Starts 1 July 2027/C2026A00064/Read from the authorised Act/Not legal advice; does not certify
Competition and Consumer CheckerThe Act, section by section
Section 48D(2)Held as a control

What to disclose before sign-up

When proposing a contract for goods or services that would be a subscription contract, the supplier must state that the contract would be a subscription contract and disclose the required information. The statement and information must be given in the prescribed manner, or by default within a reasonable time before agreement or next to the point of agreement.

Competition and Consumer Amendment (Unfair Trading Practices) Act 2026, Schedule 1, Part 3, item 20, section 48D(2) and (3)Starts 1 July 2027Part 3: subscription contracts
The requirement

Give the subscription statement and the section 48D(4) information when the offer is made. The default manner is either comprehensible, audible and unambiguous within a reasonable time before the consumer can agree, or legible, prominent and unambiguous in close proximity to the point of agreement.

Who it binds. Any supplier making an offer that would result in a subscription contract, including an offer to a business customer, because section 48D does not contain a consumer limitation.

Operative term. statement that, if entered, the contract would be a subscription contract

What this means in practice

This is a point-of-offer duty, not a terms-and-conditions duty. The consumer has to see the statement and the six matters before the agreement, in a way that is part of the offer rather than a page linked at the bottom. On a phone, the statement and the price, the period, the renewal and the exit have to be readable without a hunt. The Act allows an audible route, which matters for telephone sales, but the content is the same. Because the duty applies to a contract that would be a subscription contract, a free trial and an introductory offer are caught. Build the disclosure as a component and require it before the agree button is enabled.

How to test it

Open the offer as a consumer. Before you can agree, can you see that this is a subscription contract, what you will pay and when, how long it lasts, whether it renews, what notice you must give and how you end it? If any answer is no, the disclosure fails. Test the telephone or in-person route separately if the offer can be made there. Record the screens and the version of the wording. A disclosure that appears only after the payment step is too late.

Evidence to keep

The Act does not prescribe these records. They are the artefacts our reading says a regulator or auditor may ask for; keep the ones that fit your business and the provision.

  • Offer screenshotsThe offer page or flow, showing the statement and the six matters before the agree control.
  • Disclosure componentThe approved component, its wording and the rule that it must precede the agree control.
  • ScriptThe telephone or in-person script that carries the same statement and information.
  • Version recordThe date and owner of each wording version, linked to the release.
  • Comprehension testA test with a consumer who can repeat the key terms after reading the offer.

What to do first

  1. Put the subscription statement and the six matters beside the agree control, not in the footer.
  2. Use the same component on every route, including telephone sales.
  3. Block the release if the agree control can be reached without the disclosure.

Questions

Does it apply to business customers?
Section 48D applies when an offer would result in a subscription contract. It does not contain the consumer or small business limitation that sections 48E and 48F use, so a business offer can be within it.
What if the offer is made by phone?
The default manner allows a comprehensible, audible and unambiguous disclosure within a reasonable time before the consumer can agree, so a script can meet it if it carries the statement and the information.

Related sections

s 48D(4): Six matterss 48B: Subscription tests 48F(1): Exit method