Australia had a proposal for mandatory guardrails ready, closely modeled on Europe's risk-based approach. After more than a year of consultation, it decided not to use it — and instead imposed mandatory rules on its own government first.
In September 2024, then-Industry Minister Ed Husic announced 10 mandatory guardrails for high-risk AI systems — a proposal clearly inspired by the EU AI Act's risk classification model. In December 2025, Australia's National AI Plan scrapped those mandatory guardrails entirely, confirming the country would rely on existing laws and sector regulators, backed by voluntary guidance, instead of a dedicated AI law.
The government confirmed it will not proceed with AI-specific legislation. Privacy, consumer protection, copyright, anti-discrimination, and sector rules already govern the outcomes of AI systems, and existing regulators enforce them within their own remit — the same sectoral model the UK uses, rather than Europe's horizontal model.
The Australian AI Safety Institute launched in early 2026 with a budget of AUD$29.9 million, to test systems, assess risks, and recommend targeted reforms where real gaps are identified — a technical assessment role, similar in spirit to the UK's AI Security Institute, without direct sanctioning power over private companies.
On July 15, 2026, Prime Minister Albanese announced plans to legislate Australian AI Standards and created an AI Office within the Department of the Prime Minister. More concretely: as of June 15, 2026, the first mandatory requirements for federal (Commonwealth) government agencies are already in effect — AI impact assessments, procurement guidance, mandatory AI training, and the designation of Chief AI Officers — with full compliance required by December 10, 2026. The private sector, meanwhile, still has no new AI-specific obligations.
The practical takeaway is clear: if your company sells AI software or services to the Australian government, there are already concrete requirements to meet as of mid-2026. If you operate in the private sector, you remain under the umbrella of general laws (privacy, consumer, anti-discrimination) with no dedicated AI law yet — but the fact that the government itself already imposed rules on itself is a reasonable signal of where the obligation could eventually extend.
Carlos Montiel is an enterprise AI solutions architect. He implements LLMs, Agents, RAG, and orchestrators for companies across Guatemala and Latin America. Reach out for a consultation.
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