As a franchisor, one of your most significant obligations is to provide relevant, accurate and up-to-date information to your franchisees and prospective franchisees. An important part of that obligation is creating a disclosure document containing materially relevant information about your franchise system. A disclosure document needs to be updated every year you intend to start or maintain a franchise business.

In this article we consider the "return on investment" requirement which applies to franchise agreements entered into, renewed or extended on or after 1 November 2025 (except for those new vehicle dealership agreements entered into prior to 1 November 2025 which are covered by the previous regulations).

Securities are a type of investment that hold tradeable value. They can take many forms, including stocks issued by a government or shares in a company. They are commonly offered for purchase by companies or individuals looking to raise money to make an investment or other purchase of their own. However, existing securities held over a business can make purchasing that business more complex, so it is important to identify any existing securities when entering into a business sale agreement.

In this article I take a look at some of the recent commentary around the outlook for franchising in 2026, as well as recapping the regulatory changes in 2025 (particularly the changes that came into effect on 1 November 2025).

2025 was a busy year in franchising with 2 tranches of Franchising Code changes coming into effect, requiring franchise disclosure documents to be updated twice last year in some cases.

Thankfully, 2026 should see more stability on the regulatory front.

The Australian Franchise Outlook Report 2026 indicates that support in understanding legal documents is one of the most important factors in helping someone feel more confident about becoming a franchisee.

The ACCC announced on Thursday that it had issued infringement notices to Cash Converters Pty Ltd and Mobile Travel Agents Pty Ltd, for their alleged failures to comply with the Franchising Code of Conduct and that each franchisor had paid $16,500.00 in penalties.

As franchisors adapt to the Franchising Code of Conduct introduced on 1 April 2025 (the new Franchising Code), we look ahead to the next round of Code changes coming into effect on 1 November 2025.

In this article we look at some of the important changes to the disclosure obligations of franchisors, arising under the new Franchising Code of Conduct, which came into effect on 1 April 2025 ("the new Code"). 

A key aspect of the Amendment (Closing Loopholes) Act 2023 is the criminalisation of ‘wage theft’. Wage theft typically refers to employers intentionally underpaying their employees or deliberately failing to provide them with the wages and entitlements they are owed. Previously, underpayments of employees were subject to civil penalties under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (“Fair Work Act”), but starting from 1 January 2025, intentional underpayment of wages will now be considered a criminal offence.

The Competition and Consumer (Industry Code - Franchising) Regulations 2024, were made on 5 December 2024 and come into effect on 1 April 2025. You can read the regulations here.