| 21 January | Prime Minister announces date for the 2026 General Election |
| 7 August | Regulated period for election advertising expenses begins Third parties that intend to spend more than $17,000 on election advertising during the regulated period must register with the Electoral Commission |
| 5 September | Electoral hoardings up to 3 square metres can go up, subject to local authority rules about location. You can have larger signs or put up signs earlier subject to local council rules |
| 21 October | Overseas voting starts |
| 25 October | Last day to enrol to vote in the election |
| 26 October | Advance voting starts You can't campaign within 10 metres of advance voting places You can't give away free food, drink or entertainment within 100 metres of the entrance to a voting place |
| 6 November | Advance voting ends Regulated period ends - last day campaigning is allowed and signs must be taken down by midnight |
| 7 November | Election day - voters can vote between 9am and 7pm You can’t campaign on election day |
| 27 November | Official results for the 2026 General Election declared |
| 18 January 2027 | Deadline for third party election expenses invoices All invoices for election expenses must be sent to you within 20 working days of the official results |
| 16 February 2027 | Deadline for payment of third party election expenses You must pay for your election expenses within 40 working days of the official results |
| 9 March 2027 | Deadline for return of election expenses for third parties that spent more than $100,000 on election advertising published during the regulated period |