NSW Motorcycle Glove Requirements

The short answer. From 1 July 2026, NSW learner, P1 and P2 riders must wear motorcycle gloves that the manufacturer has marked as complying with European Standard EN 13594:2015. Either Level 1 or Level 2 is accepted. Learner riders must also wear an approved hi-vis vest or jacket. The penalty is two demerit points and a Level 4 fine.

Everything below is the detail — what the marking looks like, where it sits, and how to check the gloves you already own.

Who this applies to

Licence	Gloves required	Hi-vis required
Learner (L)	Yes	Yes
Provisional P1	Yes	No
Provisional P2	Yes	No
Full licence	No	No

The requirement started on 1 July 2026. It applies to NSW riders on these licence classes. If you've held your P1s or P2s since before the change, you're still in scope — the rule follows the licence, not the date you got it.

What the gloves have to be

NSW requires gloves that the manufacturer has labelled or marked as complying with European Standard EN 13594:2015.

That's the motorcycle glove standard. It is not the same as the standard that covers jackets and trousers, and it is not the same as a general "CE" mark. More on that below, because it's where most of the confusion sits.

Level 1 or Level 2 — both are accepted. NSW is explicit about this. In the standard's own terms, Level 1 gloves are the lighter, more flexible design and Level 2 offers increased heavy-duty protection. Both meet the minimum performance requirements, and either satisfies the NSW rule. So you don't need to hunt for Level 2 — a Level 1 glove that carries the marking is legal.

The detailed technical test requirements — abrasion resistance, seam strength, restraint, impact protection and the rest — are defined by EN 13594:2015 itself. We're not going to guess at numbers we haven't verified against the standard's own text, so we've left them out here rather than risk getting one wrong.

The label: what to look for and where it lives

This is the part no one explains, and it's the part that actually decides whether your gloves count.

NSW says compliant gloves will carry a label or tag that includes the EN 13594:2015 certification symbol, and that you shouldn't remove compliance tags.

The marking is almost always inside the cuff, sewn into the lining. Not on the box, not on the swing tag you threw away, not on the retailer's website — on the glove itself. Turn the cuff inside out and look.

You're looking for:

• A motorcycle pictogram — this tells you the glove was tested as a motorcycle glove rather than a general-purpose work glove
• The standard number and the year — EN 13594:2015
• A performance level — the figure 1 or 2
• Sometimes "KP" — which means the knuckle protector passed an impact test

Different manufacturers place it differently. Some put it low on the inside cuff, some on an inside seam, some on a separate care label. But it's a physical marking on a physical glove, and if it isn't there, the glove doesn't satisfy the requirement — regardless of how protective it looks or what the website said.

Don't cut the tag out. NSW specifically says not to remove compliance tags. If the marking is gone, you have no way to demonstrate the glove meets the standard.

Why "CE certified" on its own isn't enough

A lot of listings say "CE certified" and stop there. CE is a conformity mark, not a standard. On its own it doesn't tell you which standard the product was tested against, which version, or what level it achieved.

Some things that are not evidence of glove compliance:

• "CE approved" or "CE certified" with no standard named
• A garment class like AA or AAA — those belong to the standard covering jackets, trousers and suits, and that standard doesn't cover gloves
• "CE Level 1 armour" on the knuckle protector — that describes a component, not the whole glove
• A MotoCAP star rating — MotoCAP is Australia's independent gear rating programme and it's genuinely useful, but it's a comparative rating, not the certification NSW names. A great star rating doesn't make a glove legal, and a legal glove isn't automatically well rated. They're two different instruments and it's worth using both.

What you want to see is the standard, the year, and a level.

Learner riders: the hi-vis requirement

If you're on your Ls, you also need an approved hi-vis vest or jacket. NSW accepts garments meeting AS/NZS 4602.1:2011 Class D/N, AS 4602.1:2024 Class D/N, or ISO 20471:2013.

Like the gloves, the garment has to display its compliance label, and it has to be worn over your other clothing — a hi-vis layer under a jacket doesn't do the job it's there to do.

P1 and P2 riders don't need hi-vis. Gloves only.

What about jackets, pants and boots?

Not required. NSW's position is that those items lack well-established minimum performance standards, and that further research is needed before any requirement could be set. That's a statement about standards, not about safety. Gloves and hi-vis are the two items the rule covers.

The penalty — and the bit nobody mentions

Not wearing compliant gear carries two demerit points and a Level 4 fine. NSW Police may ask to see the compliance tag on your gloves, and an absent tag can result in an infringement notice.

Here's the part that doesn't get said often enough: a learner or P1 licence carries a four-point limit. Two points per offence means two offences and you're suspended. That's not a scare tactic, it's arithmetic — and it's the reason this is worth ten minutes of checking rather than finding out at a roadside stop.

How to check the gloves you already own

Five questions. If the answer to any of them is no, your gloves don't satisfy the requirement.

1. Is there a tag or marking inside the cuff?
2. Does it name EN 13594?
3. Does it say 2015?
4. Is there a 1 or a 2 for the level?
5. Is the tag still attached and legible?

All five yes — you're covered. Any no — you need a different pair.

What this page doesn't cover

We'd rather flag the gaps than guess at them.

• Pillion passengers — the requirement is written around the rider's licence class. We haven't found an official statement on pillions and we're not going to invent one.
• Riding interstate on a NSW learner licence — not addressed by the sources we've checked.
• Off-road and private land — not addressed.
• Other states and territories — this page is about NSW. We haven't verified the position in Victoria, Queensland, WA, SA, Tasmania, the NT or the ACT, so we're not publishing a comparison table until we have.

If any of these apply to you, Transport for NSW is the right place to ask.

Where to buy compliant gloves

The honest answer: check the tag, wherever you shop. Plenty of Australian retailers don't state the standard at all on gloves that clearly have protective hardware, and plenty of listings stop at "CE certified". So the check has to happen in your hands, on the glove.

Motrox doesn't currently sell a glove certified to EN 13594:2015. We're manufacturing one — the Motrox Urban Motorcycle Gloves, a short-cuff design developed with EN 13594:2015 CE Level 1 certification as the target — and certification is underway. It isn't finished, and we won't put it on sale until it is. When it's done, we'll publish a photograph of the marking so you can see exactly what you're getting.

If you'd like to know when that happens: follow the build and join early access →

In the meantime, this page will tell you what to look for anywhere else you shop.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• NSW Government — Gear requirements for learner and provisional riders
• Transport for NSW — Novice riders reminded to gear up
• NSW Government — ministerial release, 11 May 2026

Last reviewed: 2 September 2026. We update this page when official guidance changes. This page is general information, not legal advice — for anything specific to your situation, check with Transport for NSW.

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