There's also increased funding to political parties and elected representatives, and - reflecting the complexity of the changes - more money just to comply with the new rules.
The reforms passed parliament in February 2025 and were due to come into effect on Wednesday.
However, citing the Farrer by-election, the Australian Electoral Commission successfully petitioned the government to delay changes to the start of 2027.
Electoral Commissioner Jeff Pope said a second delay wouldn't be needed, so long as there wasn't another by-election this year.
"The implementation of the funding and disclosure reforms is the biggest change to federal electoral laws in more than 40 years and involves highly complex subject matter for a range of political participants and the AEC," he told AAP.
"It is going very well. System build activities, development of detailed procedural requirements and stakeholder education are all progressing.
"If there was to be another by-election in the back end of 2026, this would produce some interruption."
By-elections occur when MPs leave office mid-term, such as Sussan Ley's hasty retirement following her Liberal leadership loss.
No further by-elections are planned, though most terms feature more than one.Â
Speculation surrounds dumped cabinet minister Mark Dreyfus' future, while Ed Husic - also removed from cabinet in 2025 - has denied he is eyeing an exit door.
In the event he loses the Liberal leadership, Angus Taylor might be another to watch.
In a Senate estimates hearing in June, Mr Pope advised "additional phases ... and IT elements" to the reforms would be rolled out over three years.
A separate legal challenge will also take place in the High Court later in 2026.
Former independents Rex Patrick and Zoe Daniel are challenging the reforms on the basis that the spending caps hurt independents' chances against major parties.
That action is yet to reach the court's benches but the plaintiffs expect a hearing to be called in coming weeks.
Centre for Public Integrity executive director Catherine Williams said donation and expenditure caps were needed to curb the influence of the wealthy but she did not believe the reforms landed in the right place.
"If they are not really carefully calibrated, they can have a distorting effect on election outcomes," she told AAP.
"It simply has to be designed in a way that is fair for all those who wish to compete."
The new laws allow parties to spend up to $90 million nationally and give individual candidates a $800,000 limit.
Third parties - such as GetUp, Climate 200 or Advance - will be subject to a national cap of $11.2 million.
A spokesman for Special Minister of State Don Farrell said the reforms were designed to "limit the influence of big money in our politics".
The new reforms also come with annual administrative assistance funding of $30,000 for MPs and $15,000 for senators.
That means Labor is in line for $3.3 million extra in 2027 and the coalition $1.6 million, to ease compliance.
9°C