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How a bill becomes law in Australia

A federal bill becomes law when both houses of Parliament pass the same text and the Governor-General gives Royal Assent. The Act then starts on the date it sets or, if it sets none, generally on the 28th day after assent.

Explainer · By the We AI Advisors team · Published · Updated

A bill is a proposed law. It becomes an Act when both houses of Parliament pass the same text and the Governor-General gives Royal Assent. This guide follows a federal bill from policy idea to commencement, then notes how the states and territories differ.

What happens before a bill is introduced?

Ideas for new laws can come from government departments, community and business groups, political parties and parliamentary committees, according to the Parliamentary Education Office (PEO). In the federal government, the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet's guide to the legislation process describes the usual steps. The department develops the policy and consults on it, the minister gets policy approval, the bill is bid into a legislation program for a sitting period, and the Office of Parliamentary Counsel drafts it.

Drafting takes time. The guide says a very simple bill may take up to 6 weeks and 10 drafts, and a complex 100-page bill up to 6 months and 30 to 50 drafts. Some bills are released as exposure drafts first, so stakeholders can comment before introduction. The explanatory memorandum and the second reading speech are prepared before the minister introduces the bill, and the bill goes through a legislation approval process and clearance by the government's party room.

Who can introduce a bill, and in which house?

Most bills are introduced by government ministers. Other members and senators can introduce their own, often called private members' or private senators' bills (PEO). Most bills start in the House of Representatives because bills that appropriate money or impose taxation can't start in the Senate (Constitution, section 53). Other bills can start in either house.

The Senate can't amend tax bills or bills appropriating money for the government's ordinary annual services. It can return them and ask the House to make particular changes (section 53).

What are the stages in each house?

Each house takes a bill through a similar sequence. The PEO sets out the usual path:

  1. First reading. The bill is introduced and its title is read.
  2. Second reading. The minister or member explains the bill, and members debate and vote on its main idea.
  3. Committee inquiry (optional). A committee can examine the bill in public and report back.
  4. Detailed consideration (optional). In the House of Representatives this is called consideration in detail. In the Senate it is the committee of the whole. Members go through the bill closely and consider amendments.
  5. Third reading. Members vote on the bill in its final form.

The bill then passes to the other house, which repeats the process. The Federal Register of Legislation's glossary says the first and third readings usually involve a parliamentary Clerk reading the bill's long title, and it calls the second reading the most significant.

What do committees do with bills?

Either house can refer a bill to a committee for detailed examination. According to the PEO, committees can receive written submissions, take evidence from witnesses and prepare a report with findings and recommendations, which is tabled in Parliament. The PEO also says the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights checks every bill introduced against Australia's human rights commitments. To contribute to an inquiry, see how to make a submission to a government consultation (opens in a new tab) and the Parliament of Australia's guidance for committee inquiries (opens in a new tab).

What if the two houses disagree?

Both houses must agree to the same text (PEO). Section 57 of the Constitution covers a deadlock. If the House of Representatives passes a bill and the Senate rejects it, fails to pass it or amends it in a way the House won't accept, the House can pass it again after three months, in the same or the next session. If the Senate still doesn't agree, the Governor-General may dissolve both houses at once, but not within six months of the House's term ending.

If the House passes the bill again after the election and the Senate still doesn't agree, the Governor-General may call a joint sitting. At a joint sitting the bill passes only with an absolute majority of the members of both houses together.

How does a bill become an Act?

When both houses have passed the bill, it goes to the Governor-General for Royal Assent. Section 58 of the Constitution lets the Governor-General assent, withhold assent or reserve the bill, and return it with recommended amendments. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet's guide says assent is typically given within 8 to 10 working days. The bill then becomes an Act. The Federal Register of Legislation says Acts are numbered, and the Register holds the registered Acts.

When does the new law take effect?

An Act's own commencement provision takes priority. If an Act sets none, section 3A of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 makes it commence on the 28th day after Royal Assent, and an Act that alters the Constitution commences on assent. A commencement provision can also depend on a proclamation, which is made by the Governor-General and registered on the Federal Register of Legislation. The Register's glossary notes that different parts of a law can start at different times, so check the commencement section of the Act.

How long does it take?

The PEO says most bills take 2 to 3 months to pass, though some take years. It says about 200 bills are introduced each year and about 90 per cent of government bills become law. The PEO page gives no reference year for these figures, so treat them as general estimates.

How do the states and territories differ?

Australia has six state parliaments and two territory parliaments, according to the PEO. Most state parliaments have two houses. Queensland, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory each have one, called the Legislative Assembly, so their bills have no second-house stage. Other details differ too:

  • Queensland: the Constitution of Queensland 2001 requires each bill to be referred to a committee for at least six weeks. The Legislative Assembly can declare a bill urgent and shorten or skip the referral (section 26B).
  • Australian Capital Territory: the Commonwealth's self-government Act provides for an Assembly law to take effect through a notice of enactment, published in the Territory Gazette, rather than through Royal Assent (section 25). The same section lets a later ACT law change how that notice is published, so check the ACT's own explanation.

Each parliament publishes its own explanation, and its rules can change. These are the official pages:

We Policy Advisor (opens in a new tab) is an Australian policy and regulatory monitoring service from We. Communications. It tracks bills stage by stage in the state parliaments it covers and links each item to its official source. Federal bills still before Parliament aren't covered yet, and federal Acts appear once they have passed.

Some points are based on content from the Federal Register of Legislation at 20 October 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government legislation please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Check the Parliament concerned and the official sources listed below before you rely on it.

Questions

How many readings does a bill have?

Three in each house: first, second and third reading. The first introduces the bill, at the second members debate and vote on its main idea, and at the third they vote on the bill in its final form.

Can a federal bill start in the Senate?

Yes. Bills that appropriate money or impose taxation must start in the House of Representatives (Constitution, section 53). Other bills can start in either house, although most start in the House.

What is Royal Assent?

The Governor-General's formal approval of a bill that both houses have passed. It makes the bill an Act of Parliament.

When does a new Act start?

On the date the Act sets. If it sets none, it starts on the 28th day after Royal Assent (Acts Interpretation Act 1901, section 3A). Check the Act's commencement section, because parts can start at different times.

Where can I find an Act after it passes?

On the Federal Register of Legislation, which holds registered Acts, legislative instruments and compilations showing the law as amended to a given date.

Sources

  1. Making a law (opens in a new tab), Parliamentary Education Office. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  2. The usual path of a bill (opens in a new tab), Parliamentary Education Office. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  3. Law-making (fact sheet) (opens in a new tab), Parliamentary Education Office. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  4. Parliamentary committees (opens in a new tab), Parliamentary Education Office. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  5. The Australian Constitution online: Part V, Powers of the Parliament (opens in a new tab), Parliamentary Education Office. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  6. Three levels of government: governing Australia (opens in a new tab), Parliamentary Education Office. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  7. Guide to the legislation process (opens in a new tab), Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  8. Acts Interpretation Act 1901 (Compilation No. 39, 28 March 2026), sections 2B and 3A (opens in a new tab), Federal Register of Legislation, Office of Parliamentary Counsel. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  9. Glossary (opens in a new tab), Federal Register of Legislation, Office of Parliamentary Counsel. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  10. Australian Capital Territory (Self-Government) Act 1988 (Compilation No. 26, 11 December 2024), section 25 (opens in a new tab), Federal Register of Legislation, Office of Parliamentary Counsel. Read on 20 Oct 2026.
  11. Constitution of Queensland 2001 (current as at 24 June 2024), section 26B (opens in a new tab), Queensland Government, Office of the Queensland Parliamentary Counsel (© State of Queensland, licensed under CC BY 4.0). Read on 21 Oct 2026.
  12. Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011: details (opens in a new tab), Federal Register of Legislation, Office of Parliamentary Counsel. Read on 21 Oct 2026.

AI-generated summaries. Verify against the official source. Not legal advice.

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