New laws apply to all gift cards and vouchers sold from 1 November 2019. Any gift card sold before 1 November 2019 date will continue to carry the same expiry period and fees as applicable at the time of purchase.
What are the new requirements?
The key changes of the new gift card laws are:
- a mandatory minimum three year expiry period from the date the card is sold to a customer
- gift cards must clearly show the expiry date
- most post purchase fees can no longer be charged, including activation fees, account keeping fees and balance enquiry fees
The new laws apply to all gift cards and vouchers sold from 1 November 2019 onwards. Any gift card sold before 1 November 2019 date will continue to carry the same expiry period and fees as applicable at the time of purchase.
There are gift cards that the three year requirement does not apply to. Some include where the card is;
- supplied as part of an employee rewards program
- given as a bonus in connection with a purchase of a good or service for use in the same business (customer loyalty programs)
- supplied to a purchaser of goods or services as part of a temporary marketing promotion
More information is available at this link