ASIC Proposed Industry Funding Model

On 20 April 2016, the Government announced that it would introduce an industry funding model for the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to recover ASIC’s regulatory costs though annual levies and fees-for-service on industry, commencing in the second half of 2017.

As a result of consultation with industry and other stakeholders, the following has been released for further consultation:

  • ASIC Supervisory Cost Recovery Levy Bill 2017 – imposes a levy on persons regulated by ASIC to recover its regulatory costs;
  • ASIC Supervisory Cost Recovery Levy (Collection) Bill 2017 – empowers ASIC to collect the levy and requires entities to submit returns annually so that ASIC is able to calculate the levy; and
  • ASIC Supervisory Cost Recovery Levy (Consequential and Transitional) Bill 2017 – makes necessary consequential amendments to other Acts such as repealing certain other cost recovery arrangements that ASIC’s Industry Funding Model will replace.

In short, entities that are regulated by ASIC will be required to pay a levy that will recover ASIC’s regulatory costs for a financial year from entities that were regulated in that financial year. It is payable by entities in the following financial year once ASIC has issued them a notice setting out their liability for the levy.

Draft regulations have also been released providing some of the details of who pays what and how it will be calculated. More than one levy can apply depending on the type of entity and its activities.

To request a full summary of the issues email us a request at [email protected].

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