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AI in Australian education

Australian education has no single AI law. Schools work under a national framework endorsed by education ministers, universities answer to TEQSA for assessment integrity, and state education departments set binding rules for their own schools. Privacy law and the eSafety Commissioner apply on top. Here is what applies, what changed recently and what a provider should do about it.

Dept of EducationTEQSAOAICeSafety CommissionerState education departments

Last reviewed September 2026. Every entry links to its official source.

The rules

What applies today

The national policy framework for generative AI in all Australian schools, built on six principles: teaching and learning, human and social wellbeing, transparency, fairness, accountability, and privacy, security and safety. Education ministers endorsed a review of the framework in June 2025 which found it fit for purpose, and taskforce working groups are developing national product expectations for edtech AI tools.

Who this affects: All school sectors (government, Catholic and independent). It is national policy rather than legislation; states and systems implement it through their own binding policies.

Latest updates

What changed recently

  1. The Office of AI in PM&C opened consultation on the Australian Standards for AI, proposing mandatory standards for large data centres and conditions for AI training rather than obligations on organisations deploying AI; submissions close 9 October 2026.

    PM&C: have your say on AI training and infrastructure

  2. The Government released the Online Safety Amendment (Digital Duty of Care) Bill 2026 exposure draft, which names services that let users generate and share AI material as covered services; feedback closes 22 September 2026.

    Department of Infrastructure: exposure draft

  3. National Cabinet agreed the Commonwealth will legislate nationally consistent AI laws and mandatory standards for large data centres in early 2027, complementing state and territory planning processes.

    National Cabinet communique

  4. Parliament appointed a Joint Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence whose terms of reference include the adequacy of Australia's education system and existing AI laws, reporting by 30 November 2026.

    Parliament of Australia: Joint Select Committee on AI

  5. South Australia announced Australia's first Royal Commission into Artificial Intelligence, commencing 1 October 2026 and reporting by 1 July 2027.

    SA DPC announcement

  6. eSafety published Talking to machines, research finding 78 per cent of children aged 10 to 17 have used an AI assistant, one in five users reported a harmful interaction and about a third had shared personal information.

    eSafety media release

  7. eSafety published a new advisory on sharing school imagery in the age of AI, after more than 100 reports in early 2026 of anonymous accounts targeting schools and staff with AI-manipulated content harvested from school social media.

    eSafety media release

  8. The Prime Minister announced the Australian Standards for AI and a new Office of AI within PM&C, followed days later by whole-of-government AI consumer safety priorities including a legislated Digital Duty of Care and a second tranche of privacy reform.

    PM media release: AI in Australia's interests

  9. TEQSA published Assuring quality learning in a gen AI-integrated future, the third instalment of its assessment reform series for higher education providers.

    TEQSA gen-AI resources

  10. TEQSA released its revised Academic Integrity Toolkit with new sections on assessment design and security and on risks to academic integrity from generative AI.

    TEQSA: revised Academic Integrity Toolkit

Getting ready

Compliance checklist

  • Map every AI tool you use against the national framework's six principles and document how each one addresses teaching and learning, wellbeing, transparency, fairness, accountability and privacy. See the rule

  • Universities: keep a governed gen-AI action plan addressing award integrity current, and align assessment redesign with TEQSA's assessment reform series. See the rule

  • Run privacy due diligence before procuring any AI tool: where data is stored, whether inputs train the model, and which third parties receive it. See the rule

  • Prohibit entering student or staff personal information into public gen-AI tools, and prohibit uploading or generating media depicting students, staff or parents. See the rule

  • Get informed opt-in consent from parents and carers where a tool collects personal information beyond a school email and password. See the rule

  • Keep humans in the loop on judgements: no gen-AI marking decisions about student achievement, writing student reports or replacing teacher communication with families. See the rule

  • Have a deepfake and image-misuse incident response plan, and take a risk-based approach to posting student and staff imagery publicly. See the rule

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