Amendments to the Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018 (Vic) took effect on 1 October 2026 and give commercial cleaning businesses greater certainty about when they need a licence. The changes also clarify how the legislation defines labour hire within supply chains.
The amendments complete the reforms that stem from the Labour Hire Legislation Amendment (Licensing) Bill 2025 (Vic), which Parliament passed in December 2025. The Labour Hire Licensing Regulations 2018 carry matching changes to support the new provisions. Further information appears in Labour Hire Law Changes 2026.
Under the new definition, regulators judge a business by the true nature of its arrangement with another party. If that arrangement amounts to supplying workers, the provider needs a licence, whatever label the contract carries. Any arrangement of that character within a supply chain requires the provider to hold a licence.
The definition covers three types of providers. The first is a business where the arrangement with another person centres on supplying workers to perform work for that person and which takes responsibility for paying those workers, whether through its own payroll or through one or more intermediaries. The second is a business that recruits or places workers for another person and also provides accommodation for those workers for some or all of the period they perform the work. The third is a business that recruits or places independent contractors for another person and manages the performance of those workers’ contracts.
Clarity for commercial cleaning
In most cases, the new definition leaves existing licence requirements unchanged, though it makes clear that a business needs a licence to supply labour anywhere in a supply chain. The State Government says complex supply chains carry a higher risk of non-compliance, because arrangements can stay hidden from the host business and from regulators. The changes aim to improve accountability for hosts of labour hire services and for providers that use subcontracting arrangements, which reduces the risk of worker exploitation.
Businesses that supply workers to clean commercial premises have needed a licence under the regulations since 2018, and from 1 October the regulations include a definition of commercial premises that codifies this existing coverage. The definition includes the cleaning of accommodation and construction sites. Businesses that provide workers to clean accommodation facilities, construction sites, office buildings, schools and similar premises must continue to hold a licence, and their obligations under the Act stay the same. Penalties for using or providing unlicensed labour hire services can exceed $660,000 for a corporation and $160,000 for an individual.
The supply chain provisions apply to any cleaning business that on-supplies workers employed by another company, so the clarified definition reaches arrangements beyond a provider’s own employees.
Construction activities next
Further changes were due this month, when final amendments to the licensing regulations are expected to bring specific construction activities within labour hire law. Construction companies operating in Victoria have had to use licensed labour hire providers since 2019, and the Labour Hire Authority issues those licences. Industrial Relations Victoria completed regulatory consultation on the changes in September.
Under the preferred option from that consultation, companies will need a licence to work in traffic management, site security, concreting and crane operating on Victorian Government-funded construction projects with a total cost above $50 million. Those who engage their services must use licensed companies. After a brief transitional period, any person who provides these services without applying for a licence, and any person who uses their services, may face penalties exceeding $660,000 per breach for a company and $160,000 per breach for an individual.
Earlier in 2026 the state introduced a more rigorous fit and proper person test for nominated officers and relevant persons in labour hire companies. The Labour Hire Authority also gained wider scope to assess past, current and ongoing compliance with a broader range of laws when it decides whether to refuse an application or cancel a licence. Businesses that apply for or renew a licence must now declare their financial viability, and the authority must be satisfied that they are viable.
