Free Fibre Upgrade (nbn® Fibre Connect)

nbn is extending fibre deeper into its network. Under the Fibre Connect program, selected addresses currently served by Fibre to the Node (FTTN) or Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) can upgrade to Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) — a full fibre-optic connection all the way into your home.

Why upgrade to full fibre?

  • Faster speeds — FTTP unlocks plans of up to 2000 Mbps with Neptune Internet, compared to the limits of copper-based FTTN and FTTC connections.
  • More reliable — full fibre no longer relies on the ageing copper telephone network, so it is less susceptible to faults, dropouts, and weather-related degradation.
  • Future-proof — fibre is upgradable as needs grow. nbn has trialled technologies capable of delivering speeds of up to 10 Gbps over the same fibre.

Am I eligible?

Enter your address on our sign-up page. If your address qualifies, you will see a "Free Fibre Upgrade Available" notice when choosing your plan — just tick "I want the free fibre upgrade" during checkout.

nbn installs the fibre upgrade free of charge when you commit to an eligible speed-tier plan for the first 12 months of your new FTTP connection. On both FTTN and FTTC addresses, a 100/20 Mbps or 100/40 Mbps plan (or faster) is required to order the fibre upgrade.

The 12-month commitment

The free installation is conditional on your upgraded FTTP service staying active on an eligible speed-tier plan for 12 months from activation. If, within those 12 months, you:

  • cancel your service,
  • change to another provider, or
  • downgrade below the minimum eligible speed tier,

nbn may charge Neptune Internet a $200 fibre upgrade early termination fee, which may be passed on to you. nbn does not always charge this fee.

Please be aware that when the fee is charged, it may apply regardless of the reason — including if you sell your home, move out, or otherwise no longer need the service at that address. Once the 12-month period is up, you may change plans, switch providers, or cancel without incurring the fee.

Full details are in our Terms of Service (clause 2.7) and Critical Information Summary.

How the installation works

  1. Transfer your existing service to us first — the fibre upgrade is ordered against an active Neptune Internet service. If your current FTTN or FTTC service is with another provider, you first need to transfer it to Neptune Internet (or sign up as a new customer) on an eligible speed-tier plan. Once your legacy service is with us, we can order the upgrade.
  2. We book your installation — we book an installation appointment with nbn. In some cases it may take multiple appointments to complete the upgrade (see "If more work is needed" below).
  3. Installation appointment — an nbn technician installs the new equipment inside and outside your premises. The appointment usually takes 2–4 hours, and someone over 18 must be present for the entire appointment to provide access and consent.
  4. Activation — once the physical installation is complete, we activate your new fibre service, typically the same day. Your existing connection keeps working during the switch, so you are not left offline.

If more work is needed (external shortfall)

Sometimes the fibre cannot be brought to your premises in a single visit. Where there is an external shortfall — for example, civil works may be required to trench a new pathway, clear or repair a blocked conduit, or extend the fibre from the street — nbn will schedule the additional work separately. In these cases, the upgrade may take 2–3 appointments to complete. We will keep you updated on the progress of your order throughout.

What gets installed

  • An nbn utility box on an outside wall, usually near your existing telecommunications utility box at the front of the premises.
  • An nbn connection box (Network Termination Device) inside your premises, which must be within 1.2 metres of a power outlet. Your router plugs into this box.
  • Fibre cabling from the street to your premises, following existing aerial or underground pathways where possible.

The nbn connection box and cabling remain the property of nbn and must stay at the premises if you move.

Preparing for installation day

  • Renting? You must have your landlord's permission before installation day — the work typically requires drilling and sometimes digging.
  • Secure your pets so the technician has safe access.
  • Prepare for a short outage — power and internet may need to be switched off for 30–60 minutes during the installation.
  • If you'd like the connection box in a specific spot, the technician will accommodate reasonable requests within nbn's guidelines — see "Fibre cable pathways" below for what to do if your preference falls outside them.

Fibre cable pathways (where applicable)

The fibre needs a physical pathway from the street to the nbn utility box outside your premises, and from there to the connection box inside. The nbn technician will always offer at least one installation option that complies with nbn's installation guidelines and doesn't require you to build anything yourself.

In some cases, however, a customer-installed fibre cable pathway may be needed or preferred — for example, if you want the cabling to take a route that falls outside nbn's standard guidelines, or existing pathways at your property can't be used. In that situation, you can provide your own pathway at your own expense:

  • a lead-in conduit from the property entry point (where the cable enters from the street) to the nbn utility box; and/or
  • an in-premises conduit from the nbn utility box to the nbn connection box.

Customer-installed pathways must meet nbn's technical requirements (conduit type, depth, bends, and clearances from other services), which are set out in nbn's cable pathways factsheet. nbn recommends engaging a registered cabler for this work. Importantly, nbn strongly recommends you do not build an underground lead-in pathway without first getting guidance from an nbn technician at an appointment — in some circumstances nbn cannot use an underground lead-in even if it is built to specification. Once your pathway is installed, let us know and we will arrange for nbn to complete the installation.

Getting the most out of your new fibre connection

Your in-home setup matters as much as the connection itself:

  • Place your router in an open, elevated, uncluttered spot, close to where you use the internet most, and away from interference sources such as microwaves, cordless phones, and thick masonry walls.
  • Check your router's Wi-Fi generation — a router older than about five years may bottleneck a fast fibre plan. Wi-Fi 6 (up to ~1 Gbps) or Wi-Fi 7 (over 1 Gbps) is recommended for high-speed plans.
  • For larger or multi-storey homes, consider a mesh network or Ethernet cabling to rooms where you need the most performance.

Useful nbn resources

Ready to go full fibre? Check your address to see if your home is eligible.