Labour Hire Licensing Changes In Victoria: You Need to Know
Victoria’s labour hire industry continues to undergo significant changes, with the second phase of changes under the Labour Hire Legislation Amendment (Licensing) Bill 2025 (VIC) taking effect from 1 June 2026.
Passed by the Victorian Parliament in December last year, this legislation aims to strengthen worker protections and improve accountability across the labour hire industry by ensuring providers meet their legal obligations.
Following the introduction of the first phase of changes in December last year, a further set of changes has now commenced, with additional amendments scheduled for the latter half of this year. In this article let’s get a brief overview of what the latest changes are and what the upcoming changes are.
A More Rigorous ‘Fit & Proper’ Check
One of the most significant changes is the expanded assessment of whether a licence applicant is considered ‘Fit & Proper’. The Labour Hire Authority (LHA) will now consider new factors such as a person's character, professionalism and integrity in determining if they are ‘Fit & Proper’.
Businesses must also disclose individuals or entities that may have significant control or influence over nominated officers or relevant persons within the business. Where applicable, a business may be required to provide the contact details of those individuals or entities, and if the LHA decides they do not meet the ‘Fit & Proper’ requirements, they may refuse a licence application.
Further failure to disclose such relationships may also result in licensing action, as the LHA has now been given expanded powers to investigate any undisclosed relationships.
Learn more details about the types of relationships that should be disclosed here.
Source: LHA
Additional Information Requirements
The amendments also give the LHA greater power to request more supporting information during licence applications, renewals and other licensing transactions. Depending on the nature of the business and its circumstances, the LHA may ask providers to supply additional documentation relating to matters such as tax and superannuation payments to contractors, details of accommodation provided to workers, etc.
Learn more details of additional documents that might be required here.
Source: LHA
Increased Focus on Compliance
Another key area of focus is the labour hire provider’s overall compliance capability. When making licensing decisions, the LHA might now consider compliance with laws such as bankruptcy and insolvency, fair trading, corporate regulations and consumer protection.
Furthermore, the LHA might also request a Business Compliance Plan from labour hire providers to assess their ability to meet their legal obligations. These plans should clearly indicate, at minimum, the operating model of the business, how the model meets its legal obligations and key compliance controls that are relevant.
LHA has warned that generic templated or marketing style business plans might not be accepted. Learn more details about it here.
Source: LHA
Business Must be Financially Viable
Businesses that are applying for a new labour hire licence or renewing an existing one must prove to the LHA that they are financially viable. The licence may be granted if the LHA is satisfied that the business is financially viable. Learn more details about it here.
New Licence Conditions for High-Risk Industries
Labour hire providers operating in industries identified as having a higher risk of worker exploitation will have additional licensing conditions to adhere to. These conditions will apply to new licences granted after 1 June 2026 for providers in horticulture, meat and poultry processing, commercial cleaning and security.
Existing licence holders will also need to adhere to the new conditions from late 2026.
Learn more about the new conditions that will apply here.
Source: LHA
What’s Next?
The final stages of the amendments are set to come into effect later in the year. These changes will include clarity around the definition of labour hire services to better capture labour hire arrangements within supply chains. It also aims to bring certain construction-related activities within the scope of labour hire regulation. Source: LHA
What Should You Do?
If you are a labour hire provider operating in Victoria, now is the time to review internal processes and documentation to ensure they are aligned with these amendments.