regulations 2026: Key Changes for Enforcement Agencies

• Continuity of the core framework

  Structurally, the 2026 Regulations closely mirror the 2016 Regulations, with no changes to the core regulations in respect of infringement notice process. However, the 2026 Regulations are significantly more streamlined. 

• Expanded reporting obligations

  One of the more significant developments concerns enforcement agency reporting to the Attorney-General under s 6 of the Act. 

  Under the 2016 Regulations, enforcement agencies were required to report biannually on a limited set of data points. These relatively high-level metrics included the numbers of:

  • Warnings issued and withdrawn
  • Infringement notices issued and withdrawn
  • Court elections by the person to whom an infringement notice was issued
  • Internal review applications and outcomes
  • Payment plan activity. 

  Expanded and more granular reporting requirements will come into effect from 30 June 2026. In addition to all existing reporting requirements, enforcement agencies must also report on: 

  • The number of matters referred to Court by the enforcement agency: 
    • Under s 17 of the Act (on its own motion)
    • Following an internal review decision
    • Under s 21(1)(c) or s 38(1)(a)(iii) of the Fines Reform Act 2014
    • After enforcement cancellation under the Fines Reform Act 2014
  • The number of times the enforcement agency requested additional information under s 23(1) of the Act in response to internal review applications
  • Payment plan applications received under s 46(1) or (1A) of the Act (broadened to include s 46(1A), reflecting an amendment to the Act that extended payment plan eligibility to persons served with penalty reminder notices)
  • The number of infringement fines paid in full before registration with Fines Victoria for enforcement, or before registration under Schedule 3 to the Children, Youth and Families Act 2005.

  The prescribed reporting interval remains at six months.

• Mandatory information on infringement notices

  The 2026 Regulations expand the content required to be included on infringement notices. 

  Enforcement agencies must now include the following mandatory statements: 

  • A statement that the person should seek advice from a lawyer, a community legal centre, or Victoria Legal Aid if they do not understand the document
  • A statement that if the recipient is a child and does not understand the document, they may obtain information from the Registrar of the Children’s Court
  • A statement that the person may seek financial advice from a financial counsellor or the National Debt Helpline
  • A broadened warning about consequences of non-payment: the notice must now state that failure to pay or ‘take any other action available under the Act or the Fines Reform Act 2014’ by the due date may result in further enforcement action. 

  Enforcement agencies are also required to include the same infringement code throughout the life cycle of the infringement, from official warnings, infringement notices and penalty reminder notices all the way to referral to Fines Victoria. 

• Special circumstances – homelessness criteria

  Regulation 7 retains the prescribed criteria for determining that a person is homeless (crisis accommodation, transitional accommodation, other supported accommodation, or inadequate access to safe and secure housing). The heading has been updated from ‘Criteria for determining homelessness’ to ‘Meaning of special circumstances’, expressly referencing paragraph (c) of the definition of special circumstances in s 3A(1) of the Act. 

• Timeframe for review

  The 2016 Regulations prescribed the time period to conduct internal review as 90 days. The 2026 Regulations clarify that internal review must be completed ‘within 90 days from receiving an application for review’.

• Service of documents

  The manner of substituted service has been updated with minor language changes. A document may be left at the person’s ‘last known or usual place of residence or business’ (replacing ‘last or most usual place of residence or business’ in the 2016 Regulations).

• Updated list of enforcement agencies

  The list of prescribed enforcement agencies has been comprehensively updated to reflect current government structures. Key changes include: 

  • Victoria Police and its divisions are now listed separately rather than combined with all other agencies. 
  • The reference to councils has been updated from the Local Government Act 1989 to the Local Government Act 2020. 
  • New agencies added include PrimeSafe, Safe Transport Victoria, the Social Services Regulator, the Victorian Building Authority, the Victorian Fisheries Authority, the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission, the Victorian Liquor Commission, the Workforce Inspectorate Victoria, and TAFE institutes. 
  • References to bodies under repealed or restructured legislation (e.g. the Taxi Services Commission, the Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources) have been removed or updated. 
  • All enforcement agencies should confirm that their organisation remains listed as a prescribed enforcement agency in Schedule 1 to the 2026 Regulations.
• Fixed sunset clause

  The 2026 Regulations include an express revocation date of 2 July 2029, giving them a considerably shorter lifespan than the standard 10 year sunset that applied to the 2016 Regulations under the Subordinate Legislation Act 1994. This means the 2026 Regulations must be actively reviewed, remade or replaced by 2029.

While the 2026 Regulations largely preserve the existing structure of Victoria’s infringement regime, they introduce a series of targeted changes that are relevant to all enforcement agencies for the purposes of the Act. The changes reflect a shift towards greater transparency, improved reporting and clearer information for fine recipients, rather than a total system redesign. 

Enforcement agencies for the purposes of the Act should take the following steps: 

	Review and update all infringement notice and penalty reminder notice templates to include the three new mandatory advice statements
	Amend the consequences statement on all notices to include the broader language about taking ‘any other action available under the Act or the Fines Reform Act 2014’
	Prepare for expanded data collection to satisfy the new reporting requirements from 1 July 2026, including tracking court referrals by type, additional information requests under s 23(1), and fines paid in full before registration
	Confirm that the organisation remains listed as a prescribed enforcement agency in Schedule 1 to the 2026 Regulations, noting the substantial reorganisation of the list
	Ensure internal review decision processes align with the clarified 90-day timeframe running from receipt of the application to final determination.