{"id":"C2004A00028","name":"National Service Termination Act 1973","slug":"national-service-termination-act-1973","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"repealed","isInForce":false,"actNumber":"88 of 1973","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":2680,"registerId":"commonwealth-C2004A00028-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-03-29","status":"Repealed","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"National Service Termination Act 1973","content":"National Service Termination Act 1973\n\nNo. 88 of 1973\n\nAN ACT\n\nTo terminate the obligations of persons under the National Service Act 1951-1971, and for purposes related thereto.\n\n\\[Assented to 21 June 1973\\]\n\nBE IT ENACTED by the Queen, the Senate and the House of Representatives of Australia, as follows:—\n\nShort title.\n\n1. This Act may be cited as the National Service Termination Act 1973.\n\nCommencement.\n\n2. This Act shall come into operation on the day on which it receives the Royal Assent.\n\nDefinition.\n\n3. In this Act, “National Service Act” means the National Service Act 1951-1964 or that Act as amended and in force from time to time.\n\nTermination of obligations under National Service Act.\n\n4. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the National Service Act, no person is liable, or shall be deemed to have been liable from and including 5th December, 1972, to register under the National Service Act, to render service under that Act (whether in the Regular Army supplement, the Regular Army Reserve, the Regular Army Emergency Reserve or the Active Citizen Military Forces) or otherwise to comply with any requirement of that Act or of regulations under that Act.\n\n  \n\n(2) Notwithstanding sub-section (1) of this section, where any person who, before 5th December, 1972, was, by virtue of sub-section 27(1) of the National Service Act, deemed to have been engaged to serve in the Regular Army Supplement, any service by him on or after that date in the Regular Army Supplement shall be deemed to have been served under that engagement unless it is served under an engagement entered into on or after that date.\n\n\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"_metrics":{"model":"kimi-k2.5","source":"moonshot-batch","completionTokens":1717},"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act remains tightly focused on its original purpose of terminating national service obligations. It does not expand into unrelated policy areas or create new regulatory schemes beyond the necessary transitional protection for existing servicemembers."},"complexity_factors":["Only 4 operative sections total","Single definition ('National Service Act') in interpretation clause","One main operative provision with a single protective exception for existing servicemembers","Minimal cross-referencing limited to the predecessor National Service Act","Retrospective operation creates a simple 'cut-off' date (5 December 1972)"],"plain_english_summary":"**This Act ended conscription (national service) in Australia.**\n\nThe law immediately stops all people from being required to:\n* **Register** for national service\n* **Serve** in the military under the old National Service Act (including the Regular Army, Reserves, or Citizen Military Forces)  \n* **Comply** with any other requirements of those laws\n\n**When it applies:**\nFrom **5 December 1972** onwards. This date is retrospective (applying to the past) to cover the period when the Whitlam Government was elected.\n\n**The one exception:**\nIf someone was *already* legally committed to serve in the Regular Army Supplement before 5 December 1972, their service after that date still counts as valid under their original contract. This protects the legal rights (like pay and benefits) of people who were already serving when the government changed.\n\nIn short, this law abolished the draft system that had operated since 1951."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/national-service-termination-act-1973","history":"/api/acts/national-service-termination-act-1973/history","analysis":"/api/acts/national-service-termination-act-1973/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/national-service-termination-act-1973/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/national-service-termination-act-1973/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/national-service-termination-act-1973/documents"}}