Voluntary assisted dying laws have passed in the ACT, with access limited to adults who have an advanced and progressive condition expected to cause death.
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The multi-step process, which includes multiple health assessments by practitioners, is built on the foundation that a person must have a decision-making capacity and act voluntarily.
Health professionals must discuss palliative care and treatment options.
Nurse practitioners on top of doctors will be able to assess and advise those looking to go ahead with the option of assisted dying but healthcare professionals will also have the right to conscientiously object to participating.
Palliative care will be prioritised and voluntary assisted dying will not become a replacement for it, the ACT government says.
"This legislation is about empowering individuals with a terminal illness ... to make choices that align with their values and preferences at the end of their lives," ACT Human Rights Minister Tara Cheyne said in a statement on Wednesday.
"It is a compassionate option in response to those facing intolerable suffering at the end of their lives which promotes autonomy and dignity."
Criminal offences will act as further safeguards to prevent patients from being pressured or forced to end their lives through the treatment.
The laws come into effect on November 3, 2025.
It passed the 25-member ACT Legislative Assembly on Wednesday with the support of Labor, the Greens and a handful of Liberal MPs, including Opposition Leader Elizabeth Lee.
The ACT and Northern Territory were blocked from legislating on euthanasia for a quarter of a century until Commonwealth laws were overturned in 2022.
All Australian states have passed voluntary assisted dying laws in various forms.
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