Change coming: what you need to know for the new financial year

From a 'bumper month' for cheaper medicines, to power prices changes and anti-scam protection, here are some of the biggest changes that will impact you.

Gone are the days Woolworths and Coles can jack up their prices to make a quick buck at the expense of struggling consumers.

From July 1, if either of the two are found to charge "excessive" prices (compared to what it actually costs them) they could face $10 million or more in fines.

It comes after both Woolworths and Coles were taken to the Federal Court by Australia's consumer watchdog over misleading discount claims.

Coles was found to have misled consumers over their "Down Down" promotion, advertising prices as reduces (even though the prices were high that originally advertised).

Woolies went though a similar court case with the ACCC over the "Prices Dropped" claims, but is awaiting judgement.

Ten new drugs have been added to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), while an extra 1.8 million Aussies will become eligible for a free pneumonia and meningitis vaccine.

Minister for Health and Ageing, Mark Butler, said July was a "bumper month" for cheaper meds.

"By adding and expanding access to these medicines on the PBS, eligible patients will pay a maximum of $25 per script, or just $7.70 with a concession card," Butler said.

"These medicines will give Australians with cancer and chronic conditions more treatment options to manage their health and provide vital financial relief to Australians battling these conditions."

Drugs to treat uncontrolled asthma, Type 1 diabetes mellitus, a rare and aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphomas, Myasthenia gravis (a chronic neuromuscular disease), lung caner, early breast cancer, a rare cancer of the bile ducts and kids with growth hormone deficiency will be able to save a fortune on their health.

The eligibility age for the pneumococcal vaccine (which can cause pneumonia, septicaemia, meningitis and middle ear infections) will be lowered to 65.

Eligibility will also extend to adults with chronic liver disease and COPD, as well as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults aged 25 and over.

Your text messages may look a little different in the new financial year, after new rules from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) come into play.

It's to stamp out scammers by marking all businesses and organisations who have not registered with ACMA as "Unverified".

The only downside is critical messages from healthcare providers or other legitimate services may be missed if they are yet to sign up their details.

"Australians rely on text messages every day for important updates whether it's a medical appointment, a bill or a school alert and those messages could stop getting through if businesses don't register their sender IDs," a spokesperson for Vodafone said.

Texts using registered sender IDs life AusPost or myGov will continue to appear individually with their registered name.

Last year Australians lost nearly $18 million to SMS scams, with many of those messages masquerading as major brands, according to the ACMA.

Fair Work is enforcing the minimum wage under awards be lifted by about six per cent from July 1, applying to the first full pay period after this date.

The National Minimum Wage will be lifted from $24.95 per hour to $26.44 per hour or $1,004.90 per week (based on a 38-hour week). However, some awards may pay less (like if they contain an introductory rate for new employees to the industry).

If you think you're not getting paid correctly, Fair Work has an online calculator to work out what your rate of pay should be. Visit: calculate.fairwork.gov.au/FindYourAward

Taxpayers earning $45,000 or more will get a yearly tax saving of $236, while lower earners will receive a smaller pro-rata benefit.

While the lowest marginal tax bracket drops from 16 per cent down to 15 per cent for those earning between $18,201 and $45,000.

You don't need to do anything to claim it; the savings will automatically start trickling into your take-home pay via adjusted PAYG withholding.

Employers will be required to pay your superannuation contributions within seven days of when they pay your salary, rather than quarterly.

By putting money directly into your super fund weekly or fortnightly instead of every three months, the money starts investing and compounding significantly sooner (meaning more money for you).

The Australian Energy Regulator (AER) is dropping its safety net prices, through its Default Market Offer (DMO).

The DMO acts as a government-regulated safety net meant to cap what retailers can charge customers on standing offers.

The catch - consumer advocates warn energy retailers may bypass this by increasing fixed daily fees (essentially exploiting loyal customers who have been with them a long time).

To read more from The Senior about what to do so you're not caught out with a higher power bill, CLICK HERE.