{"id":"nsw:sl-2022-0813","name":"Retail Leases Regulation 2022","slug":"retail-leases-regulation-2022","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"nsw","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"813 of 2022","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":176177,"registerId":"nsw-nsw:sl-2022-0813-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Name of Regulation","content":"#### 1 Name of Regulation\n\n1 Name of Regulation\n\n> This Regulation is the [Retail Leases Regulation 2022](/view/html/inforce/current/sl-2022-0813).","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Commencement","content":"#### 2 Commencement\n\n2 Commencement\n\n> This Regulation commences on 1 January 2023.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Definition","content":"#### 3 Definition\n\n3 Definition\n\n> In this Regulation—\n> \n> the Act means the [Retail Leases Act 1994](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1994-046).\n> \n> Note—\n> \n> The Act and the [Interpretation Act 1987](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1987-015) contain definitions and other provisions that affect the interpretation and application of this Regulation.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Retail shop businesses—the Act, s 3(1)","content":"#### 4 Retail shop businesses—the Act, s 3(1)\n\n4 Retail shop businesses—the Act, s 3(1)\n\n> For the Act, section 3(1), definition of retail shop, paragraph (a), the businesses specified in Schedule 1 are prescribed.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Transitional provision—the Act, s 84B(2)","content":"#### 5 Transitional provision—the Act, s 84B(2)\n\n5 Transitional provision—the Act, s 84B(2)\n\n> If premises become a retail shop because of the commencement of this Regulation, the Act, Part 8, Division 2 applies to—\n> \n> > (a) a lease of the premises entered into before the commencement of this Regulation, and\n> \n> > (b) a lease of the premises entered into under an option granted or agreement made before the commencement of this Regulation.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"Schedule 1","sectionType":"schedule","heading":"Retail shop businesses","content":"# Schedule 1 Retail shop businesses\n\nSchedule 1 Retail shop businesses\n\nsection 4\n\nAdult books and toy shops\n\nAged care product shops\n\nAmusement and entertainment services\n\nAntique shops\n\nArt galleries\n\nArt supplies shops\n\nArts and crafts shops\n\nBaby supplies shops\n\nBakeries or bread shops\n\nBalloon shops\n\nBar accessories shops\n\nBarbecue equipment shops\n\nBarbers\n\nBatteries shops, other than motor vehicle batteries\n\nBeach wear shops\n\nBeauticians\n\nBeauty shops\n\nBeauty therapists\n\nBeer, wine and spirit shops\n\nBicycle accessories shops\n\nBicycle shops\n\nBiscuit bar shops\n\nBookshops\n\nBoot and shoe repairers\n\nBridal wear sales and hire shops\n\nBuilding supplies shops\n\nBusiness machines and equipment shops\n\nButcher shops\n\nCake shops\n\nCamping equipment shops\n\nCandle shops\n\nCards shops\n\nCarpet shops\n\nChandler shops\n\nCigarette shops\n\nClock shops\n\nCoffee, tea and other non-alcoholic beverage shops\n\nCoins and coin collections shops\n\nComic shops\n\nConfectionery shops\n\nConvenience food shops\n\nCookie shops\n\nCosmetics shops\n\nCostumes and formal wear hire shops\n\nCurtain shops\n\nDelicatessen shops\n\nDepartment stores\n\nDinnerware shops\n\nDisposals shops\n\nDrapery shops\n\nDry cleaners, collection centres for dry cleaning or laundry services\n\nDuty free shops\n\nElectrical appliance shops\n\nElectronic equipment and supplies shops\n\nEngravers\n\nEquestrian wear shops\n\nEquipment hire shops\n\nFairy shops\n\nFast food shops\n\nFast-photo processors\n\nFirearms shops\n\nFlag shops\n\nFloor covering shops\n\nFlorist shops\n\nFlower shops or allied goods and services\n\nFruit and vegetable shops\n\nFruit juice shops\n\nFunerary goods shops, including incense and joss sticks\n\nFurniture shops\n\nGames and hobbies shops\n\nGeneral stores\n\nGift shops\n\nGift-wrapping shops\n\nGolf equipment shops\n\nGreengrocer shops\n\nGrocery shops\n\nGymnasiums and fitness centres, including yoga, barre, pilates and dance studios\n\nHaberdashery shops\n\nHairdressers\n\nHardware shops\n\nHealth food shops\n\nHearing aid shops\n\nHot water system shops\n\nHousehold appliance and house appliance repairs shops\n\nHousehold fixtures and fittings shops\n\nIce cream shops\n\nInterior decoration shops\n\nInternet cafes\n\nJewellery shops\n\nKey cutting shops\n\nKitchenware shops\n\nKnick-knack shops and novelties shops\n\nLeather goods shops\n\nLighting shops\n\nLinen shops\n\nLingerie shops\n\nLottery agencies\n\nManchester shops\n\nMap shops\n\nMartial arts supplies shops\n\nMixed business shops\n\nMotor vehicle and motor cycle accessories shops, excluding tyre shops and batteries shops\n\nMusic or musical equipment shops\n\nNail bars\n\nNewsagency shops\n\nNut bar shops\n\nOffice equipment shops\n\nOptical goods or services shops\n\nOptometrists\n\nOrgan shops\n\nPaint and paper shops\n\nParty shops\n\nPatisserie or pastry shops\n\nPawnbroking shops\n\nPerfume shops\n\nPet shops, pet grooming and supplies shops and aquarium shops\n\nPharmacy shops\n\nPhotocopy shops\n\nPhotographic equipment and supplies shops\n\nPicture frames shops\n\nPlumbing supplies shops\n\nPools and spas shops\n\nPoultry shops, including fresh, frozen or cooked poultry\n\nPrecious stones shops\n\nPrints and posters shops\n\nReligious goods shops\n\nRestaurants, cafeterias, coffee lounges, food courts and other eating places\n\nRetail post offices\n\nRubber stamp supply shops\n\nSeafood shops\n\nSecond-hand goods shops\n\nSewing machine shops, including sewing materials, needlepoint and craft-related items\n\nShoe and boot repair shops\n\nShoe shops\n\nShops selling or engaged in providing any one or more of the following goods or services in relation to any person—\n\n> (a) accessories,\n\n> (b) baby wear,\n\n> (c) bags,\n\n> (d) caps,\n\n> (e) clothing,\n\n> (f) clothing alterations,\n\n> (g) underwear,\n\n> (h) sunshades\n\nShops selling or renting any one or more of the following goods—\n\n> (a) cassettes,\n\n> (b) musical instruments,\n\n> (c) pre-recorded tapes,\n\n> (d) records,\n\n> (e) video tape and pre-recorded music libraries downloading,\n\n> (f) CDs,\n\n> (g) DVDs,\n\n> (h) other similar products\n\nShops selling or renting any one or more of the following goods—\n\n> (a) telecommunications, including mobile phones or services,\n\n> (b) televisions,\n\n> (c) videos,\n\n> (d) home entertainment systems,\n\n> (e) software,\n\n> (f) electronic games,\n\n> (g) computers,\n\n> (h) computer products,\n\n> (i) household appliances\n\nSilverware shops\n\nSleepwear shops\n\nSmall bars with a maximum patron capacity of 120\n\nSmallgoods shops\n\nSnack bars\n\nSoft drink shops\n\nSoft furnishing shops\n\nSouvenir, trophy and memorabilia shops\n\nSpecialised food shops\n\nSporting goods shops\n\nStamps and stamp collection shops, whether for purchase or sale or both\n\nStationery shops\n\nSupermarkets\n\nSurfboard shops\n\nSurfing accessories shops\n\nTakeaway food shops\n\nTobacconist shops\n\nToy and game repair shops\n\nToy shops\n\nTravel agency or travel services\n\nUmbrella shops\n\nUnderwear shops\n\nVariety stores\n\nVitamin shops\n\nWall decorations shops\n\nWatch shops\n\nWater filter shops\n\nWig shops\n\nWriting materials shops","sortOrder":5},{"sectionNumber":"Schedule 2","sectionType":"schedule","heading":"Amendment of Retail Leases Act 1994 No 46","content":"# Schedule 2 Amendment of Retail Leases Act 1994 No 46\n\nSchedule 2 Amendment of [Retail Leases Act 1994 No 46](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1994-046)","sortOrder":6},{"sectionNumber":"sch.2-sec","sectionType":"section","heading":"Schedule 1 Retail shop businesses","content":"#### sch.2-sec Schedule 1 Retail shop businesses\n\nSchedule 1 Retail shop businesses\n\n> Omit the Schedule.","sortOrder":7}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based solely on the metadata available, there is no evidence of scope change. The regulation appears to have been in force in its original form since 16 December 2022 with no amendments recorded to date."},"complexity_factors":["The document provided contains only metadata, navigation elements, and status information — no substantive legislative content is visible","The regulation itself (as a subordinate instrument to the Retail Leases Act 1994) would typically involve moderate technical detail, but none is available here to assess","The staged repeal mechanism under the Subordinate Legislation Act 1989 adds a minor layer of procedural complexity for practitioners tracking currency","Cross-referencing with the parent Act (Retail Leases Act 1994) would be required to fully understand the regulation's operation"],"plain_english_summary":"## Retail Leases Regulation 2022 (NSW)\n\n**What is this?**\nThis is a NSW regulation (a set of rules made under a broader law called the *Retail Leases Act 1994*) that supports the operation of retail leasing laws in New South Wales.\n\n**Who does it affect?**\nPrimarily **retail landlords and tenants** in NSW — think shop owners leasing space in shopping centres, strip malls, or standalone retail premises. It may also affect commercial property managers, real estate agents, and solicitors working in this space.\n\n**Why does it matter?**\nRetail leases (agreements to rent space for running a shop or retail business) are heavily regulated in NSW to protect tenants from unfair treatment by powerful landlords. This regulation fills in the practical details of how those protections work — things like disclosure requirements (what landlords must tell tenants before signing), costs, timeframes, and procedures.\n\n**Important note:** This regulation has an expiry date built in — it will **automatically be repealed (cancelled) on 1 September 2028** under NSW's system of reviewing subordinate legislation (lower-level laws). This is normal and means it will need to be reviewed and remade before then if it is to continue.\n\n**Bottom line:** If you are renting or leasing a retail space in NSW, this regulation helps set the rules of the game — protecting your rights as a tenant and defining what landlords must do."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"This regulation replaces the list of \"retail shop\" business types that previously sat in the Retail Leases Act by prescribing a new Schedule 1 (section 4 and Schedule 1) and omitting the Act's prior Schedule 1 (Schedule 2). The effect is a change in which businesses and premises are captured by the Act's retail‑shop definition; the regulation also extends Part 8, Division 2 to pre-commencement leases and options where premises become retail shops because of the change (section 5)."},"complexity_factors":["Long, detailed enumerative list of business types in Schedule 1 (many individual entries) — increases factual classification work for stakeholders (Schedule 1).","Legal interaction with the Retail Leases Act definition of \"retail shop\" — requires cross-referencing between instruments (section 4; section 3 definition).","Transitional provision bringing pre-commencement leases and options within Part 8, Division 2 where premises \"become a retail shop\" — adds temporal and factual complexity (section 5).","Omission of the Act's previous Schedule 1 (Schedule 2) — necessitates comparing the previous and new lists to determine scope changes and transitional consequences (Schedule 2).","Grouped and catch-all phrasing within schedule entries (for example, multi-item lists and \"mixed business shops\") — creates boundary issues and potential for classification disputes (Schedule 1)."],"plain_english_summary":"What this regulation does, in plain terms\n\n- Mechanically, the regulation replaces the list of business types that count as a \"retail shop\" for the purposes of the Retail Leases Act 1994. It does this by prescribing a new Schedule 1 of named businesses and removing the old Schedule 1 from the Act (section 4; Schedule 2). The regulation starts on 1 January 2023 (section 2).\n\nWho this affects and how it matters\n\n- Who is affected: landlords and tenants of premises that fall within the named business types in the new Schedule 1. The regulation decides which businesses are captured by the Retail Leases Act's retail-shop definition (section 4 and Schedule 1).\n\n- What changes for them: if a premises is covered by the new list, the statutory rules that apply to retail leases under the Act will apply to those premises (the regulation links its Schedule 1 to the Act's definition of \"retail shop\") (section 4). The regulation also says that if premises become a retail shop because of this change, a specified part of the Act (Part 8, Division 2) will apply to leases and options made before the regulation started (section 5).\n\nOfficial rationale and the instrument's mechanism\n\n- The instrument is presented as a prescription of business types to be treated as retail shops for the Act (section 4 and Schedule 1). The regulation itself does not include explanatory statements of broader policy aims; its text achieves a legal effect by listing business categories and removing the previous list in the Act (Schedule 2).\n\nTesting that claim against concrete trade-offs and implementation effects\n\n- Who pays: landlords and tenants of premises that newly fall inside the listed categories will bear the immediate legal effects (compliance obligations, rights and duties under the Retail Leases Act) because the regulation alters the Act's coverage (section 4; Schedule 1).\n\n- Who decides: the regulation (executive instrument) determines coverage by naming business types in Schedule 1 and by omitting the old Schedule 1 from the Act (section 4; Schedule 2). That shifts the line-drawing from the Act's prior schedule to this regulation's schedule.\n\n- Incentives and possible responses: because the list determines whether the Act applies, businesses and landlords have an economic incentive to structure the use of premises or the form of a lease so they fall inside or outside the listed categories. The text creates that incentive mechanically by tying statutory coverage to named business types (section 4; Schedule 1).\n\n- Compliance burden and administrative effects: owners and occupiers must check whether their business description fits the long list or the multi-item categories in Schedule 1 (including grouped descriptions such as \"shops selling or engaged in providing any one or more of the following goods or services\"). This requires factual classification and may produce compliance costs or the need for legal advice (Schedule 1).\n\n- Transitional rule and legal certainty: the regulation includes a transitional provision that applies Part 8, Division 2 of the Act to leases and options entered into before commencement if premises \"become a retail shop\" because of this regulation. That brings some pre-existing arrangements into the Act's scope rather than leaving the change to operate only on new leases (section 5). The transitional rule reduces the possibility that parties can rely on the pre-existing exclusion for prior leases, because it expressly brings those earlier leases/options within the Act's specified part.\n\n- Discretion, boundaries and dispute risk: the long, detailed list plus multi-item categories (for example, \"mixed business shops\" and grouped lists of goods/services) means classification questions may arise at the margins. Those questions will determine whether the Act applies to particular premises and so can produce disputes or require administrative or judicial clarification (Schedule 1).\n\nNet mechanical effect (summary): the Regulation (1) provides a new, extensive list of business types that count as \"retail shops\" for the Retail Leases Act (section 4 and Schedule 1); (2) removes the old schedule from the Act (Schedule 2); and (3) makes Part 8, Division 2 of the Act apply to specified pre-commencement leases and options where premises become retail shops because of the change (section 5)."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The original 1994 Act contained its own list of retail shop businesses in a Schedule. This regulation moves that list out of the Act and into subordinate legislation, but more significantly, it massively expands the scope by adding new categories—most notably gyms/fitness centres/yoga/pilates/dance studios and small bars (max 120 patrons). These were either not covered or ambiguously covered under the previous regime. The shift from Act-based list to Regulation-based list also makes future expansion easier (regulations can be changed more readily than Acts), suggesting the scope may continue to grow."},"complexity_factors":["Very short instrument (6 substantive sections/clauses plus schedules)","Only 1 defined term ('the Act')","No nested conditional logic or cross-referencing beyond basic statutory references","Schedule 1 is a long plain-English list (no technical definitions or complex categorisation)","Simple transitional provision with straightforward application to pre-existing leases","Single amendment in Schedule 2 (omission of old schedule)"],"plain_english_summary":"This regulation updates the list of businesses that count as \"retail shops\" under New South Wales retail leasing law.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Expands coverage** to include many businesses that weren't previously covered, such as gyms, fitness centres, yoga studios, pilates studios, dance studios, small bars (up to 120 patrons), and various specialty shops.\n- **Removes the old list** from the main Act and puts a new, much longer list in this regulation instead.\n- **Protects existing leases:** If a business becomes a \"retail shop\" because of these changes, the special protections in the Retail Leases Act (like rules about rent reviews, outgoings, and lease terms) now apply to leases entered into before 1 January 2023, as well as new leases based on options or agreements made before that date.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- **Landlords** of commercial properties now leasing to (or planning to lease to) gyms, fitness studios, small bars, and many other newly listed businesses.\n- **Tenants** of these businesses, who now gain statutory protections they may not have had before.\n- **Lawyers and property managers** handling retail leases in NSW.\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThe Retail Leases Act gives tenants important protections that don't apply to ordinary commercial leases—like limits on how landlords can charge for operating costs, rules about rent increases, and requirements for disclosure statements. This regulation significantly widens the net of who gets those protections, particularly catching the fitness industry and small bars that were previously in a grey area."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/retail-leases-regulation-2022","history":"/api/acts/retail-leases-regulation-2022/history","analysis":"/api/acts/retail-leases-regulation-2022/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/retail-leases-regulation-2022/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/retail-leases-regulation-2022/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/retail-leases-regulation-2022/documents"}}