This page is about changes to Victoria's renting laws that have not happened yet. They will be in place by 1 January 2021.
For information on current laws, view our Renting section.
Under the new rental laws, rental providers (landlords) must ensure that their rental property meets certain minimum standards.
The minimum standards will cover basic but important requirements relating to amenity, safety and privacy, and rental providers will owe a duty to ensure their property meets these standards.
When will these minimum standards be determined?
Community consultations on the minimum standards finished in late 2019 on the Engage Victoria website. The final list of minimum standards will be in the Residential Tenancies Regulations 2020, which will be made before 1 January 2021.
Once the minimum standards are set they will be phased in, and will only apply when a new rental agreement begins.
What if the rental property doesn’t meet the minimum standards?
If the rental property does not meet the minimum standards, the renter can end the rental agreement before they move in.
Renters can also request an urgent repair to make the rental property meet the minimum standards at any time after they move in.