The Commonwealth Government has released an exposure draft of the Competition and Consumer Amendment (Gift Cards) Bill 2018 and explanatory materials for public consultation. In essence, the amendments will expand the coverage of the Australian Consumer Commission, and allow for the Government to make rapid changes by regulation.The explanatory memorandum for the Bill noted that "recent estimated losses from gift card expiry are considered to be in the order of A$70 million annually" as one reason for the changes. Accordingly, and in line with rules introduced by NSW and South Australia, these reforms will require gift cards to have a minimum three year expiry period - providing consumers with a reasonable period to use the value on the card before it expires - and to require gift cards to display expiry dates.The reforms will also prohibit gift card issuers from charging certain post-supply fees, which can erode the balance on a gift card over time and operate as a de facto expiry date.The Bill, as it stands, would also introduce penalties for non-compliance and create a regulation-making power, along with clarifying the definition of a gift card, specifying exemptions and defining allowable post-purchase fees.The amendments are expected to apply to gift cards supplied on or after 1 November 2019. The new law will not apply to financial services and products, which are regulated by the ASIC Act and Corporations Act. "Items that are not commonly known to be a gift card include a credit card, charge card, debit card and public transport tickets. These items are therefore not captured by the reforms," the EM stated.Nevertheless, under the proposed amendment, even if certain gift cards are a financial product, they will now also be regulated by consumer law.