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Guidance to follow the decision-making framework
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Next page: Criterion 5 – Engage with delivery partners
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Services covered by the Digital Inclusion Standard
The Digital Inclusion Standard is mandatory and applies to digital services that are:
- owned by non-corporate Commonwealth entities
- informational or transactional
- new or existing public-facing
- new staff-facing.
This includes services provided through a website, mobile app or other digital platform. The Digital Inclusion Standard will be introduced and enforced in 2 phases. Refer to the Transition approach section for details about the 2 phases.
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Informational services
Informational services provide users with information, such as reports, fact sheets or videos. They may include:
- government agency websites
- smart answers and virtual assistants
- e-learning
- publications
- multimedia.
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Transactional services
Transactional services lead to a change in government-held records, typically involving an exchange of information, money, licences or goods.
Examples of transactional services include:
- submitting a claim
- registering a business
- updating contact details
- lodging a tax return.
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Staff-facing services
Staff-facing services provide information to government employees or support employee transactions. They may include:
- intranets
- learning management systems
- records management systems
- case/client management systems
- decision-making systems.
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Digital experience
Digital experiences are the interactions and engagements a user has with a digital service, including its usability and design and the overall user satisfaction.
Digital inclusion
Digital inclusion is the capability of individuals or groups to enjoy the benefits of being online and using technology confidently to improve their day-to-day lives. (See What is Digital Inclusion? for more information.)
Services not covered by the Digital Inclusion Standard
The Digital Inclusion Standard does not apply to:
- corporate Commonwealth entities
- state, territory or local government services
- personal ministerial websites that contain a minister’s political activities or views on issues not related to their ministerial role.
Services not covered by the Digital Inclusion Standard, such as existing staff-facing services, may choose to apply the Digital Inclusion Standard to improve their digital services.
Some services may request an exemption from the Digital Inclusion Standard. See the Exemptions section below.
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Next page: Transition approach
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Next page: Meeting the Digitial Inclusion Standard
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Measuring success of the Digital Inclusion Standard
We will measure success by reporting on agencies’ compliance with the Digital Inclusion Standard.
The DTA will provide oversight of adherence to the Digital Inclusion Standard by collecting self-assessed and quantitative data from agencies. The Digital Inclusion Standard will be implemented in line with existing processes, such as the IOF and Wave, where appropriate, to reduce administrative and compliance burden on agencies.
Agencies are required to report on their compliance with the Digital Inclusion Standard to the DTA within specified timeframes and maintain continuous improvement against performance measures.
- For new services, this will apply from 1 January 2025 through existing processes as highlighted in the Alignment with the IOF section.
- For existing public-facing services, this will apply from 1 January 2026 through existing mechanisms, such as Wave, where appropriate.
The DTA will engage with stakeholders on compliance implications and develop a reporting framework prior to reporting requirements coming into place.
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Meeting the Digital Inclusion Standard
The Digital Inclusion Standard is made up of 5 criteria to help government agencies design and deliver inclusive and accessible services for all people and business.
To successfully apply the Digital Inclusion Standard, agencies must meet all the criteria.
Agencies are strongly encouraged to consider how the criteria applies across the whole service lifecycle.
It is recommended that agencies also consider the non-digital experience of users to make sure services are inclusive and accessible for all.
Alignment with the Investment Oversight Framework
Agencies are expected to consider how their proposal aligns to the Digital Inclusion Standard throughout all the Digital and ICT Investment Oversight Framework (IOF) states.
During the design phase, agencies should consider how to apply the Digital Inclusion Standard during the Strategic planning and Prioritisation states to align with the strategic outcomes of Government.
From 1 January 2025, proposals for new digital services will be assessed through the IOF at the following states:
- Contestability state: The Digital Inclusion Standard will be assessed as part of the existing ICT Investment Approval Process. Agencies must demonstrate to the DTA how they have, or will, apply the Digital Inclusion Standard and provide evidence to support it through the Digital Capability Assessment Process (DCAP). Guidance of what evidence is required will be provided as part of the DCAP Agency Guide.
- Assurance state: The Digital Inclusion Standard will be assessed through the Assurance Framework. Agencies will be required to demonstrate to the DTA how they applied the Digital Inclusion Standard and provide supporting evidence.
For new services, agencies should consider obligations under the Digital Inclusion Standard throughout the Sourcing and Operations states.
For existing services from 1 January 2026, services will be assessed at relevant points throughout the Operations state of the IOF, for example, through the Approved Programs Collection (also known as Wave).
Additional information on how the DTA will assess compliance with the Digital Inclusion Standard is provided in the Compliance and Reporting Framework. This framework will continue to be evaluated and is expected to mature over time.
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Next page: Measuring success of the Digital Inclusion Standard
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Criterion 1. Embrace diversity
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Next page: Criterion 1 – Embrace diversity
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Criterion 2 – Motivate digital use
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Criterion 3 – Protect users
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Criterion 4 – Make it accessible
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Criterion 5 – Provide flexibility and choice
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Back to the Digital Inclusion Standard
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Phase 2 – Existing public-facing services
From 1 January 2026, services that meet the following criteria, will be required to meet the Digital Inclusion Standard:
- public-facing
- owned by non-corporate Commonwealth entities
- all existing informational and transactional services.
Note: existing staff-facing services are excluded.
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People with disability
Use person-first language: Use respectful language in the design and delivery of your digital service. Say ‘people with a disability’, not ‘disabled person’.
Support independence: Support users to complete their service by providing clear explanations and instructions up front. Advise the user on the documentation they will require at the start of the transaction, so they do not have to get all the way through to understand the requirements.
Avoid story repetition: Where appropriate, seek consent to share data about user accessibility needs with other channels and services. This avoids them needing to repeat their personal information.
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Blind or low vision
Consider alternative login approaches: Support your users to access alternative login approaches, such as voice identification, instead of the more traditional password entry methods.
Tag and code headlines: Make the information architecture assimple as possible so information is easy to read and navigate by screen-readers. Tag and code headline types appropriately to support those with vision impairment.
Make it audible: Offer information in audio formats to support easy access to information. Consider if you can provide audio instructions for how to complete the service to support users to complete their interactions digitally end-to-end.
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Deaf or hard of hearing
Use interpretation technologies: Where available, consider how you can take advantage of best practice and leading technologies for Auslan interpretation (i.e. picture-in-picture solutions).
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Connect with the digital community
Share, build or learn digital experience and skills with training and events, and collaborate with peers across government.