Start a petition

1. Choose whether you want to request action from the Assembly or Council.
2. Draft your petition using the templates linked below.
3. Promote your petition and collect signatures.
4. If you have not done so already, find a member to sponsor your petition.
5. Arrange to give your paper petition to your sponsor member. Do not send your petition to Parliament House. 

• Signatures must be original and handwritten. Photocopies and scanned signatures are not allowed.
• Do not attach any other documents to your petition (other than a certified translation if the petition is not in English).
• Signatures must be directly underneath the petition text so it is clear what people are signing. If you print your petition double-sided, include the petition text (issue and action) at the top of every page.
• Wording pasted to a page of signatories is not allowed.

All e-petitions presented to the Parliament must be created on the Parliament of Victoria website. Online petitions hosted on sites such as Change.org cannot be accepted. 

The Council and Assembly have different processes for creating e-petitions:

Before you start, check the e-petitions currently active in the Council. E-petitions about the same issue and requesting the same action cannot be open for signatures at the same time.

Then —

1. Lodge a request to start an e-petition.
2. We will review your request and be in touch.
3. If your e-petition complies with the rules of the House it will be published on the sign a petition page. We will email you to let you know.
4. If you have not already done so, you must find a member to sponsor your e-petition. 

Before you start, check the e-petitions currently active in the Assembly. E-petitions about the same issue and requesting the same action cannot be open for signatures at the same time.

Then —

1. Find a Member of the Assembly to sponsor your e-petition.
2. Lodge a request to start an e-petition.
3. The Clerk will review your request to ensure it conforms with complies with the rules of the House, and confirm that the member has agreed to sponsor your petition. 
4. The sponsoring member will nominate a period that the petition will be available to sign on the Parliament’s website. This can be a maximum of six months.
5. The e-petition will be published on the sign a petition page. We will email you to let you know.

You are responsible for raising awareness in the community about your e-petition. We encourage you to promote your e-petition by sharing the link through social media and email.