Sufficient time for complianceA sensible commencement date is vital to ensure businesses are able to comply with the new laws and guarantee good customer experience. ADMA will continue to advocate for a sensible transitionary period and commencement date, as well as for the expansion to the exemptions to include gift cards for experiences, subscriptions, and B2B transactions where the gift cards are used as part of promotional, loyalty or employee programs. The new legislation will apply to cards and vouchers sold both in-store and online. On 18 October 2017, the NSW Government passed the new gift card laws, meaning that NSW businesses will be required to extend the expiry date of gift cards sold in NSW to three years or face penalties of up to $11,000. New legal requirements for gift cards. Further, many businesses – particularly smaller ones – may not have the systems in place to comply with the new laws. a prohibition on, and fines for, selling a gift card or voucher that is redeemable in NSW, with an expiry date of less than three years. (The deadline for the gazette of Friday, 9 April will return to the usual time of midday on Thursday, 8 April 2021.) After 1 November 2019, if terms and conditions of a gift card do not comply with the reforms they will be void and the new requirements will be applied regardless of what is written on the gift card. Impact on businessThe time, resources and investment needed from a systems and logistics perspective to ensure compliance is concerning, as is the impact on businesses, especially small businesses. This month, New York State passed a new law limiting fees and expiration dates on gift cards sold in the state.The new law requires that gift cards don’t expire for at least five years after they’re issued. The term “gift card” is defined broadly as a physical or electronic article that is of a kind commonly known as a gift card or gift voucher, and is redeemable for goods or services. The new laws will: Establish a minimum expiry date of 3 years on all gift cards sold to consumers; and; Prohibit charging any fee that reduces the value of the gift card, after the sale of the card. This means … use the full value of the gift card before the expiry date - businesses do not have to honour an expired gift card; if a business is no longer trading or changes hands and you haven’t yet used your gift card, you may not be able to redeem it. Following the concerns raised by ADMA the NSW Government has delayed its decision on the commencement date, initially set to be made on 3 November 2017, and is further consulting with ADMA and industry in relation to implementation issues. This confusion will erode customer engagement and experience – paramount for business today. Please tick if you'd like to receive alerts and webinar invites on the following topics: Agree to the terms of our Privacy Policy. In response to the swift implementation of the NSW gift card laws, and the lack of industry consultation prior to introducing the new laws, ADMA held roundtable consultations on 19 October 2017 with its members and other industry stakeholders to discuss the impact of the new laws on businesses. The national laws are very similar to the gift card laws in NSW, but they include that gift cards must also prominently display the expiry date as either the full date, or as a period of time. NSW gift card reforms: the gift that keeps on giving… for 3 years . New changes to the NSW gift card laws are now in effec, Cyber Security, Data Protection and Privacy, A gift card or voucher that is given by a business for free to a consumer, A gift card or voucher exchanged for goods returned to the supplier of the goods, Gift cards supplied as part of a customer loyalty or employee rewards program, A gift card or voucher supplied as part of a temporary marketing promotion as a bonus to the purchase of a good or service, A gift card or voucher sold for a particular good or service that is below the market value of the good or service (a genuine discount), A gift card or voucher sold or donated for use in a fundraising appeal, including to a charity or not for profit organisation, A gift card or voucher for a good or service available for a limited time where the card or voucher expires at the end of that period (for example, entry to a concert or museum exhibition, or a pair of shoes that is only available for a limited time), Prepaid cards for phone credit or internet access, ATM cards, debit cards, credit cards or charge cards, A reloadable card that uses EFTPOS, Visa or Mastercard or a similar electronic payment system. Tennessee H.B. This follows the New South Wales Government having introduced their own gift card legislation for cards sold in … The roundtable highlighted that there is a lot of uncertainty for how businesses that operate online and nationally will comply with these laws. Discuss with your accountant how the extended expiry periods will affect your revenue recognition for gift card sales (if at all). a prohibition on, and fines for, imposing administrative charges or fees for redeeming gift cards that reduces the value of the gift card or voucher; other debit or credit ‘gift cards’, such as the visa prepaid gift card, are exempt from the laws; gift cards supplied in connection with loyalty programs are exempt from the laws. Train your staff so they are aware of the new laws – update your IT platforms, compliance manuals and carry out structured staff training. NSW gift card reforms . The Fair Trading Amendment (Ticket Scalping and Gift Cards) Bill 2017 was passed by NSW Parliament late last year, with the rules commencing from 31 March 2018. Join our mailing list to receive breaking news and webinar invites. Some other concerns raised by members during our consultation included the following. The new laws are part of the ‘Consumers First’ policy by the Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation, Hon Minister Kean. But there’s also a few catches when it comes to gift card laws – if you leave your card sitting around too long, the state may be able to claim the balance for itself. The new laws provide for: A mandatory three-year minimum term on gift cards; Over a period of 5 years, NSW Fair Trading received over 1300 complaints, sparking calls for gift card reform. The new laws apply to gift cards issued to a consumer in NSW. Changed gazette deadline pre-Easter. However, it is interesting to note that the NSW legislation specifically excluded store credit from the application of the laws (e.g. © Australian Computer Society t/as ADMA. Privacy and Compliance, Each month our Regulatory team delivers exclusive regulatory content via our Regulatory Affairs Newsletter, Sign up to receive ADMA newsletters, updates, trends, special offers, events, critical issues and more. Check the expiry date on your gift card or voucher carefully, as businesses are not required to honour them after this date. In October 2017, the NSW Government introduced laws requiring a minimum three year expiry period for gift cards sold to consumers in NSW. Any gift cards purchased on or after 1 November 2019 must be redeemable for at … To understand how we protect your privacy, please refer to our Privacy Policy. It is worth noting that, based on our current discussion with the NSW Government, it appears that the laws will likely commence in April 2018. The Treasury Laws Amendment (Gift Cards) Bill 2018 has been passed into law on 18 October 2018 and received Royal Assent on 25 October 2018. The NSW Government is set to announce its new Gift Card laws that will require NSW businesses to extend the expiry date of gift cards to all NSW consumers to at least 3 years or face penalties of up to $11,000. Alert customers of pre-printed gift cards of the 3 year expiry date and no post-purchase fees – this can be done by physically amending the cards at the point of sale, making a hand written note on the receipt of purchase, updating your terms + conditions of sale and/or installing signage at the physical location of pre-printed gift cards to notify of the changes. In October 2017, NSW Parliament passed amendments to the Fair Trading Act 1987 (NSW), introducing a mandatory minimum expiration period of 3 years. *Amendments to the NSW Fair Trading Act 1987 require that most gift cards and vouchers sold from 31 March 2018 have a 3 year expiry period. Gift cards must have a minimum three-year expiry date. Gift cards are sold across the economy by national retailers and small businesses. The commencement of the laws were delayed after the NSW parliament voted down a proposed 1 December 2017 commencement date following concerns raised about the implementation of the laws and the impact on business over the busy Christmas period. In addition, no post-purchase fees can apply to redeem the voucher (including activation fees, account keeping fees, balance enquiry fees, telephone enquiry fees and fees applied when a card is inactive or not being used). See ADMA raised significant concerns about the practicality of compliance with the new laws and advocated for the need to have sensible transitionary arrangements in order to ensure the best customer experience and the ability for businesses to comply with the new laws. In addition, no post-purchase fees can apply to redeem the voucher (including activation fees, account keeping fees, balance enquiry fees, telephone enquiry fees and fees applied when a card is inactive or not being used). The new laws apply to gift cards or gift vouchers sold (whether in person or online) to a consumer who is in NSW at the time of sale or sold to a consumer who provides a NSW address in … One of the commonly used terms and conditions of gift cards are expiry dates. The Treasury Laws Amendment (Gift Cards) Act 2018 makes amendments to the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) in Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth). Gift cards valid for at least three years. Adopts a new law in order to regulate the sale and use of gift cards, which will be known as the Law of Gift Cards. In November, ADMA attended a meeting with the NSW Government to discuss these issues and identify a suitable commencement date for the new laws. If the card and the underlying money expire at different times, the card issuer should make it known which date applies. Gift cards must show the expiry date Gift cards you supply from 1 November 2019 must also prominently display the expiry date as either the full date, or as a period of time. “All gift cards purchased before March 31st 2018 run by a 12-month expiry date as per the terms and conditions of the original purchase." The expiry date must be displayed on the gift card.