Key points
- To disconnect gas in Victoria, you contact your gas retailer, and your distributor (AusNet Services, Multinet Gas Networks or Australian Gas Networks) does the work.
- Abolishment permanently cuts the service pipe and removes the meter. Multinet’s 2026–27 residential abolishment charge is $244 plus GST, and your retailer may add its own fee.
- Victoria’s abolishment fees are kept low by sharing the rest of the cost across gas customers. A 2026 national rule change means cost-reflective pricing is expected after the current regulatory periods end.
- Once you’re off gas, you stop paying the daily supply charge. At $1.00 a day, that’s $365 a year.
If you want to disconnect gas in Victoria, the process is simpler than most people expect: replace your last gas appliance, call your gas retailer and ask for the connection to be abolished. The fee is modest by national standards, and once the account closes you stop paying the daily supply charge for good. This guide explains the difference between disconnection and abolishment, the steps, the 2026–27 fees and what’s changing.
Disconnection vs abolishment: what’s the difference?
| Disconnection | Abolishment | |
|---|---|---|
| What happens | Supply is shut off at the meter, usually with a lock, plug or meter removal | The service pipe is cut and capped, usually in the street at the main, and the meter is removed |
| Gas left on your property | Yes, the service line stays in place with gas in it | No live gas remains inside the property line |
| Reversible? | Yes, reconnection is relatively simple | Effectively permanent; reconnecting is treated like a new connection |
| Typical use | Temporary situations, such as renovations or vacant homes | Homes that have finished with gas for good |
Multinet describes disconnection as temporary and abolishment as permanent. If you’ve replaced every gas appliance and don’t plan to go back, abolishment is the cleaner option in Victoria, because it removes the live service from your property and the fee is kept low. Energy.gov.au notes that abolishment may not be possible in some apartments, where gas infrastructure is shared.
Before you disconnect: replace every gas appliance
Disconnection is the last step of going all-electric, not the first. Walk around the house and list everything on mains gas:
- Hot water: a heat pump is the usual replacement, with Solar Victoria and VEU discounts. See our guide to heat pump hot water with solar.
- Heating: ducted gas or space heaters can be replaced with reverse-cycle air conditioning running on solar.
- Cooking: a gas cooktop or oven. Our guide to switching from gas to induction covers costs and wiring.
- Less obvious items: gas log fires, outdoor heaters, pool or spa heaters, and BBQs plumbed into mains gas. A BBQ can switch to a bottled LPG cylinder.
Many Victorian homes are prompted to start by the new rules for gas hot water. Read what the 2027 gas hot water rules mean for your home, and see our complete home electrification guide for the order most households tackle the upgrades in.
How do you disconnect gas in Victoria? Step by step
- Find your distributor. Your gas bill names it. Victoria’s three gas distributors are AusNet Services, Multinet Gas Networks and Australian Gas Networks.
- Have a licensed gasfitter make the appliances safe. Once each gas appliance is removed, its gas line inside the home should be disconnected and capped by a licensed gasfitter. Never do gas work yourself.
- Call your gas retailer. Ask for the connection to be abolished (or disconnected, if you want a temporary option). Ask what the retailer charges on top of the distributor’s fee. If the fee is high, you can switch to a retailer with lower fees first.
- The distributor does the work. For abolishment, it removes the meter and cuts the service pipe, which can involve digging at the footpath or nature strip. Council permits can add time.
- Final bill. The retailer issues a final bill and closes the account. Supply charges stop once the account is closed.
If there’s no active gas account, for example a vacant property or an owner taking over from a tenant, Multinet lets you lodge an abolishment request directly with documents such as a certificate of title. It aims to complete the work within 20 business days of receiving all documents and payment. Other distributors have similar processes.
Tip: Take a photo of the meter reading on the day the meter is removed, and check that your final bill matches it.
How much does it cost to disconnect gas in Victoria?
Distributor charges are set under access arrangements approved by the Australian Energy Regulator (AER). For the 2023–28 period, the AER kept the upfront residential abolishment charge low (originally $220) and spread the rest of the cost across all gas customers. The charge is adjusted each year.
| Multinet Gas Networks charge (2026–27, from 1 July 2026) | Excluding GST |
|---|---|
| Service abolishment, residential (meter removal + service disconnection) | $244.00 |
| Meter removal | $78.00 |
| Service disconnection (cut off or removal of service pipe) | $166.00 |
| Disconnection | $64.00 |
| Reconnection | $54.00 |
With GST, Multinet’s abolishment charge is about $268. Australian Gas Networks and AusNet Services publish their own schedules, set under the same framework, so check your distributor’s current figure. Your retailer passes the charge on and may add an admin fee. By comparison, abolishment in some other states has cost $1,000 or more.
Will abolishment get more expensive?
Probably, but not straight away. In April 2026 the Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) made a rule that moves gas abolishment towards cost-reflective pricing, so households leaving gas pay closer to the real cost rather than other gas customers subsidising it. Distributors must also publish clear information on how to leave gas, starting from October 2026. Existing state arrangements continue until the end of each network’s current regulatory period. Victoria’s next gas access arrangement period starts on 1 July 2028, and what Victorian customers will pay after that hasn’t been decided. If you’re ready to leave gas, doing it under the current arrangements is likely to be cheaper.
What will you save by getting off gas?
The biggest single saving is the daily supply charge. You pay it whether you use gas or not, and it’s often worth several hundred dollars a year. Check the “supply charge” line on your bill:
| Daily gas supply charge | Yearly cost |
|---|---|
| $0.80 | $292 |
| $1.00 | $365 |
| $1.20 | $438 |
On top of that, you save on gas usage, offset by a smaller rise in electricity use. Rooftop solar shrinks that rise, because heat pumps and reverse-cycle air conditioners can run on daytime solar. If you’re adding solar as part of going all-electric, Victoria’s Solar Homes rebate of up to $1,400 may help; see our guide to Victorian solar rebates in 2026.
Renters, landlords and apartments
Renters can’t disconnect the gas supply themselves, because the connection belongs with the property. You can ask your landlord to replace gas appliances. New minimum standards for rental properties phase in from 1 March 2027 and include replacing gas heaters and gas hot water with electric when they reach the end of their life. Once every gas appliance has been replaced, landlords can abolish the connection in the same way as owner-occupiers.
In apartments with shared gas infrastructure, abolishment may not be possible. Talk to your owners corporation and retailer.
Frequently asked questions
Do I still pay the gas supply charge if I don’t use gas?
Yes. The supply charge applies every day your gas account is open, even if you use no gas at all. It only stops when your retailer closes the account after a disconnection or abolishment. That’s why removing your last gas appliance and abolishing the connection is where the biggest saving comes from.
How long does gas abolishment take in Victoria?
It varies. Multinet aims to complete direct requests within 20 business days once it has all documents and payment. Requests through a retailer can take a similar time, and jobs that need footpath digging or council permits can take longer. Book it once your new electric appliances are installed and working.
Can I get gas reconnected later?
After a temporary disconnection, yes, usually through your retailer for a modest fee. After abolishment, the service pipe has been cut at the main, so getting gas back is treated like a new connection and costs more. Only abolish once you’re sure you’ve finished with gas.
Who pays to abolish a gas connection?
You pay the distributor’s abolishment charge through your retailer, plus any retailer fee. In Victoria the upfront charge is kept low, about $244 plus GST for Multinet in 2026–27, with the remaining cost shared across gas customers. A 2026 national rule change is expected to move this towards cost-reflective pricing after the current regulatory period.
Planning to go all-electric? Our Melbourne installers can size solar and storage around your new heat pump, air conditioning and cooktop, so the switch from gas costs as little as possible to run. See our 10kW home solar package, read our Melbourne solar guide, or get a free quote.
Sources: Multinet Gas Networks – Disconnection and abolishment process; AER – Multinet Gas Networks tariff schedule 2026–27 (8 May 2026); AER – Victorian gas access arrangement final decision 2023–28 (June 2023); RenewEconomy – AEMC rule on gas abolishment costs (2 Apr 2026); energy.gov.au – Electrification. Fees change each 1 July and vary by distributor and retailer; confirm with your retailer before booking. Featured image: Orderinchaos / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
