Published 4 August 2026 by the RLM Consult Certify Comply team
The amended Heavy Vehicle National Law commenced on Saturday 1 August 2026, nine months after the Bill passed the Queensland Parliament. From that date the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator no longer issues new NHVAS accreditation, Heavy Vehicle Accreditation (HVA) is open in two tiers, the Safety Management System Standard 2026 is the benchmark for it, and the maximum penalty for driving or allowing someone to drive while unfit has risen from $6,000 to $20,000. Existing NHVAS operators have up to three years to move across. Here is how to approach it.
What changed on 1 August
- Heavy Vehicle Accreditation replaces NHVAS. The three module scheme (mass, maintenance, basic fatigue and advanced fatigue) is closed to new entrants. Existing accreditations remain valid during a transition of up to three years.
- Two tiers. General Safety Accreditation (GSA) recognises an operator whose safety management system meets the national standard. Alternative Compliance Accreditation (ACA) is the higher tier that gives access to concessions such as alternative fatigue arrangements and mass management, equivalent to what the old modules offered and more.
- The Safety Management System Standard 2026. A national standard, made under the law, that sets out what an operator’s safety management system must contain. It is structured around the elements of any modern safety system: leadership and commitment, risk management, safe operations, competency, monitoring and review.
- Fitness for duty. An expanded duty not to drive, and not to permit driving, while unfit, with the maximum penalty now $20,000.
- Executive duties and enforcement. Strengthened duties on executive officers and a modernised set of enforcement tools for the NHVR.
GSA or ACA: which one do you need
The question we are asked most often is whether to go straight to ACA. The answer depends on whether concessions are part of your business model.
If you run standard hours, general mass limits and a routine maintenance program, General Safety Accreditation demonstrates to clients and the regulator that your system meets the standard, and increasingly that is what head contractors will ask for in place of the old “do you hold NHVAS” question. If your operations rely on mass management for higher mass limits, on fatigue concessions for longer shifts, or on other alternative arrangements, you need Alternative Compliance Accreditation, and the application will require you to show how your system controls the specific risks the concession creates.
For most civil and infrastructure contractors who run floats, tippers and water carts, GSA is the sensible first step and ACA is worth pursuing only where a concession is worth real money.
Mapping an existing system to the standard
Operators with ISO 45001 certification will find the standard familiar and the gap narrow. The specific items an ISO system often lacks are heavy vehicle particular: fatigue management with actual work and rest records, mass and dimension control, daily vehicle checks and defect management, load restraint, and a Chain of Responsibility procedure that reaches schedulers, loaders and customers. Operators who held NHVAS modules will find the opposite: the vehicle specific controls are strong and the system elements (risk register, competency framework, internal audit, management review) are thin, because the modules never required them.
A transition plan for NHVAS holders
- Confirm your current NHVAS expiry dates and which modules you hold. Do not let a module lapse before HVA is in place if a concession depends on it.
- Run a gap analysis against the Safety Management System Standard 2026.
- Decide on GSA or ACA based on the concessions you actually use.
- Build or extend the system, train the people who run it, and complete at least one internal audit before applying.
- Apply through the NHVR portal well inside the three year window. The regulator will be processing thousands of transitions, and late applications will queue.
Also this fortnight
Western Sydney International Airport opened to freight on 26 July, its first commercial operations. In Melbourne, tunnel boring machine Gillian broke through in Bulleen on 24 July, completing tunnelling on the North East Link. Both are reminders that the logistics and civil work of the next decade will be done by operators whose trucks are on public roads under the amended law.
Frequently asked questions
What is Heavy Vehicle Accreditation?
Heavy Vehicle Accreditation (HVA) is the scheme that replaced the National Heavy Vehicle Accreditation Scheme (NHVAS) when the amended Heavy Vehicle National Law commenced on 1 August 2026. It has two tiers, General Safety Accreditation and Alternative Compliance Accreditation, both assessed against the Safety Management System Standard 2026.
Is my NHVAS accreditation still valid?
Yes. Existing NHVAS accreditation remains valid during a transition period of up to three years from 1 August 2026, but the NHVR is no longer issuing new NHVAS accreditation.
What is the penalty for driving a heavy vehicle while unfit?
From 1 August 2026 the maximum penalty for driving, or permitting someone to drive, a heavy vehicle while unfit rose from $6,000 to $20,000.
Do I need Alternative Compliance Accreditation?
Only if your operations depend on concessions such as alternative fatigue arrangements or mass management. Operators running standard hours and mass limits can demonstrate compliance with General Safety Accreditation.