.au Licensing Rules Review (2025)

The Panel will hold virtual town hall sessions to provide information about the Panel and its work and give the community an opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback on the .au Licensing Rules.

There are two online events scheduled for 2025:

27 November 2025 at 3pm– an introduction to the Policy Advisory Panel and the process for policy reform. Learn more and register here.

11 December 2025 at 3pm – an exploration of some of the key issues identified to date. Learn more and register for the second virtual town hall.

The Panel will hold some in person events across Australia in early 2026. Details will be published on this page when they become available.

On 24 November 2025 the Panel made a call for public submissions to the .au Licensing Rules Review and prepared a Paper which examines key issues which will be looked at in more detail. Read the paper and prepare your submission.

In September 2025, the auDA Board approved the Panel to carry out the review over 2025-26.

The Panel will undertake extensive public consultation in late 2025 and early 2026 before making recommendations to the auDA Board on any proposed changes to the .au Licensing Rules by mid-2026. The Policy Review Panel will operate in accordance with its Terms of Reference.

The Panel comprises:

1. Matt Healy (Chair)
2. Dr Selvi Kannan
3. Anthony Peake
4. Erhan Karabardak
5. Ian Kelly
6. Ross Creelman
7. Niluka Welungoda.

The scope of the review is set out in the Terms of Reference, which lists key issues that have been identified. The Panel may consider other issues as raised by the public during consultations.

The Policy Advisory Panel will undertake a multi-stakeholder consultation process to inform its recommendations to the auDA Board on proposed changes to the .au Licensing Rules.

A multi-stakeholder approach that includes in-person and virtual consultation will facilitate meaningful and diverse stakeholder contributions. Following an initial program of public consultation the Panel will develop a draft report for further feedback from the public.

The Panel will liaise with consumer protection groups to ensure the consumer perspective and relevant Government departments and agencies to ensure their perspectives are represented.

The Panel is committed to accountability and transparency in its operations and will publish its meeting agendas and minutes, and notes from stakeholder meetings to this webpage.

The review will be undertaken in accordance with the Process for the Development and Review of auDA Published Policies.

On 23 September 2025, the Panel Chair attended the monthly online registrar briefings held by auDA.

On 24 September 2025, the Panel Chair and several members conducted a lunchtime session open to the public in Adelaide at the Australian Internet Governance Forum.

On 14 November 2025, the Panel Chair and several Panel members made a presentation on the review at the auDA Registrar Summit.

Any questions or written submissions to the Panel can be directed to rulesreview25@auda.org.au.