What changes are coming into effect in Australia for new financial year July 1, 2025

Changes to laws, prices, wages and more have come into effect today. Here’s what every Australian needs to know coming into the new financial year

Some people will be better off, others will be worse.

Changes to laws, rebates, prices, wages and more have come into effect today as we enter the new financial year. Here’s what every Australian needs to know:

Power bills

Some households in NSW could be hit with bill increases of up to 9.7 per cent from July 1, with South Australian and south east Queensland customers looking at hikes of up to 3.7 per cent.

The figures are based on the Default Market Offer, which was set by the Australian Energy Regulator in May and sets price caps for increases for residential customers on default plans.

The offer directly impacts around eight per cent of customers, and is expected to have flow-on effects to those on other plans.

One easy way to avoid being slugged more than you need to is to check the Federal Government’s comparison tool at energy.gov.au – shopping around could save you hundreds of dollars a year.

The government has announced a $1.8 billion extension of its Energy Bill Relief Fund, allowing households and eligible small businesses to receive up to $150 in energy bill rebates from today until the end of 2025.

Rebates will be automatically applied to electricity bills in two $75 quarterly instalments.

Power bills are going up, but there are rebates available. Picture: Gaye Gerard

Solar changes

For those with rooftop solar panels, changes are coming from several directions.

Firstly, the minimum flat rate solar feed-in tariff – that is the amount householders are paid for power they return back to the grid – is forecast to drop sharply in many states from today.

In Queensland, this is expected to drop by as much as 30 per cent as supply increases and demand sinks.

The reduction is even sharper in Victoria, where the Energy Services Commission has set the minimum feed-in tariff at just is 0.04 cents per kilowatt hour down from 3.3c/kWh.

NSW consumers, however, are likely to enjoy an increase in return for their power, with that regulator setting a benchmark of between 4.8 and 7.3 c/kWh.

One way households could get more out of the solar panels is to take advantage of a new 30 per cent federal government rebate on new batteries, which begins today.

Part of the $2.3 billion Cheaper Home Batteries program, the subsidy will take the average cost of battery from in excess of $10,000 down to a more attainable $6000.

It will enable households to store excess electricity generated from their solar panels during the day to power their homes at night instead of tapping into the electricity grid.

Phone bills

If you’re with Telstra, you could be looking at an extra $5 a month on your bill after the telco announced it was hiking prices for its postpaid mobile, mobile data, and home and small business internet plans.

Optus customers haven’t escaped the hikes, with that telco upping prices for some plans by $6 a month from June 4, while Vodafone and Belong are also implementing increases.

It could be time to shop around for a better phone plan. Picture: Christian Gilles

Business charges

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) will increase business name fees from today, with the price of a one-year registration or renewal going up from $44 to $45 and from $102 to $104 for three years.

The cost of registering a company will also increase – from $597 to $611 – while the annual review fee for a proprietary company will increase from $321 to $329.

Wages

The national minimum wage will rise by 3.5 per cent to $948 per week ($24.95 per hour), benefiting approximately 2.6 million workers.

The National Minimum Wage will increase by 3.5 per cent from today, to $24.95 per hour, or $948 per week.

Wages are set to rise today. Picture: Damian Shaw

Superannuation

From 1 July 2025, the superannuation guarantee rate will increase from 11.5 per cent to 12 per cent.

The 12 per cent rate will need to be applied for all salary and wages paid to eligible workers on and after today.

This is even if some or all of the pay period it relates to is before 1 July.

The government will commence paying superannuation on Paid Parental Leave payments from today.

Under the new law, eligible parents with babies born or adopted on or after today will receive an additional contribution, based on 12 per cent of their Parental Leave Pay, to their nominated superannuation fund.

The lump sum will be paid following the end of each financial year in which government funded Parental Leave Pay was paid, so the first payments won’t actually be made until July 2026.

This is the last scheduled rise for the superannuation guarantee rate.

Paid Parental Leave

The Paid Parental Leave scheme will extend to 24 weeks – up from 22 weeks – based on a five-day work week.

There are also changes to how many days are reserved for your partner and how many days you can take at the same time.

Centrelink and pension payments

Payments, including JobSeeker and Youth Allowance, will see a 2.4 per cent increase due to indexation, leading to increases of up to $48.

Adjusted income and asset thresholds will allow more retirees to qualify for the aged pension and for more people to qualify for the Disability Support Pension and Carer Payment.

Some National Disability Insurance Scheme payments will sharply decline from today after a price review found existing subsidies were “inflated”.