Which New South Wales laws apply?

PCBU primary duty of care (NSW WHS Act s 19), Notify SafeWork NSW of notifiable WHS incidents, Pay long service leave under the LSL Act 1955 (NSW) and Comply with Workplace Surveillance Act 2005 (NSW)

Road transport & logistics compliance obligations in New South Wales: sole trader with employees

Computed by the Rules Mate applicability engine for a sole trader with 1–5 employees, turnover $100K–$1M, in road transport & logistics, operating in New South Wales and selling to consumers and small businesses.

Short answer: 35 obligations

35 obligations apply (13 critical) across 25 regulators, plus 12 to check. Risk rating: medium. No licensed regime, but you employ staff (WHS, Fair Work, super and payroll duties); 13 critical obligations apply.

Taking on staff as a sole trader: what changes

Compared with a road transport & logistics business run as a sole trader with no employees in New South Wales, 21 obligations apply that did not.

What switches on if you incorporate

Moving to a Pty Ltd company with 1–5 employees, turnover $100K–$1M adds 10 obligations:

New South Wales law that applies

4 New South Wales obligations apply on these facts:

Obligation	Why it applies
PCBU primary duty of care (NSW WHS Act s 19)	Every business is a PCBU — the primary duty of care applies whether or not you employ anyone · NSW law
Notify SafeWork NSW of notifiable WHS incidents	Every PCBU must notify the regulator of notifiable incidents (death, serious injury, dangerous incident) · NSW law
Pay long service leave under the LSL Act 1955 (NSW)	You have employees (1–5) · NSW law
Comply with Workplace Surveillance Act 2005 (NSW)	You have employees (1–5) · NSW law

Payroll tax in New South Wales (FY2026-27)

NSW: 5.45% on Australian wages above the $1.2 million tax-free threshold (FY2026-27). On these facts the business is below the New South Wales threshold, so payroll tax does not apply yet.

How the threshold works: Flat tax-free threshold, apportioned by the share of Australian wages paid in NSW and by days employed; only one group member claims it.
Returns: Monthly by the 7th of the following month; annual reconciliation by 28 July
Administered by: Revenue NSW

New South Wales regulators

Where the obligations sit

Area	Obligations
Workplace	7
Tax	5
Whs	4
Privacy	3
Super	2
Migration	2
Consumer law	2
Wages	1
Discrimination	1
Cor	1

Critical obligations on this profile

Check whether these apply

Thresholds to watch

Lose the Privacy Act small-business exemption at $3M annual turnover (removal of the exemption altogether is proposed, not yet law) (threshold $3M; approaching)

Run the compliance journeyAnswer a short questionnaire about your business and get the obligations that apply to you, with the reason each one applies.

Questions

How many compliance obligations apply to road transport and logistics in New South Wales run as a sole trader with 1–5 employees?: 35 obligations apply (13 critical) across 25 regulators, plus 12 to check. Risk rating: medium. No licensed regime, but you employ staff (WHS, Fair Work, super and payroll duties); 13 critical obligations apply.
Which New South Wales laws apply?: PCBU primary duty of care (NSW WHS Act s 19), Notify SafeWork NSW of notifiable WHS incidents, Pay long service leave under the LSL Act 1955 (NSW) and Comply with Workplace Surveillance Act 2005 (NSW)

Sources

Computed by the Rules Mate applicability engine from the published obligation corpus; facts last checked 3 October 2026. Rules Mate is not a law firm and this is general information, not legal advice. Confirm your position with the regulator source or a qualified adviser before acting.