The Albanese Government is uplifting the Consumer Data Right (CDR) by expanding the system to non‑bank lending providers to deliver a better deal for more Australians.
After extensive consultation and undertaking a strategic assessment of the way forward for CDR, the Albanese Government announced the CDR reset in August 2024. The intent of this reset was to address concerns around high compliance costs and the limited uptake of use cases by consumers.
Through this reset, the Government is focusing on making improvements to the current framework to reduce unnecessary costs and enable high‑value use cases. The Albanese Government:
- Has amended the CDR rules to streamline the consent process for consumers.
- Is examining changes to the framework that could be made to reduce costs and facilitate high value use case.
- Is exploring how the existing data sharing framework can better support high priority use cases such as consumer finance and lending, small business accounting services and energy switching.
- Has written to the Data Standards Body setting out the Government’s expectations that future standards changes align with the Government’s direction for CDR.
- Flagged an intention to move towards a ban of screen scraping.
Today we announce another next step in the CDR reset, the expansion of CDR into non‑bank lending, commencing from mid‑2026.
Today’s announced changes:
- Expand the CDR to include non‑bank lending products, promoting greater competition and innovation in the market.
- Remove the requirement for data holders to share consumer or product data for niche products such as asset finance, consumer leases, reverse mortgages, margin loans and foreign currency amounts.
- Reduce the period of data to be held and shared from 7 years to 2 years, reducing costs associated with maintaining and responding to requests for historical data.
- Ensure Buy Now, Pay Later products are covered by data sharing obligations.
These changes ensure the CDR targets priority use cases, such as consumer finance and lending, without imposing unnecessary costs and regulatory burden on smaller lenders.
The CDR enables Australian households and businesses to access their data held by their bank or electricity retailer through innovative new products that allows them to make informed choices, switch providers, and more easily apply for products and services.
By unlocking the value of a consumer’s data, the CDR has the potential to be a transformational piece of economic reform for Australian consumers, delivering more choice and access to the best possible deals on a range of financial products tailored to a consumer’s individual need.
The Government’s changes will open opportunities for consumers to use the CDR to find the best deals on more lending products. It will also address the cost burden of the CDR on the financial sector.
The Government is working closely with stakeholders and will continue to expand the CDR in ways that foster innovation, whilst being purposeful and focussed on consumer benefit.
The Albanese Government is getting on with the job of resetting of the CDR to ensure it delivers to its potential as an innovative piece of our economic infrastructure.