Explanatory Statement
Issued by the authority of the Chief Executive Officer of Austrade
Export Market Development Grants Act 1997
Export Market Development Grants (Information and Document Requirements) Amendment Determination 2015 (No. 1)
An instrument amending the Export Market Development Grants (Information and Document Requirements) Determination 2008 to refine the information and documents required to be submitted by applicants selecting grants option B.
Background
The Export Market Development Grants (Information and Document Requirements) Amendment Determination 2015 (No. 1) (the instrument) is made under section 73A of the Export Market Development Grants Act 1997 (the Act). It amends the Export Market Development Grants (Information and Document Requirements) Determination 2008 (the Determination). Under subsection 33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901, where an Act confers a power to make, grant or issue any instrument of a legislative or administrative character (including rules, regulations or by-laws), the power shall be construed as including a power exercisable in the like manner and subject to the like conditions (if any) to repeal, rescind, revoke, amend, or vary any such instrument.
Applicants in years three to eight of the export market development grants scheme can elect to have their grant calculated in one of two ways.
Grants option A is based on an export performance test, with the grant calculated as a percentage of export earnings, reducing as the applicant moves from years three to eight.
Applicants selecting grants option B must satisfy the Australian net benefit requirements test (section 7 of the Act). One of the reasons for grants option B is that there are companies whose operating environment does not allow them to generate export sales each year, and so cannot meet the grants option A test. Examples of these companies could include organisations with large 'lumpy' export transactions that may not occur each year, and organisations who took longer than two years to generate export sales, but that were still actively pursuing markets. Grants option B gives these organisations the opportunity to stay in the scheme.
Applicants selecting grants option B are required to provide additional information and documents under subsection 70(2C) of the Act. The CEO of Austrade must not consider an application that breaches subsection 70(2C) (subsection 73(3) of the Act). The Determination specifies the information and documents required for the purposes of subsection 70(2C). The CEO of Austrade requires the information and documents to maintain the integrity of the scheme by ensuring that Austrade supports genuine export businesses.
The instrument amends the Determination to:
- clarify that the audited statement of income should include income from all sources, including international sources; and
- remove the requirement that information provided in relation to future income be audited.
These changes are intended to make it easier for applicants selecting grants option B to provide the information and documents the CEO of Austrade requires to assess grant applications.
Reconsideration and Administrative Appeals Tribunal review rights exist in relation to any decision relating to an application for a grant (sections 97 to 99 of the EMDG Act).
The instrument is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
The Office of Best Practice Regulation has advised that a Regulation Impact Statement is not required (OBPR ID: 19213).
No consultation was undertaken in relation to the amendment. Consultation was not necessary because the amendment is minor or machinery in nature and does not substantially alter existing arrangements.
Details of the instrument
1 – Name
This section provides that the name of the instrument is the Export Market Development Grants (Information and Document Requirements) Amendment Determination 2015 (No. 1).
2 – Commencement
This section provides that the instrument commences on 1 July 2015.
3 – Schedule(s)
This section provides that each instrument specified in a Schedule to the instrument is amended or repealed as set out in the Schedule, and any other item in a Schedule has effect according to its terms.
Schedule 1 – Amendments
1 – Paragraph 4(1)(b)
This item amends the Determination by replacing paragraph 4(1)(b). The amendment makes the following changes:
- to avoid doubt, it has been clarified that the audited statement of income must include income received and income receivable from all sources, not merely international sources;
- the audited statement of income does not need to include income receivable for the year following the grant year; and
- instead of the audited statement addressing income receivable for the year following the grant year, applicants must provide an opinion of the applicant's export potential, based on:
- the applicant’s sales and revenue budgets for the year following the grant year;
- any correspondence that supports the projected export income; and
- a comparison of the applicant’s previous sales and revenue projections with actual results in those periods.
2 – After subsection 4(2)
This item inserts a new subsection 4(2A), providing that the opinion of the applicant's export potential must be a document prepared by a registered company auditor.
3 – After subsection 4(3)
This item inserts a new subsection 4(4), clarifying that the amendments made by the instrument do not apply to applications made in relation to the following grant years: 2009/10, 2010/11, 2011/12, 2012/13 and 2013/14. The previous provisions are taken to apply to these grant years.
The amendments made by the instrument apply to applications made in respect of grant years from and including the 2014/15 grant year.
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
This Amendment Determination is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.