In early 1943, the 2/2nd was brought back to Australia to fight several campaigns against the Japanese. The first of these came in September 1943 when the battalion landed east of Lae in New Guinea and then took part in the advance to secure the town, which fell within a fortnight. This was followed by fighting on the Huon Peninsula, which saw the battalion undertake an amphibious landing at Scarlet Beach and then take part in actions around Finschhafen, Sattelberg and Sio until it was withdrawn back to Australia in early 1944. In mid-1945, the machine gunners from the 2/2nd supported landings on Tarakan, Labuan and Brunei Bay as part of Allied efforts to recapture Borneo. After the war, the battalion was disbanded in February 1946.