Queensland has been rewriting the e-bike rules, and a hire shop can get this wrong in both directions: handing out a bike that is illegal, or turning away a guest because of a rumour. I am not your lawyer. Two official pages, read on 22 September 2026: If they disagree with each other, or with this post, believe the government page that was updated last. The qld.gov.au page was still talking about licensing as something about to start, while StreetSmarts was already stating the new rider rules. That is what a changeover looks like. Do not pick the sentence you prefer. The bike you can hire onto a public path Pedals. The motor helps, and past 6 km/h the rider has to pedal. A bike you can ride on the throttle alone above that is not a legal e-bike on a Queensland road or path. Maximum continuous rated power 250 watts. A more powerful motor that has been limited in software is still a more powerful motor. Queensland says that outright. Petrol bikes are out. So is a conversion kit that breaks the EN 15194 label. The label matters: StreetSmarts says an e-bike needs a label that meets EN 15194, and they have described a later assurance scheme for bikes that meet the 250 watt and 25 km/h numbers but cannot carry that European label, plus e-trikes and some disability adaptations. They said riders would have until 28 February 2027 to have the right label, with more detail due closer to 1 October 2026. If you are buying a fleet, ask the supplier which label is on the frame, and keep the answer. The rider can go faster than 25 km/h by pedalling. The motor is not supposed to be what gets them there. A legal e-bike is ridden under the bicycle rules. On footpaths and shared paths, the speed limits that apply to personal mobility devices also apply. Read the current table on the government site before you print it on a tour card. I am not going to copy a speed table into a blog post that will go stale. There is a blood alcohol limit of 0.05 for bicycles, e-bikes included. A helmet is part of riding a bike in Queensland. Say both out loud at the counter. Do not leave them inside a waiver nobody reads until they are standing on the pedals. Who can ride, from 31 August 2026 StreetSmarts states the new rider rules as: 16 or older, and a driver licence. A learner licence counts. Interstate and overseas licences count. Children and unlicensed riders can be allowed in designated recreational areas without those requirements. ABC News, on 30 August 2026, reported the same start date, a medical exemption for people who cannot hold a licence, a grace period for that exemption through 29 November 2026, and extra time for shared-scheme operators such as Lime and Neuron to check age and licence, into March 2027. You are probably not Lime. A shop that hands a bike over a counter should assume you need to know who is riding, from the day the rule started, and ask the Department of Transport and Main Roads if your setup is one of the exceptions. A blog post cannot give you that answer. A declaration in your terms is not the same thing as sighting a licence, if sighting it is what they end up requiring. Watch the official page through late 2026. This one will need an edit, and that is fine. What you do on Monday Look at the sticker on every e-bike you hire. Anything with a throttle that replaces pedalling, or a motor over 250 watts, does not go onto a public path as a bicycle. Tell guests the age and licence rule before they have paid, not after. Put the local version of "where this bike may go" in the tour itself, so the phone says it again when they are at the turn. What goes on a tour is how that sentence gets onto the ride. Illegal devices can be seized. StreetSmarts has published a fine for riding one. I am not repeating the dollar figure here because penalty amounts move, and the page is the place to read it.