Telecommunications (Requirements for Customer Equipment for Use with the Standard Telephone Service – Features Designed for People with Disability – AS/ACIF S040) Standard 2025

Dated: 20 March 2025

Adam Suckling

[signed]

Member

Michael Brealey

[signed]

 General Manager

Part 1—Preliminary

1 Name

1.      This standard is the Telecommunications (Requirements for Customer Equipment for Use with the Standard Telephone Service — Features Designed for People with Disability — AS/ACIF S040) Standard 2025.
2.      This standard may also be cited as AS/ACIF S040-2025.

2 Commencement

This standard commences on 30 March 2025.

Note: This standard is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation which may be accessed free of charge at www.legislation.gov.au.

3 Authority

 This standard is made under subsection 380(1) of the Telecommunications Act 1997.

4 Repeal of the Telecommunications Disability Standard (Requirements for Customer Equipment for use with the Standard Telephone Service — Features for special needs of persons with disabilities — AS/ACIF S040) 2015

 The Telecommunications Disability Standard (Requirements for Customer Equipment for use with the Standard Telephone Service — Features for special needs of persons with disabilities — AS/ACIF S040) 2015 (F2015L00191) is repealed.

5 Object

  The object of this standard is to provide for requirements relating to specified customer equipment that:

(a) is for use in connection with the standard telephone service; and

(b) is for use primarily by people without disability; and

(c) has features that are designed to cater for any or all accessibility requirements for people with disability.

6  Definitions

Note:  A number of expressions used in this instrument have the same meaning as in the Act, including:

• ACMA (see section 7)
• customer equipment (see sections 7 and 21)
• disability (see section 380)
• standard telephone service (see section 7). 

In this instrument:

Act means the Telecommunications Act 1997.

AS/ACIF Standard means the Australian Standard AS/ACIF S040:2001 – Requirements for Customer Equipment for use with the Standard Telephone Service - Features for special needs of persons with disabilities published by the Australian Communications Industry Forum Ltd (now known as Communications Alliance Ltd) in March 2002, as existing at the time this standard commences.   

Note 1: The AS/ACIF Standard is available, free of charge, on Communications Alliance Ltd’s website at www.commsalliance.com.au.

Note 2: See subsection 381(1) of the Act for the adoption of Australian Standards.

Part 2—Application, standard and transitional arrangements

7 Application

  This standard applies to customer equipment that:

 (a) uses a telephone handset or keypad that is manufactured in Australia, or imported, for use with the standard telephone service; and

 (b) is for use primarily by people without disability; and

 (c) has features that are designed to meet any or all accessibility requirements for people with disability.

8 Standard with which customer equipment must comply

  The customer equipment to which this standard applies must comply with the AS/ACIF Standard.

9 Savings and transitional arrangements for customer equipment in existence before commencement

If customer equipment to which this standard applies:

1.        was in existence immediately before the commencement of this standard; and
2.       complied with the Telecommunications Disability Standard (Requirements for Customer Equipment for use with the Standard Telephone Service — Features for special needs of persons with disabilities — AS/ACIF S040) 2015 as in force immediately before the commencement of this standard,

 the equipment is taken to comply with this standard.