Gift card expiry rules Australia: the three-year minimum explained

You go to use a gift card and the store says it has expired, or the balance has been cut by an "inactivity fee". The Australian Consumer Law (ACL) has specific gift card rules that set a minimum redemption period and ban most fees after purchase. Whether they help you depends on a few facts you can check today.

Quick answer

Whether the three-year minimum applies depends mainly on when the card was supplied and what kind of card it is. Under the ACL's gift card rules, a gift card supplied to a consumer on or after 1 November 2019 must be redeemable for at least three years from the day it was supplied. If the card or its terms provide for a shorter redemption period, the law treats the card as redeemable until three years after supply. Some cards aren't covered at all, such as reloadable cards, and some are exempt from the three-year rule, such as loyalty rewards or genuine-discount promotional cards.

How that plays out depends on your situation:

• The store says the card expired, but it's less than three years since supply. If the card is covered and isn't exempt from the three-year rule, it is likely still redeemable. Your practical step is to ask the business in writing to honour the remaining balance.
• A fee was deducted after the card was supplied (for example account-keeping, balance-enquiry or inactivity fees, or an activation or reactivation fee charged after supply). If the card is covered by the gift card rules, post-supply fees are banned unless they fall into a permitted category. You can ask for the deducted amount to be restored to the card.
• The card's valid expiry date has passed (at least three years after supply, or any later date the card states), or the card is exempt from the three-year rule and the expiry date it states has passed. The ACCC says businesses don't need to honour a gift card after a valid expiry date has passed. Anything you get is likely to be goodwill.
• The business has closed or changed hands. The expiry rules don't solve that problem. See our guide on what to do when a gift card retailer went broke.

Write to the business that supplied the card. If the terms name a separate issuer, or another business demanded or took the fee, include it in your complaint too: the ban on post-supply fees applies to whoever demands or receives one. If the business refuses, and once you've written to it, your state or territory consumer body may help if your complaint meets its criteria. A tribunal or court with jurisdiction can make a binding order; the right forum depends on the dispute type and amount, so confirm it on the official site.

What the law actually says

The ACL is Schedule 2 to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010. Its gift card rules sit alongside, and are separate from, the consumer guarantees. The gift card rules are in sections 99A to 99G, with details set by the Competition and Consumer Regulations 2010. A gift card is an article, physical or electronic, of a kind commonly known as a gift card or gift voucher that can be redeemed for goods or services, subject to the inclusions and exclusions in those regulations. The core rules are:

• Three-year minimum. A business must not, in trade or commerce, supply a gift card to a consumer if it stops being redeemable earlier than three years after the day of supply. If it does, the card is taken to be redeemable until three years after supply. The clock runs from the day of supply, not the day the card was first used. For an ordinary purchase that's usually the purchase date; if the card was issued or delivered later, check the actual supply date.
• Expiry information on the card. One of the following must appear prominently on the card:
  • the expiry date, or the month and year of expiry;
  • the supply date (or month and year) plus a statement of the redemption period; or
  • "no expiry date" or similar words.
• No post-supply fees. A card's terms must not allow or require a fee after supply, and a business must not demand or receive one. Permitted exceptions are:
  • booking fees, if they are the same or substantially the same as for other payment methods;
  • currency exchange fees;
  • fees for reissuing lost, stolen or damaged cards; and
  • payment surcharges.
• Offending terms are void. A term of a gift card is void if it has the effect of, or purports to have the effect of, allowing or requiring a post-supply fee, or reducing the redemption period to one ending earlier than three years after supply. A pecuniary penalty may be imposed on a business that breaches these rules.

Who counts as a consumer. The rules protect gift cards supplied to a consumer under section 3 of the ACL. You're a consumer if any one of these applies:

• the amount paid or payable did not exceed $100,000 (the threshold set by the regulations);
• the goods or services are of a kind ordinarily acquired for personal, domestic or household use or consumption (this is about the kind of goods or services, not your own use); or
• for goods, they are a vehicle or trailer acquired mainly to transport goods on public roads.

Section 3 has a specific rule for gift cards. The re-supply exclusion applies only where the card is bought for re-supply in trade or commerce, so buying a card to give as a present doesn't take you outside it. The other goods-only exclusions, for goods bought to use up or transform in trade or commerce in production, manufacture or repair, are unlikely to fit a gift card. Check how section 3 applies to you.

Misleading statements. The ACL also prohibits misleading conduct. Telling you a covered card "has expired" when the law treats it as redeemable may be misleading or deceptive conduct under section 18. It may also be a false or misleading representation about the existence or effect of a right under section 29(1)(m).

Damages. If you suffer loss because of a contravention of the gift card rules or of sections 18 or 29, you may claim damages under section 236. The loss must be caused by the contravention and you need evidence of it. Under general legal principles, loss you could reasonably have avoided may not be recoverable, and you can't recover the same loss twice. The action must be brought within 6 years after the day the cause of action accrued (section 236(2)). A court can also make the orders it thinks appropriate to compensate you, which can include an order to refund money, under sections 237 and 243.

What you buy with the card. Goods or services you buy with a gift card carry the normal consumer guarantees. If goods have a major failure, or a failure that can't be remedied, you may reject them (if the right to reject hasn't been lost under section 262) and choose a refund or a replacement of the same type and similar value if one is reasonably available (section 263), or keep them and claim compensation for any reduction in their value below the price paid or payable (section 259(3)(b)). If the failure isn't major and can be remedied, you can require the business to remedy it within a reasonable time, and it chooses how: repair, replacement or refund (sections 259(2) and 261). If it refuses or doesn't do so within a reasonable time, you can have it fixed elsewhere and recover all reasonable costs of doing so, or reject the goods (subject to section 262). If you reject goods and elect a refund, it can't be satisfied by giving you store credit (section 263(5)). You can also claim other reasonably foreseeable loss caused by the failure (section 259(4)) if you can evidence it; under general legal principles, loss you could reasonably have avoided may not be recoverable, and you can't claim the same loss twice. The ACCC says refunds should be given in the same form as the original payment unless you and the business agree otherwise; that is ACCC guidance rather than a rule in the Act. For services bought with the card: if the failure is major, or can't be remedied, you can cancel and get a refund for any part of the service not yet consumed (section 269), or keep the contract and claim compensation for any reduction in the value of the services below the price paid or payable (section 267(3)(b)). If the failure isn't major and can be remedied, you can require the supplier to remedy it within a reasonable time (section 267(2)); if it refuses or doesn't, you can have it fixed elsewhere and recover all reasonable costs of doing so, or cancel. You can also recover other loss or damage suffered because of the failure if it was reasonably foreseeable (section 267(4)); you need evidence of it, and general principles on causation and avoidable loss may affect recovery. Our guide on when you can demand a refund explains the guarantees.

When this applies (and when it doesn't)

Not every card that looks like a gift card is covered. Use this quick reference, then check the card's own terms.

A few further points:

• Older cards. The rules apply to gift cards supplied on or after 1 November 2019. The ACL gift card rules don't apply to a card supplied before then, so check its terms and ask your state or territory consumer body whether any other rules apply.
• Gifts. If someone gave you the card, the supply date is usually when they bought it (or when the card was issued or delivered to them, if later). Ask them for the receipt or confirmation email if you can.
• Business sales. The ACCC says that if a business changes owners, the new owner must honour existing gift cards if the business was sold as a going concern or by a share sale. Other ownership changes may leave you with fewer options.
• Financial products. The ACL generally carves out financial services, but the gift card rules still apply to gift cards.
• Private sellers. The gift card rules apply to supplies in trade or commerce, which includes most sole traders. A private second-hand sale usually isn't in trade or commerce, so the gift card rules don't apply to that sale. That doesn't necessarily remove rights arising from the card's original supply, so keep proof of the original supply date and check the card's terms.

The ACCC summarises these rules on its gift cards and discount vouchers page.

What to do today

1. Find the card and its terms. Photograph both sides of a physical card. Screenshot an e-gift card, the email it came in, and the terms and conditions shown when it was bought.
2. Pin down the supply date. Look for a receipt, order confirmation or bank record. A bank record may be sufficient, depending on whether it identifies the business, the transaction and the card clearly enough. For purchases of $75 or more (excluding GST), the supplier must give proof of transaction as soon as practicable after supply. For purchases under $75 (excluding GST), the buyer can request one as soon as practicable after supply, and the supplier must provide it within 7 days of the request (section 100).
3. Check the card type. Use the table above. If the card is reloadable, a loyalty reward or a promotional voucher, the three-year minimum may not apply.
4. Check the balance history. Record the balance now and any deductions. Note the name and date of any fee.
5. Identify who to write to. Use the checkout screen, receipt and card terms to identify the business that supplied the card and any separate issuer named in the terms. On a marketplace or reseller site, the business you paid may not be the issuer.
6. Write to the business. Give the supply date, the card number (or its last digits), and the balance you say is available. Explain that under the ACL's gift card rules the card is redeemable for at least three years from supply. Then ask it to:
   • recognise the card as redeemable for that balance until at least three years after supply, and correct any shorter expiry in its systems; and
   • restore any post-supply fee that was deducted.
7. Set a deadline. 14 days is a reasonable choice (a practical default, not an ACL requirement). Keep a copy of everything you send.
8. If the purchase was recent and the business has closed or won't respond, ask about a chargeback. If the card was bought recently by credit or debit card, the buyer can ask the bank or other institution that issued the credit or debit card they paid with (not the gift card issuer) whether a chargeback may be available. If it was bought with buy now pay later, ask the provider about its own dispute process; that isn't a chargeback. Time limits follow the card scheme's or provider's rules, not the ACL, so check now. A chargeback isn't an ACL remedy, and raising one doesn't automatically result in a refund; AFCA says there's no valid chargeback right under the credit card scheme rules where a customer changes their mind. Describe the dispute accurately; a card a store won't honour isn't necessarily an unauthorised transaction.

If you'd like help with step 6, fairgo can generate a demand letter for you, which you send under your own name.

What if the business refuses

A clear written request setting out the gift card rules may resolve it. If it doesn't, these are your main options:

Your state or territory consumer protection body. It may help, for example by contacting the business or conciliating, if your complaint meets its criteria. Most expect you to have tried to resolve the matter with the business first, and eligibility rules vary by state and dispute type (in the ACT, for example, statutory conciliation applies only where the remedy you seek is worth $5,000 or less). These bodies don't make binding orders in ordinary consumer disputes and can't make the business settle. Contact details are at /agencies.

A tribunal or court with jurisdiction. In NSW, Victoria, Queensland, the ACT and the NT, a tribunal (NCAT, VCAT, QCAT, ACAT or NTCAT) hears many consumer claims within its limits; in Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania, ordinary consumer claims go to the Magistrates Court. Jurisdiction depends on each forum's enabling legislation, the type of claim and the amount, so confirm the forum and its current thresholds on the official site before filing. You can usually run a claim without a lawyer, though some forums restrict legal representation (QCAT, for example, requires permission). Check current filing fees on the official site, and ask about fee exemptions, reductions or deferrals if cost is a concern. Our guide to choosing the right tribunal or court has more.

For a small balance, weigh any filing fee and your time against the amount on the card. The ACL has no single warranty-style expiry for these claims, but limitation laws and forum rules apply. Section 236 damages must be sought within 6 years after the cause of action accrued, so don't sit on it.

The ACCC. The ACCC investigates systemic conduct rather than individual disputes, so it won't resolve your claim, but reporting a pattern of conduct can still be worthwhile. Its gift card guidance says it doesn't resolve individual gift card disputes. A report about a retailer routinely charging inactivity fees or printing short expiry dates may still be useful. See when an ACCC complaint helps.

If the business offers you something in settlement, read it carefully. A "full and final" settlement or release may end your claim, and writing "under protest" doesn't necessarily preserve your rights. Get advice before signing anything described as final.

Common mistakes

• Treating the printed date as final. If the card was supplied on or after 1 November 2019, is covered and isn't exempt from the three-year rule, and shows an expiry less than three years after supply, the printed date is likely not the real one. Work out three years from supply before giving up.

• Counting from first use instead of supply. The three-year period runs from the day the card was supplied. A card left in a drawer for two years still has its minimum period counted from supply.

• Throwing away an "expired" card or its receipt. Keep the card and any proof of the supply date until you've confirmed where you stand.

• Paying a fee to "reactivate" a card. A reactivation or inactivity fee is likely a banned post-supply fee unless it falls into a permitted category. Ask for it to be waived in writing rather than paying it.

• Accepting store credit as a "refund" for faulty goods. If you validly reject goods for a major failure, or a failure that can't be remedied, and elect a refund, store credit doesn't satisfy it (section 263(5)). Where you paid with a gift card, ask the business in writing how it will pay the refund, bearing in mind that a refund can't be satisfied by letting you acquire goods from it. You're still subject to the section 262 limits on rejection.

• Assuming a closed store means a valid card is worthless. The rules on business sales and insolvency are different. Our gift card retailer went broke guide covers them.

• Buying gift cards to pay someone who contacted you. Requests to pay a debt, bill or "fee" with gift cards can be a sign of a scam. If this has happened:

  • contact your bank or card provider immediately and ask it to stop the transactions, and contact the business that issued the gift cards too;
  • then report the scam through Scamwatch, not the general ACCC complaint form.

  A report may not recover the money, so contact your bank first; check Scamwatch's own guidance on what a report does. If a scammer persuaded you to buy gift cards as payment, you may not be eligible for a chargeback.

Related reading

• Gift card retailer went broke: what you can still do
• Can I demand a refund? When Australian Consumer Law gives you the right
• Business refused your refund? Here's what to do next
• Section 29: false representations about goods and services
• When an ACCC complaint helps

This article is general information about Australian Consumer Law, not legal advice. It also touches on complaint and escalation pathways (state and territory consumer bodies, tribunals and courts, the ACCC, AFCA, Scamwatch, banks and card providers, card chargeback rules and buy now pay later providers' dispute processes) and limitation laws, whose scope, rules, thresholds and processes sit outside the ACL or can change. Confirm the current position with the relevant body before lodging. For advice on your specific case, see your state or territory consumer body — full list at /agencies.