What it asks
Your state or territory, and your situation: owner-occupier, landlord, seller or tenant. Some rules also hang on when the home was built: in Victoria, homes built after 1 August 1997 need mains-powered alarms, and in the ACT, houses built after 1 November 1994 need hardwired ones. Check your home's age against the rules it shows.
It's worth knowing what's on your ceilings now, too: hardwired alarms, alarms with a removable battery, or sealed 10-year battery units, because the rules treat them differently.
Why the answer changes so much
Take three people. A Queensland owner-occupier needs interconnected photoelectric alarms by 1 January 2027, bedrooms included. A Western Australian seller needs working mains-powered alarms no more than 10 years old before ownership transfers. A New South Wales landlord has to check the alarms every year and fix a faulty one within two business days.
Some things hold everywhere. Hardwired alarms are wired into the house, so fitting or replacing them is licensed work in every state. Battery changes and wireless alarms differ, and the checker shows which applies where you live.
What it can't tell you
It tells you the rule, not whether your own alarms meet it. For that, check each alarm's type and its manufacture date, which is usually on a sticker on the side or back. We haven't confirmed South Australia's smoke alarm rules at an official source yet, so the checker says so there rather than guess. None of it is legal advice.
What we'd do
Get the stepladder out, read the date on every alarm and press each test button. If any are past 10 years, or you're about to sell or lease, book an electrician who does smoke alarms and have them all sorted in one visit.
Want a specialist to sort it?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.