Official dealings with the government must be undertaken with a fully established identity, this according to new laws that will take effect April 30 this year in New South Wales.

Approved by the NSW Parliament December last year, the new laws require persons to reveal their faces when securing legal affidavits or lodging legal documents and failure to do so merits considerable fines.

For government authorities and legal officers, a fine of $220 awaits them if they overlooked, deliberately or not, the now mandatory procedure of checking the identity of a person applying for a legal document.

The new regulation will complement earlier laws, also passed by NSW legislators last year, that allow state authorities to impose fines of up to $5500 on persons who refuse the removal of their face coverings even when politely requested by police or state officials.

The news laws specifically defined face coverings as religious veils, masks and motorcycle helmets - all of which must be removed when conducting legal businesses with the NSW government.

In a statement, NSW Attorney-General Greg Smith said on Monday that all legal applications before the NSW government will be governed by definitive identification procedures that justices of the peace and lawyers should observe.

Smith added that official information have been sent out in order for NSW authorities and the public to be fully aware of the new regulation, which will be followed through by dissemination drives to ensure that the laws will be known to everyone.

"If a person is wearing a face covering, an authorized witness should politely and respectfully ask them to show their face," Smith was reported by the Associated Press (AP) as saying on Monday.

Muslim advocates in NSW greeted the new laws with hopes that authorities will enforce them with utmost concern on religious and cultural sensibilities.

Australian Federation of Islamic Councils president Ikebal Patel has indicated that Australia's Muslim community understands the legal requirements of dealing with the various functions of the government.

As a state official, Patel told AP that he is inclined to seek definitive proof of identity before becoming witness to legal documents, adding that revealing the face of a female Muslim could become part of the whole process.

Muslim woman, he added, could follow the new laws without much of an issue by simply seeking for female justice or police officials - to whom they can reveal their faces then and not create any religious complications.

"I don't object as long as the laws are enforced with respect and sensitivity," the Muslim advocate told AP.

The new NSW laws serve as the first in Australia, which counts some half-a-million Muslims living in the country, that could impact on the religious practices of Australian Muslims, with the likelihood that other states would adopt similar regulations soon.