NSW Landlords and Agents Must Follow Privacy Rules for Tenant Data; Fines for Mishandling Data or Using Fake Rental Photos; Tenants Can Keep Pets While Waiting for Landlord Consent

Residential Tenancies Amendment (Protection of Personal Information) Bill 2025

13 Oct 2026: This bill has passed its first house and is now before the second house for its own debate.

Legislative Assembly

Legislative Council

Assent

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Topics

criminal penalties data privacy domestic violence housing personal information pet ownership privacy rental market residential tenancies tenancy

Introduced by: The Hon Anoulack Chanthivong MP (ALP); The Hon Penny Sharpe MLC (ALP)

Links to official parliament websites

Official page: progress through parliament

Official page: bill text and explanatory notes

Effects of this bill

If this bill passes, it means that:

Landlords, rental agents, and tenancy entities must follow the Australian Privacy Principles when handling a tenant's personal information.
Rental agents and landlords can only collect a tenant's personal information directly from the tenant, and must notify the tenant in writing of their intent to enter into a rental agreement before collecting identity documents.
Landlords and their agents can only list a person in a residential tenancy database if the information relates to a breach of a rental agreement; higher penalties apply for listing information regarding tenancies ended due to domestic violence.
Tenancy database operators must remove listings after 3 years (or sooner if required by law), allow people to dispute inaccurate or misleading listings, and provide free copies of held data upon request.
The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal can order residential tenancy entities to destroy, amend, de-identify, or restrict the use of personal information, and can order compensation for economic loss caused by privacy breaches.
Landlords and rental agents are banned from using misleading, digitally altered images in rental advertisements unless they clearly state the images were altered.
Financial penalties apply to landlords, agents, and database operators for mishandling tenant data, failing to notify operators of inaccuracies, or listing data without a valid request.
The Fair Trading Secretary can make regulations to limit the types of identity documents landlords can request and ban the use of tenant data to market financial products.
Tenants can keep a pet if they apply for consent within 7 days of signing a tenancy agreement; they may keep the pet until the landlord responds in writing.

The Debate

What different members said when this bill was debated:

Jacqui Munro LIB

“I advise that the Opposition supports the Residential Tenancies Amendment (Protection of Personal Information) Bill 2025. The bill is presented at a time when renters across our State are facing some of the most dire conditions imaginable. Vacancy rates are incredibly tight. They are at record low levels. As we know, there is also a cost-of-living crisis. People are under pressure.”

Official source →

Cate Faehrmann GRN

“As The Greens spokesperson for fair trading, I participate in debate on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (Protection of Personal Information) Bill 2025. The Greens support much of the intent of the bill. It is overdue and it is welcome. I note from the outset that a key concern that respondents to the New South Wales survey of rental laws found was one of privacy.”

Official source →

News articles and press releases

Residential Tenancies Amendment (Protection of Personal Information) Bill 2025

Mr ANOULACK CHANTHIVONG, Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading — 2025-06-27

The bill, and the regulations that will be made under it, will establish a comprehensive scheme for dealing with the personal information of renters. It will limit personal information that can be collected from renters and set controls on its use and disclosure at different stages of a tenancy. The changes include requirements for safe storage of information and time frames for disposal. The reforms in the bill were developed following extensive public consultation, with over 16,000 survey responses and more than 400 written submissions from renters, owners, real estate agents, tenant advocates and industry representatives. The NSW Rental Commissioner consulted with renters, owners, agents, advocates, academics, the NSW Privacy Commissioner, experts in the field and a special reference group of experts.