Australia extends fuel excise relief

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on June 21, 2026 that the federal government will extend fuel excise relief for an additional month. The extension applies to petrol and diesel in July, cutting the excise by 16 cents per litre compared with the normal rate. The government estimates this will save Australians around A$11 per tank during that month. The policy is framed as temporary support aimed at easing the impact of elevated fuel prices on households and businesses.

The decision keeps a form of fuel-tax relief in place beyond the end of June, when earlier, more generous settings are due to expire. By narrowing the discount to 16 cents per litre for a defined one-month period, the government is maintaining some price relief while signalling that the measure is not permanent. The focus remains on managing cost-of-living pressures without locking in long-term changes to the fuel excise framework.

The July extension follows a three‑month package of temporary fuel measures introduced to address higher prices at the pump. Under that earlier package, the federal government had halved the excise on petrol and diesel for three months until the end of June. At the same time, it removed a heavy road user charge, reducing costs for freight and other heavy vehicle operators over the same period.

These earlier steps were designed to provide more immediate and substantial relief as fuel prices rose. With those measures scheduled to conclude at the end of June, the newly announced month of 16 cent‑per‑litre relief represents a transitional phase. It moderates the step-up in fuel costs that would otherwise occur when the previous halving of excise ends.

Sunday’s announcement also comes after a prior government decision to extend a measure that releases petrol and diesel from domestic reserves until September. That program is intended to supplement market supply at a time of international fuel price volatility. By running into September, the reserve release overlaps with the July excise relief and then continues after it expires.

The combined approach of tax relief and reserve deployment is aimed at supporting fuel affordability and supply reliability. The excise cuts reduce the tax component of prices paid by motorists, while the reserve releases address physical availability of petrol and diesel. Together, these measures form a broader strategy to manage the immediate effects of higher global fuel costs on Australian consumers and transport operators.