Are electric scooters legal in Australia?

Australia doesn't have one e-scooter law, it has eight. Each state and territory sets its own rules for where you can ride, how fast, and who's allowed on. The two things that decide whether your e-scooter is legal are the same everywhere: which state you're in, and whether the device itself can be limited to 25 km/h.

New South Wales and the Northern Territory are the outliers. In both, privately owned e-scooters cannot legally be ridden anywhere in public, not on footpaths, not on shared paths, not on quiet residential streets. Transport for NSW is explicit that this applies even inside the state's shared e-scooter trial zones (currently running in Wollongong and Forster-Tuncurry until January 2027): you can ride the operator's hire scooter there, but not your own. In the NT, a private device would need to be capped at just 200 watts and 10 km/h to be considered compliant, a limit so far below what any commercially sold e-scooter offers that it amounts to a ban in practice. In Darwin, Beam Mobility's shared scooters fill the gap.

Everywhere else, private e-scooters are legal within limits. Victoria allows riding on shared paths, bike lanes and roads up to a 60 km/h zone, capped at 20 km/h, but footpath riding isn't permitted at all. Queensland is the most permissive: footpaths, shared paths, bike paths and some local roads are all open, with a 12 km/h cap near pedestrians and 25 km/h elsewhere. South Australia legalised private e-scooters in July 2025, allowing footpaths and shared paths at 10 km/h and bike lanes and permitted roads at 25 km/h. Western Australia and Tasmania sit in similar territory: 10 to 15 km/h on footpaths, 25 km/h on paths and low speed local roads. The ACT allows footpaths at 15 km/h and other paths at 25 km/h, and is the only jurisdiction without a blanket minimum riding age, though riders under 12 must be supervised.

Quick reference: can you ride a private e-scooter here?

Sourced from the official transport authority for each state and territory, checked 16 July 2026. This is a summary. For the full breakdown by path type, speed cap, age and helmet requirements, see our full state-by-state e-scooter law guide.

What the 25 km/h ceiling means when you're buying

This is the part that trips buyers up. Plenty of scooters sold in Australia have an honest top speed of 35, 45, even 70 km/h out of the box. That number alone doesn't disqualify a scooter, what matters is whether it can be genuinely locked down to 25 km/h.

Some commuter scooters are built for exactly this. The Segway Ninebot Max G2 has an unrestricted top speed of 35 km/h but can be app limited to 25 km/h, putting it in the legal class in every state that permits private riding. The Inokim Light 2 works the same way. Once a scooter's unrestricted top speed climbs into performance territory, dual motor scooters doing 50, 65 or 70 km/h, there's usually no meaningful way to limit it to 25 km/h and still call it the same scooter. Those are private land devices everywhere in Australia, full stop, regardless of your state.

If you're shopping and this matters to you, check the device's specs for a genuine, app or firmware controlled 25 km/h limit before you buy, not just a low number on the box. Our guide to power and speed limits breaks down how manufacturers describe this and what to look for.

Helmets, age and what's still changing

Helmets are non negotiable everywhere in Australia. Minimum riding ages sit at 16 in most states, with Queensland currently transitioning to a licence style requirement (at least a learner permit) from 31 August 2026, and the ACT the only jurisdiction without a blanket age floor for solo riders, though under 12s must be supervised.

None of this is static. Queensland dropped its footpath cap to 12 km/h on 1 July 2026 as part of a broader e-mobility law overhaul. South Australia, which only legalised private e-scooters in July 2025, has opened a review of how that first year has gone. NSW's shared trial keeps getting extended without private e-scooters being let in. If you're buying based on what's legal today, it's worth checking back, especially in NSW, QLD and SA.