Northern Territory becomes last jurisdiction to legalise VAD
On 28 August 2026, the Northern Territory passed the Rights of the Terminally Ill Bill 2026, becoming the last Australian jurisdiction to legalise voluntary assisted dying.
That vote restores an end-of-life option Territorians lost in 1997, when the Commonwealth Parliament overturned the territory’s earlier law and barred the territories from legislating on voluntary assisted dying for 25 years.
In 1995, the Northern Territory became the first jurisdiction in the world to introduce voluntary assisted dying legislation.
Go Gentle Australia called the vote the end of a three-decade fight to regain that choice.
Chief executive Dr Linda Swan said the result closed an extraordinary chapter in Australia’s history. “With the passage of this legislation, the Northern Territory joins the rest of the country in legalising end of life choice,” Swan said.
Swan said the moment was historic for both the Territory and the country, and marked the culmination of a decades-long fight for democratic choice.
She also said many dying Territorians suffered needlessly because they were denied the option for so long.
Amendments leave access limits in NT law
However, Go Gentle Australia argued the final law will be difficult for many Territorians to access because several amendments failed during the debate.
Lawmakers rejected a change to remove a ‘gag clause’ that prevents doctors from initiating discussions about voluntary assisted dying.
Members also kept a 12-month prognosis requirement. According to Go Gentle Australia, the NT government’s own parliamentary committee had already rejected both measures.
Meanwhile, efforts to stop institutions from obstructing access to voluntary assisted dying information, or preventing patients from seeing voluntary assisted dying practitioners, also failed.
Founding director Andrew Denton watched the debate from parliament’s public gallery and criticised the failed amendments.
“People who want VAD should not face barriers to accessing their lawful choice and doctors should not be gagged from offering their patients information about all treatment options,” Denton said.
Denton said the law would likely need to be revisited and repaired in the years ahead. He also said the next task is to make sure the law operates fairly and compassionately.
Go Gentle Australia was founded in 2016 by broadcaster Andrew Denton. The national charity promotes end-of-life choice, including the option of voluntary assisted dying.
The organisation did not provide a start date for the new NT scheme or say when eligible Territorians will be able to access voluntary assisted dying under the law.
