EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Mutual Recognition Act 1992
Automatic Mutual Recognition (Victoria) (Notification Requirement– Building, Plumbing, Architecture and Land Surveying industries) Amendment Determination 2022
This explanatory statement provides notes on the operation of the Automatic Mutual Recognition (Victoria) (Notification Requirement– Building, Plumbing, Architecture and Land Surveying industries) Amendment Determination 2022 (the ‘Amendment Determination’). This Determination amends the Automatic Mutual Recognition (Victoria) (Notification Requirement– Building, Plumbing, Architecture and Land Surveying industries) Determination 2021 (the ‘Principal Determination’).
The specific provisions in the Amendment Determination are outlined in Attachment A. The information in the explanatory statement is an aid to understanding the Amendment Determination and should not be substituted for the Amendment Determination.
Context and purpose
Part 3A of the Mutual Recognition Act 1992 of the Commonwealth (the MRA) provides for the automatic mutual recognition of occupational registrations (AMR). AMR will provide an entitlement for an individual to carry on an activity in a second State, under the registration covering the activity in their home State through Automatic Deemed Registration (ADR).
Part 3A of the MRA provides for the making of a determination that requires a person who intends to carry on an activity in reliance of ADR to notify the local registration authority for the occupation before the person begins to carry on the activity. The Legislation Act 2003 of the Commonwealth provides for the making of legislative instruments.
Summary
The Amendment Determination amends the Principal Determination to reflect changes in the commencement dates for notification requirements in relation to certain occupations. The Amendment Determination is necessary owing to a decision of the Victorian government to exempt certain registrations from the operation of AMR under section 42S of the MRA because of significant risk to consumer protection and the health or safety of the public. The Amendment Determination makes the following changes:
- From 1 July 2022, building inspectors and registered plumbers (except any person intending to carrying out activities covered by any class of gasfitting work[1], roofing (stormwater), fire protection and mechanical services) must provide the relevant regulator with a notification prior to commencing work under ADR.
- From 1 July 2023, building surveyors, all classes of licensed plumber and registered plumbers in any class of gasfitting work, roofing (stormwater), fire protection and mechanical services must provide the relevant regulator with a notification prior to commencing work under ADR.
Through the Principal Determination, as amended by the Amendment Determination, the Minister for Planning, Victoria requires a person to notify a local registration authority before the person begins to rely on automatic deemed registration to carry out the activity under the occupation in Victoria. The Principal Determination is for the period 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2031.
Consultation
Consultation on the Amendment Determination was undertaken between the dates of 1 November 2021 and 20 June 2022. Stakeholders consulted were as follows:
- Regulators
- Victorian Building Authority
- Building Industry Stakeholders
- Victorian Municipal Building Surveyors Group
- Plumbing Industry Stakeholders
- Master Plumbers Victoria
- Plumbing and Pipe Trades Employees Union Victoria
- Plumbing Advisory Council
The consultation supported adoption of a notification requirement for building practitioners and plumbing practitioners to ensure Victorian regulators have appropriate visibility of persons working in Victoria under an automatic deemed registration.
The Minister for Planning, Victoria is satisfied that the consultation undertaken is appropriate and practical for the purposes of making the Amendment Determination. The consultation drew on the knowledge of relevant subject matter experts and ensured that persons likely to be affected by the proposed Amendment Determination had an adequate opportunity to comment on its proposed content.
Attachment A
Details of the Mutual Recognition (Victoria) (Notification Requirement– Building, Plumbing, Architecture and Land Surveying industries) Amendment Determination 2022
Section 1 – Name
This section provides that this Determination is to be cited as the Mutual Recognition (Victoria) (Notification Requirement– Building, Plumbing, Architecture and Land Surveying industries) Amendment Determination 2022.
Section 2 – Commencement
This section provides the date on which the Amendment Determination comes into operation.
- Schedule 1, clause 1 of the Amendment Determination commences on 1 July 2022.
- Schedule 1, clause 2 of the Amendment Determination commences on 1 July 2023.
Section 3 – Authority
This section outlines the authority through which the Amendment Determination is made. The Amendment Determination is made under section 42J of the Mutual Recognition Act 1992 (Commonwealth).
Section 4 – Schedules
This section explains that each instrument that is specified in a Schedule is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned. Any other item in a Schedule to the Amendment Determination has effect according to its terms.
Schedule 1, Clause 1 – new Clause 6 – Notification requirement
This clause repeals clause 6 of the Principal Determination and inserts clause 6 from Schedule 1 of the Amendment Determination. The purpose of the clause is for registered architects, building practitioners (except a person referred to in clause 7(a)), a registered plumber (except a registered plumber referred to in clause 7(c)) and licensed land surveyors to provide the relevant regulator with a notification prior to commencing work in Victoria under ADR. New clause 6 is to take effect from 1 July 2022.
The Amendment Determination is made in accordance with paragraph 42J(4) of the MRA. A person intending to carry on at least one of the activities covered by the registrations listed in reliance on ADR must notify the local registration authority. This means that an individual cannot carry on the activity in Victoria without first providing notification. An individual may obtain the notification requirements through the local registration authority for the activity.
Schedule 1, Clause 2 – new Clause 7 – Notification requirement
This clause repeals clause 7 of the Principal Determination and inserts clause 7 from Schedule 1 of the Amendment Determination. The purpose of the clause is for registered building surveyors, licensed plumbers and a plumber registered in the classes referred to in clause 7(c) to provide the relevant regulator with a notification prior to commencing work in Victoria under ADR. New clause 7 is to take effect from 1 July 2023.
The Amendment Determination is made in accordance with paragraph 42J(4) of the MRA. A person intending to carry on at least one of the activities covered by the registrations or licences listed in reliance on ADR must notify the local registration authority. This means that an individual cannot carry on the activity in Victoria without first providing notification. An individual may obtain the notification requirements through the local registration authority for the activity.
Richard Wynne
Minister for Planning
[1] Relevant classes of gasfitting work are: gasfitting; Type A appliance conversion; Type A appliance servicing; Type B gasfitting; and Type B gasfitting advanced.