The franchise 14-day rule: what restarts the clock and when deposits must be refunded

• It is 14 calendar days: the disclosure document's first page must say 14 days, not 14 business days.
• The day you receive the documents isn't counted, so documents received on 1 June 2026 mean the earliest signing date is 16 June 2026.
• Payments to the franchisor or an associate during the period must be repaid in full within 14 days of your written request (s23(8)).
• It is separate from cooling-off, which lets you walk away within 14 days after you enter into a new agreement (s50).
• It replaced the previous Code's rule, which tied the 14 days to signing or any non-refundable payment.

The clock starts on the day the franchisor has given you everything s23(2) requires. For a new agreement, that means:

• The franchise agreement in the form in which it will be signed.
• The current disclosure document, as created or updated under the Code (s23(5)).
• A copy of the Franchising Code.
• If the franchisor or an associate will sublease premises to you, or let you occupy them, the head lease or a summary of its commercial terms and incentives, plus any lease disclosure the landlord gave under state or territory law.
• You can ask for these in printed form, electronic form or both, and the franchisor must comply (s25).

Two other documents have their own timing. The ACCC's information statement must reach you within 7 days of formally applying or expressing interest, and before the documents above (s22). Related agreements, such as guarantees, security documents, equipment leases, IP licences, confidentiality deeds and separate restraint agreements, must be given at least 14 days before signing if they are available (s30).

The 14 days run from the latest of three events (s23(6)). These restart the count:

• A change to the agreement after you received it, unless it is one of the minor changes listed below. The franchisor must give you the changed agreement, and the 14 days run from that day (s23(3) and (6)(b)).
• Earnings information given after the documents and before signing. The 14 days run from the day you receive it (s23(6)(c)).
• Earnings information is broad: historical earnings for the business or other outlets, projections with their assumptions, and any other information from which earnings can be assessed (Schedule 1, item 20).
• Restarts can stack, because the clock always runs from the latest event.

These changes don't restart it (s23(7)):

• A change you asked for.
• Filling in required particulars, such as your company's name or the start date.
• A change to reflect a new address or other changed circumstances.
• A clarification of a minor nature.
• Correcting an error or a reference.

These examples use illustrative dates and amounts. The day an event happens isn't counted: under s36 of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901, which applies to the Code, a period that begins after a given day doesn't include that day.

1. You formally apply on Monday 4 May 2026. The information statement must reach you by Monday 11 May 2026, and before any of the other documents.
2. The franchisor gives you the disclosure document, the Code and the final agreement on Monday 1 June 2026. The 14 days run from 2 June to the end of 15 June, so the earliest it can sign is Tuesday 16 June 2026.
3. On Friday 5 June you pay a $10,000 deposit. On Wednesday 10 June you email a written request for it back. The franchisor must repay it by Wednesday 24 June 2026.
4. Alternatively, on Wednesday 10 June the franchisor sends a revised agreement that raises the marketing levy. That isn't a minor change, so the earliest signing date moves to Thursday 25 June 2026.
5. On Friday 12 June it corrects a misspelt street name in the schedule. That is an error correction, so nothing restarts.
6. On Wednesday 17 June it emails updated sales figures for nearby outlets. That is earnings information, so the earliest signing date becomes Thursday 2 July 2026.
7. In the first scenario you sign on Tuesday 16 June 2026. Your cooling-off period then runs to the end of Tuesday 30 June 2026 (s50(1)).

1. Check the timing. The refund right in s23(8) covers payments made during the consideration period, of money or anything else of value, to the franchisor or an associate, in connection with the agreement.
2. Put your request in writing, such as a dated letter or email, stating the amount, when you paid and that you want it repaid under s23(8) of the Franchising Code.
3. Send it promptly, ideally while the 14 days are still running, because the right is framed around the consideration period.
4. Diary the deadline: repayment is due within 14 days after the franchisor receives your request. It is the full amount, because unlike cooling-off, s23(8) allows no deduction for expenses.
5. For money paid before the documents arrived, such as a deposit to hold a territory, check the deposit terms. Item 14 of the disclosure document must explain any payment required before you enter into the agreement: why it is needed, how it is applied, who holds it and when it is refunded.
6. If the refund doesn't arrive, give written notice of a dispute (s72) and consider reporting it to the ACCC. Failing to repay can attract a civil penalty of up to 600 penalty units.

• Timing: the consideration period runs before you sign; cooling-off runs for 14 days after you enter into a new agreement.
• Who it binds: the consideration period stops the franchisor signing; cooling-off is your right to terminate.
• Money: payments made in the consideration period must be refunded in full on written request; after cooling off, the franchisor must repay within 14 days but can keep reasonable expenses if the agreement sets them out (s51).
• Scope: the consideration period applies to new agreements, renewals and extensions (s23); cooling-off applies only to new agreements, with a separate unwind right for transfers (s50(6) and s52).
• Leases: if the franchisor or an associate will lease premises to you, extra cooling-off rights run from when you receive the lease terms, or from entering into the lease if its terms weren't disclosed first (s50(3) and (4)).
• Opt-outs: a repeat franchisee can opt out of receiving the disclosure document and of cooling-off, but the Code has no opt-out from the consideration period itself.

• If the transfer doesn't involve a new agreement, the franchisor must give you the existing agreement, any document you must sign for the transfer, any head lease documents and, unless you opt out, the disclosure document and the Code (s24(2)).
• It can't consent to the transfer until 14 days after you receive those documents, or after any later earnings information (s24(3)).
• If the transfer involves a new agreement between you and the franchisor, the full s23 process applies instead.
• You can unwind the transfer by written notice to the seller and the franchisor, but only until the earlier of 14 days after you become the franchisee and the day you take possession and control of the business (s52).
• The franchisor and the seller must each repay what you paid them within 14 days, less reasonable expenses set out in the relevant agreement (s53).
• The seller's request for consent runs on a separate clock: if the franchisor doesn't refuse in writing within 42 days, consent is taken to be given (s49(3)).

• Note the date you received each document, and keep the emails or courier receipts.
• Check the disclosure document's first page says 14 days, not 14 business days.
• Ask whether any payment is required before signing, what it is for, who holds it and when it is refunded.
• Compare any revised agreement line by line, and ask whether the franchisor treats the change as minor.
• Treat new sales figures or projections as restarting the clock, and recalculate the date.
• Use the time for legal, business and accounting advice. Before signing a new agreement, the franchisor needs a signed statement for each kind of advice, which can be your statement that you chose not to get it (s27).
• Be wary of any document described as waiving your 14 days. The Code has no opt-out from the consideration period.