Road Vehicle Standards (RVS) legislation implementation

About the RVS legislation

The Road Vehicle Standards Act 2018 (RVSA) and associated Road Vehicle Standards Acts relating to consequential and transitional provisions and charges passed Parliament in late 2018. The Road Vehicle Standards Rules 2019, which cover the operational aspects of the RVSA, were made in February 2019.

The RVSA will replace the existing Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989 (MVSA) and deliver an updated and modernised system to regulate the first provision of road vehicles to the Australian market. The RVS legislation is being phased in over the coming months to facilitate a smooth transition to the new regulatory framework.

Full implementation of the RVS legislation is anticipated by July 2021.

Latest news and updates

Our stakeholder commitment

To ensure industry stakeholders have a comprehensive understanding of the RVS legislation and how the changes will affect them, stakeholder engagement is a key priority.

The department is committed to informing industry stakeholders about the legislative changes, and the IT system developments to support them, on an ongoing basis.

Where possible, in the lead-up to each provision of the RVS legislation being implemented in a phased approach, key stakeholders will be invited to participate in the service design phase and provide feedback.

The department’s RVS Legislation Program Roadmap calendar below highlights the proposed timing and nature of ongoing stakeholder consultation throughout the phased RVS legislation implementation process.

RVS Legislation Program Roadmap calendar PDF: 1096 KB

Under the RVS legislation

Changes are coming for the following under the RVS legislation:

Importing a vehicle
Register of Approved Vehicles (RAV) – new
Vehicle certification
Registered automotive workshops
Model Reports – new
Authorised vehicle verifiers – new
Testing facilities (current registered test facilities need to become approved testing facilities under the RVSA
Specialist and Enthusiast Vehicles Register
Component type approvals (replacing CRNs and SARNs) – new
Vehicle recalls

RVS legislation guides and resources

The department has published guidance materials that provide further information on the application processes under the RVS legislation. This guidance and links to other useful resources can be accessed on the RVS legislation guides and resources page.

RVSA Implementation Consultation Framework

The department established the RVSA Implementation Consultation Framework to facilitate the smooth implementation of the Road Vehicle Standards legislation through a targeted consultation process.

RVSA guidance material consultation

A range of guidance material that will be developed to support the implementation of the Road Vehicle Standards legislation will continue to be developed. Further information, including draft material for consultation with stakeholders, will be posted to the RVSA guidance material consultation page as it becomes available.

The Road Vehicle Standards legislation

The commencement date of the main provisions of the Road Vehicle Standards Act 2018 has been postponed by the Road Vehicle Standards Legislation Amendment Act 2019 (RVSLAA).

The new commencement date will be fixed by proclamation or by 1 July 2021 if not fixed before this date. From the day of commencement, a 12 month transitional period will begin, during which transitional arrangements will be in place that allow some approval holders to continue operating under existing approvals.

The Road Vehicle Standards package of legislation includes:

Contact the RVSA Implementation Team

By Post: The Director
Program Support and Stakeholder Engagement
Vehicle Safety Standards Branch
Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications
GPO Box 594
Canberra ACT 2601

Email: RVSAimplementation@infrastructure.gov.au

Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications