The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has published changes to the Amateur Radio license conditions, effective on September 21. According to the Wireless Institute of Australia (WIA), all restrictions on emission modes have been removed for all licensees, and restrictions on permitted transmission bandwidths have been lifted for all licensees on all bands allowed for each license class, with the exception of 2200 and 630 meters, which only Advanced-tier licensees may use.

The WIA says the impact of these two changes is that all licensees are permitted to use any mode, including those not yet invented, provided the transmission remains within the band being used. ACMA is retaining the three-tier licensing structure of Foundation, Standard, and Advanced. No changes were made regarding bands and power limits permitted for each license class.

All restrictions on Foundation licensees have been removed, however, and Foundation operators may now build and use their own transmitters and transceivers, use computer control and automatic modes, and explore digital modes. — Thanks to the WIA