In a major win for safety stakeholders last week’s budget confirmed that the Australian Government has committed to funding free public access to all mandatory Australian Standards referenced in Australian legislation.
Despite adherence to specific Australian Standards being required by law, access to those essential documents has been prohibitively expensive with business representatives claiming it presented a structural barrier to safety compliance and efficiency.
Making access free recognises that the standards underpinning legislation should be accessible to the people required to use them and has the potential to improve regulatory compliance and strengthen productivity across multiple industry sectors, saving businesses thousands of dollars each year and reducing compliance disputes.
Delivered on Tuesday, the Federal Government's 2026-27 budget allocates $42.7 million over the next four financial years to "provide ongoing grants to Standards Australia to provide free public read-only access to Standards referenced in Commonwealth and state and territory legislation".
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the initiative will make "all mandatory" Australian Standards – pertaining to WHS matters, the construction industry and product safety – free.
This initiative is expected to significantly benefit builders, building consultants, tradespeople, apprentices, project managers, and property owners across Australia. For industries heavily reliant on compliance documentation — particularly construction, occupational health and safety (OHS), and product safety — the announcement represents one of the most important regulatory accessibility changes in years.
It also brings Australia into line with comparable countries - including New Zealand, the UK, Canada, China, Singapore, India, Japan and South Korea – who already provide free or low-cost standards.
Rod Balding, CEO of Standards Australia, said “This is a landmark step forward. Australian Standards are essential to a safe and productive Australia. Sponsored access to mandatory standards will help support every Australian, especially small businesses, apprentices and tradies. We welcome the Government’s commitment and look forward to working with them in a way that will practically support safety, productivity and housing delivery nationwide.”
SafetyNet will keep readers up to date as implementation details for the initiative emerge.