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Unpacking the Heavy Vehicle National Law reform: the new accreditation framework

Written by Nicolina Holmes

 

Introduction

 

Amendments to the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) passed Parliament in November 2025 and are expected to commence in mid-2026.

 

The reform package, which includes the Heavy Vehicle National Law Amendment Act 2025 (the Amendment Act) and amendments to several national regulations, brings significant changes aimed at improving the administration and efficiency of the heavy vehicle industry and the safety of heavy vehicle drivers and road users alike.

 

Over two comprehensive articles, we’ll explain the key amendments, including but not limited to the new accreditation framework, expanded driver duty and key changes to the Heavy Vehicle (Mass, Dimension and Loading) National Regulation. We’ll explore their impact on operators, drivers and others who work for heavy vehicle operations, as well as outline the requirements for compliance.

 

Please note, the two amendment regulations Heavy Vehicle National Amendment Regulations 2024 and Heavy Vehicle (Mass, Dimension and Loading) National Amendment Regulation 2025 were available in draft form at the time of writing this article.

 

 

 

 

The new heavy vehicle accreditation framework

 

The current National Heavy Vehicle Accreditation Scheme (NHVAS) consists of three accreditation modules: Mass Management, Maintenance Management and Fatigue Management (of which there are two options: Basic Fatigue Management (BFM) and Advanced Fatigue Management (AFM)).

 

Under the reformed legislation, the NHVAS will be replaced with a new accreditation framework that consists of a General Safety Accreditation and Alternative Compliance Accreditation, with the implementation of a comprehensive Safety Management System (SMS) at their centre.

 

  • General Safety Accreditation: This will be the entry point into the framework; the first accreditation granted to operators who demonstrate a compliant SMS. It will absorb the Mass Management and Maintenance Management accreditations.

 

  • Alternative Compliance Accreditation: This will serve as a supplementary accreditation, providing options for operators to demonstrate their compliance against prescribed operations requirements. An Alternative Compliance Accreditation can only be granted to an operator that holds a General Safety Accreditation. The existing BFM and AFM options will be replaced with Fatigue Alternative Compliance Accreditation, and operators who require a Mass Management accreditation for additional alternative compliance through notices and other schemes will require an Alternative Compliance Accreditation – Mass.

 

 

Supporting statutory instruments

 

The following statutory instruments will support the new legislation and inform accreditation decisions and compliance.

 

 

 

 

  • National Audit Standard: This outlines the national approach that will be used to audit against SMS and Alternative Compliance Accreditation requirements.

 

At the time of writing this article, these instruments were still in the final drafting stage before submission to the Australian transport ministers for approval.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Applying for a General Safety Accreditation

 

An operator applying for a General Safety Accreditation will be required to have an SMS that complies with the NHVR’s Safety Management System (SMS) Standard.

 

The NHVR must also be satisfied that the applicant meets suitability criteria and has, among other things, processes in place for quarterly compliance statements and annual internal reviews and informing the NHVR of notifiable occurrences.

 

Building a Standard-compliant SMS

 

Defined in Section 99 of the Amendment Act, the SMS for a heavy vehicle operator consists of a set of “policies, systems and procedures relating to the safety of the operator’s transport activities and the driving of heavy vehicles.” This includes a mandatory focus on identifying and addressing public risks associated with those activities and specifying controls to mitigate those risks.

 

An operator’s SMS must satisfy the evidentiary requirements outlined in Schedule 1 of the SMS Standard to be deemed suitable for accreditation. These requirements, which cover the five standard areas listed below, highlight that an integrated and performance-based approach to safety management is expected from heavy vehicle operators applying for accreditation.

 

SMS requirements

Operators are required to provide evidence of the following (among other things):

 

Leadership and commitment

  • Clearly defined and communicated safety-critical roles and responsibilities, and system accountabilities.
  • The allocation of adequate financial, personnel and technical resources for the effective functioning of the SMS.
  • Processes that allow for staff, contractors and Chain of Responsibility (CoR) parties to report safety issues and concerns openly without fear of reprisal.
  • Engagement and involvement in safety management from senior management, drivers, contractors and CoR parties.

Risk management

  • Processes for hazard identification, risk assessment, and the establishment of effective risk control measures.
  • Procedures for capturing incidents and implementing corrective actions.

People

  • Regular medical assessments performed on drivers and processes to establish fitness at the time of their tasks.
  • Training needs analysis for safety-critical roles, competency evaluations and opportunities for related education.

Assurance, monitoring and improvement

  • Documented key performance indicators and targets related to SMS outcomes.
  • Processes for measuring and recording performance data and monitoring effectiveness of risk controls and SMS implementation.

Safety systems

  • Integration of safety activities between departments and with contractors and CoR parties.
  • Integration of SMS requirements into daily functions such as scheduling, loading and vehicle maintenance.
  • Mechanisms for identifying non-conformance with SMS requirements and implementing corrective action.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Applying for an Alternative Compliance Accreditation

 

An operator applying for an Alternative Compliance Accreditation will need to comply with requirements for both General Safety Accreditation and additional accreditation.

 

For an alternative compliance accreditation application, the NHVR must be satisfied that each nominated vehicle meets the legal requirements for its intended use, each nominated vehicle has current registration and roadworthiness verification, and if required by the NHVR, each nominated vehicle is issued with a unique accreditation label.

 

 

Applying for a Fatigue Alternative Compliance Accreditation

 

The NHVR can create Fatigue Alternative Compliance Hours options for operators to access in accordance with the Ministerial Standard for Alternative Compliance Hours.

 

Fatigue Alternative Compliance Accreditation requirements

For a Fatigue Alternative Compliance Accreditation application, the NHVR must be satisfied of the following requirements, among others (and in addition to the General Safety Accreditation requirements):

 

General

  • Compliance with HVNL requirements or approved alternative compliance hours integrated into rostering and scheduling policies.
  • Procedures for monitoring alternative compliance hours compliance.
  • Records showing alternative compliance hours are integrated into fatigue management system and SMS controls.

Leadership and commitment

  • Clearly defined and communicated fatigue management system responsibilities and authorities.
  • Logs tracking driver welfare.

Risk management

  • Processes for identifying fatigue risks, and integrating fatigue risk controls in scheduling
  • Driver schedules and rosters that are consistent with alternative compliance hours requirements.
  • Proposed work and rest arrangement schedules assessed against the Risk Classification System Matrix (RCSM).

People

  • Drivers being medically fit to drive under Austroads Assessing Fitness to Drive guidelines.
  • Drivers, schedulers, supervisors and managers holding relevant training qualifications (TLIF5005 and TLIF0006).

Assurance, monitoring and improvement

  • Regular internal reviews of fatigue management system, documented findings and implementation of corrective actions.

Workplace and systems

  • Policies and procedures that assist in driver fatigue prevention.
  • Performing reasonable due diligence to avoid or minimise the effect of delays on the road.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Determining alternative compliance hours

 

The Ministerial Standard for Alternative Compliance Hours sets requirements with which the NHVR must comply when specifying the alternative compliance hours for a driver of a vehicle under a Fatigue Alternative Compliance Accreditation. The Ministerial Standard also specifies the principles of the RCSM.

 

 

Alternative compliance hours requirements

These include, but are not limited to the following:

  • A driver cannot work for more than 15.5 hours within a 24-hour period.
  • A driver must have a minimum of 7 continuous hours of rest within a 24-hour period.
  • Split rest breaks cannot be scheduled by the operator; they can only be granted by the NHVR for drivers with unforeseen circumstances, emergencies, or problems with sleep.
  • Split rest breaks must include a major rest break, as defined by legislation as a “rest time of at least 5 continuous hours”.
  • Fatigue risk must be assessed with the RCSM.

 

Principles of the RCSM

The RCSM identifies and weighs key fatigue risk factors in a proposed work schedule for alternate compliance hours. It focuses on seven principles to determine a fatigue likelihood score. These principles are grouped into three key dimensions, including work-related rest breaks, recovery breaks and reset breaks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Auditing the SMS and Alternative Compliance Accreditation requirements

 

NHVR-approved auditors will conduct audits on the performance of a heavy vehicle operator’s SMS and their compliance with Alternative Compliance Accreditation requirements. The audits will occur at scheduled intervals during the accreditation’s lifespan.

 

In addition to these audits, the NHVR may perform other performance monitoring activities such as inspections and random and triggered spot checks.
There is also onus on operators, between the audits, to implement internal evaluation systems to assess and improve their SMS.

 

Scheduled audits

  • Entry audit – This audit occurs during the operator’s application process. It evaluates that all elements of the SMS and Alternative Compliance Accreditation are Present and Suitable and adhere to the prescribed requirements.

 

  • Initial compliance audit – This audit occurs between six and seven months after the accreditation date. Its objective is to ensure that the SMS and Alternative Compliance Accreditation components are Operating and Effective and integrated effectively into daily operations. This audit may be waived if the SMS or Alternative Compliance Accreditation demonstrates Present, Suitable, Operating and Effective elements during the entry audit.

 

  • Compliance audit – This audit occurs nine months prior to the accreditation’s expiry, or between nine and one month prior to expiry for those seeking to renew. It evaluates that all elements of the SMS and Alternative Compliance Accreditation are Operating and Effective.

 

  • Internal review – This is a self-assessment performed by the operator every year, or at the request of the Regulator. It is to evaluate the operator’s performance, compliance with regulations and effectiveness of internal risk controls.

 

 

 

Transitioning to the new heavy vehicle accreditation framework

 

Existing NHVAS accredited operators whose accreditation expires after 12 December 2026 will be able to extend their current NHVAS accreditation for a maximum of three years before transitioning to the new accreditation framework.

 

Operators whose NHVAS accreditation expires prior to 12 December 2026 will be eligible to submit an NHVAS ‘maintain application’. This application, which includes a compliance audit summary report, must be submitted by the NHVR by 12 June 2026.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stay attuned with Environment Essentials

 

The new accreditation framework is one component of the heavy vehicle law reform. In our next article, coming out in May, we will cover other key amendments including the expanded driver duty, key changes to the Heavy Vehicle (Mass, Dimension and Loading) National Regulation, the shift from Act to regulation for some requirements and other regulatory changes.

 

For Environment Essentials subscribers, you will also be notified of additional developments through the HSE Bulletin.

 

It is anticipated that this reform will become law in the middle of 2026, so if you are an accredited heavy vehicle operator or you have accreditation in your business plan, you may wish to begin your preparations now. For example, reviewing your current SMS, procedures and policies, assessing your work schedules against the new alternative compliance hours criteria, and educating your drivers, schedulers, contractors and managers on the upcoming requirements.

 

Our health and safety online directory, SafetyLaw, will include summaries of the new legislation after it commences. These summaries can be integrated into your new SMS, processes and procedures, used for internal compliance evaluations or as an aid to cultivate understanding and compliance amongst employees.

 

If you would like to stay on top of the heavy vehicle reform or maintain a compliant SMS, then sign up for a free trial today or get in touch with our sales team.

 

 

 

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