Running a café or restaurant in NSW will be made easier as the NSW Government looks to reduce paperwork, simplify approvals, and make compliance clearer and fairer.

The goal is to ensure the state’s more than 50,000 food retail operators can focus on coffee and cake, cooking and customers, not forms and filing.

After examining barriers to business in the night-time economy, the NSW Productivity and Equality Commissioner will undertake a review to identify the interactions with government that can frustrate small day-time hospitality operators. 

Lessons that are now breathing life into businesses after dark, will provide the basis for lifting productivity during daylight hours from Newtown to Narrabri, Bankstown to Ballina. 

The review will focus on areas where cafés, restaurants and local shops may encounter unnecessary red tape, such as licences and permits, reporting, and inspections.

Regulation plays an important role in fostering equity, safety and consumer protections. However, we want to ensure small businesses are not being negatively impacted by duplicative or unnecessary administration and red tape. 

Potential changes will be about cutting repetition, not cutting standards, safety or consumer protections.

The Productivity and Equality Commissioner will engage directly with relevant businesses and deliver a final report and recommendations to Government in late August 2026.

Minister for Small Business Janelle Saffin said “Small businesses like cafés and restaurants are an incredibly important part of local communities, adding vibrancy, social amenity, boosting the local economy and creating a place for people to meet. 

“We want our business owners focusing on their customers and their craft, not spending more time than they need to on paperwork.

“Our government is committed to working with the small business community to make their life a bit easier, and this review will help us understand how we can best achieve that.”

Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said his job is to make government easier to deal with.

“This review will look for duplicated reporting, provide clear guidance, and limit unnecessary disruptions for small hospitality operators.

“When we cut red tape, we free up time, reduce costs, and let small businesses focus on what they do best — creating jobs and keeping our local economies vibrant.”