Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria

Why these changes are needed

Global conflicts, the cost-of-living crisis and impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are causing significant strain on Victoria as a safe, diverse and inclusive State.

Victoria’s Multicultural Review, published in September 2025, made 41 recommendations. It called for a whole-of-society approach to address the needs and aspirations of multicultural and multifaith Victorians. Some recommendations required changes to the Multicultural Victoria Act 2011 to implement.

Changes to the Act aim to reset the government’s engagement with Victoria’s multicultural and multifaith communities and strengthen the policies and institutions that support them.

Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria

A new statutory entity will be established – Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria, which starts on 1 October 2026. Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria brings together the portfolio’s community engagement, policy and grant delivery to ensure that community voices better influence government policy and grants for multicultural and multifaith communities.

These functions were previously delivered by two bodies: the Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC) and the Multicultural Affairs Division in the Department of Premier and Cabinet.

Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria’s leadership

Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria will be led by a Multicultural Coordinator General and two Deputy Coordinators General – one who must be from regional Victoria.

These independent appointees will support, represent and advocate for all communities in an impartial and transparent way.

Recruitment for these roles is underway.

The Multicultural Coordinator General will:

• represent and promote the interests of multicultural and multifaith communities
• advise government on how to best deliver government services, policies and grants
• support communities' participation in the social, cultural, economic and political life of Victoria
• consult widely with communities about their needs, experiences and priorities
• support and provide advice on community safety planning activities in relation to multicultural and multifaith communities
• coordinate whole-of-government reporting on action plans to improve government services for multicultural and multifaith Victorians.

The Multicultural Community Advisory Group

An independent group of advisors to Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria will be established. This will be known as the Multicultural Community Advisory Group. Its members will actively participate in community events, consultations, and government forums.

Advisory group members will represent diverse communities, faiths, occupations and locations. One member will be a dedicated youth representative.

Recruitment for these positions is underway.

How will Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria differ from the VMC?

Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria integrates the engagement functions of the VMC with the Multicultural Affairs’ policy and grants functions. This will create a more direct connection between community feedback and government action.

All programs and grants with existing funding agreements will continue as is.

Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria will continue to run events to celebrate and recognise the contributions and successes of multicultural and multifaith communities. This includes flagship events such as Cultural Diversity Week, the Victorian Multicultural Awards for Excellence, the Multicultural Film Festival and the Premier’s Multicultural Gala Dinner.

Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria’s new functions include:

• strengthened whole of government reporting to drive outcomes for multicultural and multifaith communities
• supporting community safety planning for multicultural and multifaith communities following emergencies or serious global or local adverse events.

Regional engagement

Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria will establish regional engagement groups to represent all regions of Victoria. The Multicultural Coordinator General is responsible for setting terms of reference for these groups.

Regional engagement groups may include representatives of relevant regional agencies, regional ethnic councils, community organisations and community members.

Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria must provide feedback to the regional engagement groups on outcomes achieved and how their advice has been received and used by government.

The groups will be independently reviewed every four years to ensure they remain effective.

Whole-of-government reporting

The Premier will lead a Multicultural Strategy informed by advice from the Multicultural Coordinator General and the community. The Multicultural Strategy is a whole of government approach to improving outcomes for multicultural and multifaith Victorians and is expected to be released in 2026.

Government departments must develop Multicultural Action and Inclusion Plans every four years. The Multicultural Coordinator General will have oversight of these plans and prepare a State of Multicultural Victoria report for Parliament. The report will highlight what has worked and what more needs to be done across government to improve outcomes for multicultural and multifaith Victorians.

New principles of multiculturalism

The Bill strengthens multiculturalism by:

• recognising language services as essential for accessing government services; and
• recognising the unique status of Victoria’s First Peoples.

Language services reforms

The legislation allows the Minister for Multicultural Affairs to direct certain public sector organisations to use VITS LanguageLoop(opens in a new window) for interpreting and translating services. This aims to ensure critical government services are supported by high-quality, accessible language services.

The government will also continue to consider opportunities to work with private language service providers.

For further information on these important reforms, please visit Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria: Language services reforms.

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